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A Greatly Underrated Sonata
[http://www.webspawner.com/users/pfrydryk/
The Piano Sonata No. 1 in C minor, Op. 4, by Frederic Chopin, is a highly underrated work. Rarely played, it is discarded by the majority of pianists in favor of the other two piano sonatas which are great, indeed.
To make the heretical claim that the first sonata is as good as the second and third would be a mistake. Yet there is great beauty to be found in this juvenile work, written in 1828, when Chopin was just 18. This first sonata foreshadows the next two sonatas and Chopin's other great works. It is amazingly coherent (one hears the first movement in the last movement and vice versa). This sonata also features Chopin's own style of freedom of movement, i.e., 2 against 5, 4 against 11, etc. These devices are seen in the third movement, the Larghetto, which is also written in 5/4 time, a daring thing in those days.
This first piano sonata of Chopin deserves a decent place in the Chopin repertoire. To date, it is still little known, and this should not be.--Pfrydryk 10:37, 4 March 2007 (EST)Fran Cummings, Pianist
Does anyone know where I can download a free recording of this piece?
Fulping
Added details. --Aewanko 21:21, 18 July 2008 (EDT)
