di Minuetto is a little tedious, whilst the first and last movements, though vigorous and well varied in mood, by no means give us the deep Beethoven of the C minor Sonata. The scoring of many of the passages is unusually thin, and reminiscent of Haydn not at his best.
9th Sonata Opus 47, in A.
Dedicated to Rudolph Kreutzer.
Adagio—Presto—Andante con variazioni—Presto.
Though absurdly over-estimated, perhaps on account of Tolstoy's stupid novel, this still remains one of the great masterpieces in music. Commissioned by a Mulatto violinist named Bridgetower, and written, as the original title-page says, "in a specially brilliant style," it was first given at 8 o'clock on a May morning in 1803 in the Augarten at Vienna, with Beethoven at the piano and Bridgetower with the violin. The Sonata opens with a majestic introduction, ending on a dominant pause. Tradition has it that Bridgetower improvised a cadenza here and that Beethoven approved. Amongst the whirl and excitement of the bold and vigorous opening Presto, the hymn-like second subject stands out with a marvellous way. Nothing is lost of the tender-
