Keyboard Sonata in A Major

Scarlatti headed his A major sonata K208 Adagio e cantabile (slow and singing) which unlocks important clues about its style. On paper, the left-hand part looks basic, with just four chords per bar. The right hand, though, uses this pulse as an underlying heartbeat from which to expressively deviate—with a melody full of off-beat figures (syncopation) which move while the left hand is still. Time and again the expected trajectory of the melody is elastically circumvented. This texture, a singing melody with simple accompaniment, is reminiscent of the traditional sonata for violin or flute and harpsichord, some of which Scarlatti did indeed transform into purely keyboard sonatas. Where he adds extra musical value here is in the note clusters of the left hand, and the piquant harmonies which spread through both hands. The intimate, soul-searching beauty of Scarlatti’s rarer, slow sonatas like this has often been overshadowed by the popularity of his more obviously impressive, virtuoso pieces.