Beethoven Piano Sonata Cycle

The pianist Nicholas Angelich takes his turn as LSO St Luke's Beethoven Piano Sonata Cycle continues with Piano Sonata No 2 in A, Op 2 No 2; and Piano Sonata No 16 in G, Op 31 No 1. (Note: dedicated to Haydn, Op 2 No 2 demonstrates Beethoven's treatment of his musical ideas as more flexible, fragmentary motifs rather than sculpting them into over-arching themes. Then, Op 31 documents Beethoven's almost stubbornly conservative response to an admirer's request that he write something 'revolutionary' – but he felt an inflammatory sonata would cause further political upset in comparatively peaceful times, post-revolution.)