Description
The second movement of Sonata Hob.XVI:27 is an elegant minuet. A dance movement placed after the lively first movement, it reflects a layout often found in Haydn's sonatas, with a minuet rather than a slow movement in the middle.
In G major and 3/4, the melody moves plainly with little ornament, and the trio that follows turns to a shadowed expression leaning towards the minor, creating contrast. After the trio the minuet returns, following the standard layout of the dance. The key to playing it is keeping the triple-time dance rhythm while gently rounding off the end of each phrase.
It is rated intermediate, but with 648 notes it is lighter than the first movement, and asks you to shape changes of expression within a settled tempo. The range covers four octaves, D2 to D6, and fits on a 61-key keyboard. Loop the point where minuet and trio meet with the A-B loop and practise the shift from brightness into shadow. Slowing the playback also makes it easier to hear how each phrase is brought to rest.
Piano sonatas from Haydn's output of roughly 60, important works that helped shape the development of the Classical sonata.
Browse all songs in Piano Sonatas →Sheet Music
Sheet music provided by Mutopia Project
About the Composer
Franz Joseph Haydn (1732-1809)
Franz Joseph Haydn was a leading Classical-era composer from Austria who spent much of his career in service to the Esterhazy family. Often called the "father of the symphony" and the "father of the string quartet," he helped establish the Viennese Classical style with clear forms and witty invention. His numerous keyboard sonatas also served as a bridge to Mozart and Beethoven. This site includes every movement of the Sonatas Hob. XVI:27 and XVI:28.
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