From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Jump to: navigation, search

Frdric Chopin composed his Piano Sonata No. 2 in B-flat minor, Op. 35 mainly in 1839 at
Nohant near Chateauroux in France, although the third movement, which comprises the funeral
march had been composed as early as 1837.

The sonata consists of four movements.

1. Grave; Doppio movimento

2. Scherzo
3. Marche funbre: Lento
4. Finale: Presto

The first movement features a stormy opening theme and a gently lyrical second theme. The
second movement is a virtuoso scherzo with a more relaxed melodic central section. The third
movement begins and ends with the celebrated funeral march in B flat minor which gives the
sonata its nickname, but has a calm interlude in D flat major. The finale contains a whirlwind of
unison notes with unremitting (not a single rest or chord until the final bars) unvarying tempo or
dynamics (changes of volume); James Huneker, in his introduction to the American version of
Mikuli edition of the Sonatas, quotes Chopin as saying "The left hand unisono with the right
hand are gossiping after the March". Others have remarked that the fourth movement is "wind
howling around the gravestones".

The Sonata confused contemporary critics who found it lacked cohesion. Robert Schumann
suggested that Chopin had in this sonata "simply bound together four of his most unruly
children." (See Schirmer's modern reprint of the Mikuli edition)

Contents
[hide]

1 Funeral March
2 Influences
3 References
4 Further reading
5 External links

[edit] Funeral March

As noted above, the 3rd movement is structured as a funeral march played with a Lento interlude.
While the term "funeral march" is perhaps a fitting description of the 3rd movement, complete
with the Lento interlude in D flat major, "Chopin's Funeral March" is used commonly to describe
only the funeral march proper (in B flat minor). The "funeral march" has become well known in
popular culture. It was also used at the state funerals of John F. Kennedy and those of Soviet
leaders, including Leonid Brezhnev. It was transcribed for full orchestra by the English
composer Sir Edward Elgar in 1933 and its first performance was at his own memorial concert
the next year. It was played at the graveside during Chopin's own burial at Pre Lachaise
cemetery in Paris. [1]

[edit] Influences
The sonata's opening bars allude to Beethoven's Piano Sonata No. 32, Op. 111, his last. The basic
sequence of scherzo, funeral march with trio, and animated, resolving finale, repeats that of
Beethoven's Piano Sonata no. 12 A-flat major. Though Chopin's first movement is written in
sonata form while Beethoven's first movement is a set of variations on an original theme. Chopin
was known to have admired these two Beethoven sonatas[2].

Traduccion

Las caracteristicas del primer movmiento son como tema tormentoso, y un segundo tema
amablemente lirico. En el piano sonata no.32 op111 de Beethoven chopin copia los movimientos
aludiendo a este aunque, El primer movimiento de chopin esta escrito en forma sonata mientras que el
primer movimiento debeethoven esta escrito sobre un tema con varaciones.

1. Grave; Doppio movimento

2. Scherzo
3. Marche funbre: Lento
4. Finale: Presto