BEETHOVEN, Ludwig van
Piano Sonata No. 31 in A-flat major, Op. 110
III. Adagio, ma non troppo (Arioso dolente)
Joaquín Soriano, guest professor
Cathal Breslin, student
At the beginning of the movement, the large leap from one note to the next should be made as legato as possible, attacking the second note less. They work on it so that the student can hear very well how to do it. Professor Soriano then makes some recommendations on fingering: use the 5th finger, because it is the stable part of the hand when you have a chord, then go up with the 4th. Next, Soriano points out not to play troppo appasionato: with passion but not excessively. Later, the student should avoid holding a certain note; they should lift the finger because otherwise it sounds dirty, and mixing harmonies is terrible.
To conclude, the professor instructs the student to pay more attention to the fact that this Adagio is “ma non troppo”, so that it is not too slow and superficial. It is not a sonata that the student has been preparing for a long time, and that time is necessary to integrate it and find a deep and less timid sound. All the indications written by Beethoven in this movement lead to playing with a specific emotion, and that is what the student should seek, avoiding it sounding boring.
Language: English
