Beethoven's Sonata In Beethoven

Not only are the interactions between the characters identical, the notes of Beethoven’s sonata also reflect the notes in Mozart’s. The two pieces begin with a forte C minor chord, establishing the bold and powerful tone of the first character. The notes of the first two measures are meant to jump from one to the next with a strong, downward motion on the piano keys. This kind of motion creates the anger that can be heard in the music. Continuing on, the phrase builds up to an E flat, followed by filler rests that set the stage for the second character to enter. It sings a C minor triad at a piano dynamic, finishing the phrase with a diminished 7th in the Mozart and a dominant 7th in the Beethoven. The unresolved chords allow for the reappearance of the first character, who belts out the melody with the same arpeggiated motif from before, but this time in the dominant major—G major. Once again, the quieter character follows, this time resolving the phrase to a C minor chord. As seen in these two pieces, Beethoven copied the notes and story told in Mozart’s sonata. The characters created are close replicas and line up precisely, which demonstrates Mozart’s huge influence on Beethoven’s First Sonata.

There are several other smaller elements that Beethoven borrowed from Mozart’s sonata. Mozart employed contrasting dynamics to produce a more dramatic mood, which Beethoven copied to create drama between his characters. His angry character stays at a forte (loud) throughout the