Valentina Lisitsa, piano - Beethoven, Appassionata - Piano Sonata No. 23 in F minor, opus 57 - Movement 3 (Allegro ma non troppo - Presto) ~ Rehearsal run before recital in Musikverein, Vienna ~ *** On Tuesday, the picturesque village of St. Paul was the site of a stunning performance of Beethoven's Sonata Op. 57 (Appassionata). The performer was Valentina Lisista, a supermodel-slim Ukrainian with golden locks who is marketing herself as a romantic. The label might not do her full justice. Passionate as this Appassionata was, its real distinction lay in its rhythmic steadiness and epic architecture.This was a superb illustration of Beethoven's joint mastery of the classical and romantic ideals. It was impressive also on the technical level. The cascading arpeggios of the first movement were brilliant and the semiquavers that motor the finale were admirably distinct. (The Gazette) *** Ludwig van Beethoven's Piano Sonata No. 23 in F minor, opus 57, colloquially known as the Appassionata, is considered one of the three great piano sonatas of his middle period (the others being the Waldstein sonata, opus 53 and Les Adieux, Opus 81a). It was composed during 1803, 1804, 1805, and perhaps 1806, and is dedicated to Count Franz von Brunswick. The first edition was published in February 1807 in Vienna. Unlike the early Sonata No. 8, Pathétique[1], the Appassionata was not named during the composer's lifetime, but was so labeled in 1838 by the publisher of a four-hand arrangement of the work. The Appassionata was considered by Beethoven to be his most tempestuous piano sonata until the Hammerklavier, being described as a "brilliantly executed display of emotion and music". 1803 was the year Beethoven came to grips with his complete deafness. An average performance of all three movements of the Appassionata sonata lasts about 23 minutes. The Appassionata has three movements: 1. Allegro assai 2. Andante con moto - attacca 3. Allegro ma non troppo - Presto
