Haydn, Vol. 1: Piano Sonatas 35-38

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Description

Joseph Haydn was born on March 31, 1732, in Rohrau, Austria, and became one of the most foundational figures in the history of Western music. As the principal architect of the Classical style, he played a defining role in establishing the forms and conventions — the sonata, the string quartet, the symphony — that would shape European music for generations. His keyboard music, though sometimes overshadowed by the towering piano works of his contemporaries Mozart and Beethoven, reveals a composer of remarkable wit, elegance, and structural ingenuity, and the sonatas in particular reward close listening with their endless variety of invention.

Keyboard Sonatas Nos. 35 through 38 belong to a group of works composed in the early 1770s, a period of considerable creative vitality in Haydn's output. Each sonata follows the standard three-movement structure of the Classical period — an opening movement of moderate or brisk character, a slower lyrical middle movement, and a lively finale — yet within that framework Haydn finds room for a remarkable range of expression. The Sonata No. 35 in A-Flat Major opens with a graceful Moderato before moving through a stately Menuetto and closing with a fleet, dancing Rondo, while the Sonata No. 36 in C Major balances a crisp opening Allegro against a deeply singing Adagio and a brilliantly energetic Presto finale. The Sonata No. 37 in E Major is notable for the warmth and lyricism of its Andante, one of the most songful slow movements in the set, and the Sonata No. 38 in F Major brings the collection to a close with characteristic charm and rhythmic vitality.

What defines these sonatas above all is the quality of Haydn's musical thinking — his ability to derive an entire movement from a single compact idea, developing and transforming it with a logic that feels both inevitable and full of surprise. Lighter in emotional weight than the late sonatas, these four works show Haydn at his most approachable and immediate, their crisp phrase structures and bright, dancing finales offering a window into the elegant and endlessly inventive world of Classical keyboard writing at its finest.

Track List:

1. Keyboard Sonata No. 35 in A-Flat Major, Hob. XVI, 43: I. Moderato - 5:54
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2. Keyboard Sonata No. 35 in A-Flat Major, Hob. XVI, 43: II. Menuetto - 2:14
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3. Keyboard Sonata No. 35 in A-Flat Major, Hob. XVI, 43: III. Rondo - Presto - 4:32
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4. Keyboard Sonata No. 36 in C Major, Hob. XVI, 21: I. Allegro - 5:52
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5. Keyboard Sonata No. 36 in C Major, Hob. XVI, 21: II. Adagio - 4:28
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6. Keyboard Sonata No. 36 in C Major, Hob. XVI, 21: III. Finale - Presto - 2:44
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7. Keyboard Sonata No. 37 in E Major, Hob. XVI, 22: I. Allegro moderato - 5:27
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8. Keyboard Sonata No. 37 in E Major, Hob. XVI, 22: II. Andante - 4:05
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9. Keyboard Sonata No. 37 in E Major, Hob. XVI, 22: III. Finale - Tempo di menuet - 3:32
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10. Keyboard Sonata No. 38 in F Major, Hob. XVI, 23: I. Moderato - 4:58
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11. Keyboard Sonata No. 38 in F Major, Hob. XVI, 23: II. Adagio - 4:57
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12. Keyboard Sonata No. 38 in F Major, Hob. XVI, 23: III. Finale - Presto - 2:13
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13. Total Runtime - 50:56