Piano Sonata No. 10 in G Major

This modestly proportioned Sonata, composed in 1799, is notable for its touches of gentle humour. The main idea of the opening “Allegro” is a case in point—a sequence of smoothly articulated semiquavers in which it is initially difficult to tell where the main beat of the bar occurs. To counteract this feeling of rhythmic ambiguity, a contrasting idea, with sweetly expressive melodic patterns in the right hand, is much more symmetrical in shape. The central slow movement is a set of three variations on a playful march-like theme. Near the close, Beethoven reprises part of the opening theme very quietly before shattering the peace with a final crashing fortissimo chord. More witty moments abound in the ensuing scherzo finale (“Allegro assai”). Once again, Beethoven disrupts any sense of rhythmic regularity in the opening idea, and delights in teasing the listener with frequent pauses and unexpected harmonic twists.