Igor Stravinsky ‒ Piano Sonata in F-Sharp Minor

Igor Stravinsky (1882 - 1971), Piano Sonata in F-Sharp Minor (1903 - 1904)
Performed by Victor Sangiorgio
00:00 - No. 1 Allegro
10:52 - No. 2 Scherzo
15:45 - No. 3 Andante
21:29 - No. 4 Allegro - Andante
Composing at the piano was a life-long preoccupation for Stravinsky, whose music for the instrument spanned a forty-year period, and reflected his distinct stylistic changes, his associated domestic and financial status and the geo-political situations in which he lived. Thus, prior to his trilogy of pre-war Russian ballets, his piano music up to 1908 might be regarded largely as imitative and can be viewed very much through the lens of other composers. It was as a twenty-year-old law student at St Petersburg University that Stravinsky first showed his earliest piano pieces to Rimsky-Korsakov - whose son Vladimir was there also as a law student. In the agitated rhythms of the modest ternary form Scherzo in G minor of 1902 Stravinsky shows considerable promise and, in its harmonic vocabulary, a debt to Tchaikovsky.
A year later Stravinsky began his ambitious four-movement Piano Sonata in F sharp minor, turning again to Rimsky-Korsakov for help when his inexperience of large-scale structures led him into difficulties with its formal organization. Here, Tchaikovsky and also Glazunov are influences although Stravinsky recalls of this early sonata in later years that it was ‘an inept imitation of Beethoven’. Possibly this first effort points more to a composer attempting to use traditional Germanic models for his own ends, rather than any direct borrowing of Beethoven. While there are, of course, no specific traces of Beethoven, one can hear in the sonata’s outer movements a dramatic weight and, if a little uncharitably, a certain failure to foreshorten over-used material. It is, however, in the infectious Vivo and elegant charm of the Andante (with its echoes of Rachmaninov) that supporters of this posthumously published work will be found.

[@SJ-gy2rf]

After hearing The Rite of Spring I can't believe Stravinsky wrote this (although this is one of his earlier works).

[@Medtnaculuss]

+Samreet Juneja The amount of styles he wrote in is insane. If you give The Fairy's Kiss a listen you'd never guess it was a work by him!

[@Snafuski]

And his Tango... it sounds like after a boozy night with Piazzolla

[@twilbry7807]

I'd recommend Stravinsky's Op.1 for you, especially the movement 1, 2, 4.

[@richardhoffman4683]

Recommended, just for starters: Immediately after listening to the "Rite", listen, in the following order, to: the opening of Apollon Musagete, Ragtime for 11 instruments, the first scene of Persephone, the fourth movement from the Duo Concertant, Scherzo a la Russe, the epilogue to Rake's Progress, the Aldous Huxley Variations, the first two movements of the Divertimento from "The Fairy's Kiss", the Agnus Dei from the Mass, and the end of Pulcinella, and you'll get just an inkling of the variety of styles in which Stravinsky composed. This is just for starters. Whole works I recommend include Les Noces, the Symphonies of Wind Instruments, Oedipus Rex, the Symphony of Psalms, Violin Concerto, Symphony in 3 Movements, the entire Mass, the Septet, the Gesualdo motets, and the Requiem Cantlcles.

[@Linkin047]

Wow! The longer you stay with this, the better it gets!

[@tuberobotto]

This is surprisingly beautiful and refreshing. Stravinsky was indeed a great composer.

[@MaestroTJS]

More like Strachmaninoff/Tchaivinsky/Scriavinsky.

[@pianomanhere]

Maestro_T lol. Perfect coinages !

[@Tizohip]

Chopinsky

[@Tizohip]

Maestro_T 4:36 chopin sonata 1..

[@nikoletaradulovic9733]

It is also very similar to Schumann's works.

[@accipiterignitus5123]

How about Lisztsky

[@LukeFaulkner]

I think I've found where Prokofiev got the idea for his 1st sonata...

[@Zdrange03]

Thought the same too

[@Scriabinfan593]

I would’ve never guessed that Stravinsky wrote this! He’s a very versatile composer 😳

[@TheJamesalden]

It is hard to believe that Stravinsky composed this, even though it must have quite early in his career because it reminds me, a little...of early Scriabin...but so nice to hear, though...THANK YOU!!!....

[@cedricrlongreen]

That's what I was thinking

[@timothythorne9464]

I'm not a fan of Stravinsky but if he composed more music like this I could get a the band wagon. It's late Romantic like Rachmaninoff with some Scriabin qualities as well.

[@giovannibattistaboccardo1410]

I see that this sonata is very surprising for most of the listeners here; and it's true that's absolutely different from the more famous Strawinsky's Rite of Spring.... but it's nice to see how much he mastered the old language of composition before try something different. I suggest the marvelous symphony in e flat (op.1) if you don't already know! Cheerss

[@Whatismusic123]

this is no "mastery" this is a work of student level at best. incredibly incompetent structure.

[@felipededeus3177]

@@Whatismusic123 since you think this is the student's scheme and that it is incompetent music, please, do better.

[@Whatismusic123]

@@felipededeus3177 I already have. The entire idea of "do better than this" is ridiculous when speaking of stravinsky's music, because even just a short choral harmonization is infinitely more clear structurally than this crap.

[@felipededeus3177]

@@Whatismusic123 understand. Although the structure is simple, this piece is crap for you, since for the majority it is beautiful and will never be crap in the eyes of the history of universal music

[@Whatismusic123]

@@felipededeus3177 to whom is it brautiful? Isn't beauty subjective? By all means this does not have many of the qualities which people would deem as "beauty". Try listening to music *for music* not for beauty, emotional satisfaction, or delusion. Then you'll understand what stravinsky really is.

[@paulamrod537]

A wonderful recitation of late romantic with a modern touch which brought the best out of a 21 Year old Stravinsky.

[@Finger112]

Yep, he started out in this style for a few works being Late-Romantic, but it was really the Firebird (and a few works just before this) which were evolving into his early 20th century style) that accelerated him towards the new era of music in the 20th century. hist Op.2 and Op.3 are very much in this style as well.

[@nathanhol42001]

Thank you for that detailed and insightful description!

[@PieInTheSky9]

This is very similar to many other Russian composer's early sonatas at the time. Prokofiev sonata 1, and Scriabin sonata 1 for example are very similar to this one.An interesting comparison.

[@sfd373]

Yes. I agree. Even The rising dum d'dum theme in the first movement reminds me of Prokofiev's first. Though I think it is used more concisely and successfully in Prokofiev's piece.

[@30foxpictures]

That's right :)

[@brynbstn]

I've noticed that too , and guessed they had the same professor at the conservatory who liked to assign this theme for a sonata composition assignment ...

[@fastfingers110]

yup, these were the times before music got really shitty

[@segmentsAndCurves]

@@fastfingers110 no

[@alessandropelizzoli6613]

The Spirit of the large themes by Glazunov, mixed up with deep, somber taste in harmonization created by young Strawinsky originated a great work, plenty of force and also full of late romantic angst, really fascinating and capable to have an influence also on the more distracted listeners....beautiful.

[@almasmusic683]

Только знакомлюсь с его творчеством и не жалею,очень свежо.

[@snowcarriagechengcheng-hun3454]

Thanks for uploading!

[@v.p.ohlson2414]

This very early sonata shows Stravinsky's developmental potential in full

[@keithfoester7326]

10:55 my theme song when i am home alone :3

[@paydentaylor]

Oh wow that is some RUSSIAN Stravinsky boy howdy. You can practically smell the residual Rimsky-Korsakov, wow. What a fun find, thank you!

[@dolcesfogato3223]

No one has mentioned the influence of Glazunov yet, very clear here.

[@user-qw6nn5ro7d]

What a gorgeous sonata

[@robkunkel8833]

It a delight to listen to while I read the Stephen Walsh book about this incredible composer. Watching the score as it is being played is especially invigorating. Thank you for this work and the two paragraph introduction. I subscribed. 🙏🏽

[@tigger3496]

It is amazing that Stravinsky can compose a sonata like this!It is very different from his style.This sonata sounds like Beethoven's work

[@Medtnaculuss]

+Ivan Leong It was believed to be lost for a long time, and Stravinsky wasn't too fond of the piece. "Stravinsky even referred to this piano sonata in his autobiography Memories and Commentaries as "the lost - fortunately lost - piano sonata", for he considered it was just an imitation of late Beethoven." I'd say it's a fantastic work though and we're very fortunate to have it!

[@tigger3496]

+Medtnaculus can't agree more!

[@TheInfiniteGigabyte]

+Medtnaculus I think there's also some Tchaikovsky influence in this work, and in my opinion an orchestrated version of the sonata would be a great thing

[@renep9968]

+Ivan Leong There is no 'his' style, considering the many styles he went trough during his lifetime. And there is even less Beethoven in this Sonata in my opinion.

[@SpaghettiToaster]

This sounds nothing like Beethoven.

[@dAvrilthebear]

So, it took him ten years to get from this to The Rite of Spring... It's a long way to the top, if you wanna stravinsky.

[@segmentsAndCurves]

Yet only a little if you compare it with the rest of his life.

[@niklausgaschen9858]

Dieses schöne spätromantiscbe Werk des 21-jährigen Strawinsky beweist dass er schon damals das Handwerk meisterhaft beherrschte, zumindest im Klavierbereich, wobei er sich ohne falsche Scham auf grosse, von ihm geliebte Vorbilder und Vorgänger bezieht (etwa auf Schumann, Brahms, Tschaikovski, Skrjabin).

[@robkunkel8833]

Walsh describes this sonata as “completely without noticeable individuality, it is a highly efficient exercise in prescribed forms and idioms, and a remarkable achievement, in purely compositional terms, for a student composer whose previous largest piece had scarcely exceeded five minutes in duration.” p81. Just thought I’d pass this along. Hope that’s okay. ❤️〰

[@DeflatingAtheism]

I agree. I can hear Stravinsky's voice even in his later neo-Classical and serialist works, but can't discern it here.

[@counterpoints_]

5:32 That's the Canadian Anthem right there.

[@charleshudson5330]

At 1:15 pure Rach. Quite lyrical in his youth. Aren't we all.

[@ariehchrem3067]

No

[@thewalmer7942]

Strong lyricality with that rich left hand scalic run, splendid

[@KrisKeyes]

The final movement is very similar to the second movement of Beethoven's 28th sonata, Op. 101. They have the same pervasive rhythm.

[@davide27111958]

thx a lot

[@a124947]

The scherzo would make a fun and obscure encore piece. It is hard to believe Stravinsky composed this piece. The first movement sections with the prevalent dotted rhythms reminds me oddly of MacDowell, while the more flowing sections sound a lot like Rachmaninov. The same kind of holds true in the last two movements as well.

[@garygreen3845]

Was glad to see your comment, as I too, thought of MacDowell! Influence is everything!

[@gabrielepetouchoff1998]

MASTERPIECE

[@christopherdunkak737]

This is really good, especially for a composer who wrote it in their early 20's. I read on Wikipedia how Stravinsky many years later described this music as "fortunately lost". I guess because he thought it was too imitative of Beethoven, Rachmaninov, and Scriabin? Which must've made him think its amateurish?

[@joelrosenbaum3384]

One composer whose name has, curiously, not been mentioned is Alexander Glazunov. Listen to the two Glazunov sonatas, written one after the other, in 1900. Stravinsky was absolutely aware of these and admired them. And the shape of his main theme in the first movement is identical to the one in the Glazunov First Sonata.

[@jimpenning1886]

Joel Rosenbaum Yes indeed. Pure Glazunow

[@kylej.whitehead-music309]

A valuable lesson to composers. Master the techniques and idioms of the old masters before going off the reservation, otherwise you're just noodling.

[@JohnJohn-ir5hw]

@Manu Petaia You make a fair request, Manu Petaia. I was about to puke after reading Kyle J. Whitehead's generic, rehashed, trivial comment. There's just too much "this is how it's done" yapping and jibberjabbish spewed all over these comments. Everyone tries to make themselves believe that they have a grip on things. If Kyle J. Whitehead can even explain who (everyone) a single phrase from this awesome piece - from where and whence Stravinsky's "mastery of old idioms" is rooted - I'd be surprised. So many typists think that the words that teachers spoke to them make them experts on the sounds of music if they repeat those teachers words. I've yet to encounter a "master" who willingly asserts that she/he has mastered anything (although I recall reading that Strauss was very proud of Thus Spoke Zarathustra).

[@segmentsAndCurves]

If this is the lesson, who is the teacher? (Don't tell me it's Stravinsky, it isn't)

[@kylegann8967]

One Beethovenian touch is the third movement in D major, in 6/8, with pedal points, rather reminiscent of the final movement of Beethoven's Op. 28 sonata.

[@alexandrestrawinski7581]

bon travail mon oncle! good work uncle!

[@user-bc9mn7gq2c]

Delighted to see a survivor of the great master. His Serenade for piano is certainly beautiful and wonderful -- original in style and pianistic in the best sense. Was I.S. an uncle or great uncle?

[@alexandrestrawinski7581]

@@user-bc9mn7gq2c he was an uncle, or great uncle, of my grand-father - it is getting a little far 😅

[@user-bc9mn7gq2c]

@@alexandrestrawinski7581 Understandable, since you seem to be still in le printemps de ta vie ! (Contrairement à moi ...)

[@alexandrestrawinski7581]

@@user-bc9mn7gq2c 1989

[@anthonycostine5067]

This is exquisite. There was no other composer writing music as innovative as this at the time.

[@baghirovali2361]

Quite similar to the Introduction of Brahm's Piano Sonata in f#moll

[@dcvao]

i love the final two chords

[@traceyjones7941]

This is pure Alexander Glazunov, despite thematic plagiarisms of early Scriabin/Prokofiev.

[@themusicalgerbil192]

The description appears to be referring to Stravinsky's later sonata from 1924, rather than this work...

[@Medtnaculuss]

Yeah you're right. No idea how this happened.

[@f1f1s]

Of course, the most obvious influence is Glazunov, but someone should notice that this sonata, in turn, had an influence on Blumenfeld, whose 1913 Sonata-Fantasia really borrows from this piece!

[@docbailey3265]

I keep waiting for C minor/E major combined, you know, the good part...

[@vladtepes3123]

First theme like a Brahms, second - Rachmaniniov, funy piece

[@zdl1965]

In many ways, this sounds like Tchaikovsky, its resemblance with the G major Grand Sonata being uncanny. My first exposure was Paul Crossley's Philips recording which astutely coupled both sonatas. Not vintage Stravinsky, but entertaining nonetheless.

[@prahamusic0194]

KRÁSNE A NIE DIVOKÉ AKO INÉ SKLADBY.

[@f.p.2010]

Theme of the third movement is almost a carbon copy of one of the two Gutrune motifs from Wagner's Götterdämmerung

[@malcolmnicoll1165]

Like his contemporary Picasso, Stravinsky was multi dimensional, he experimented with all kinds of styles.

[@pptrent1]

genius

[@Tizohip]

4:36 chopin first sonata

[@newgeorge]

not what I expected at all!

[@mrshoperosq5744]

I hear Schumann's influence at the end.

[@pseudotonal]

I see Scriabin's influence.

[@jesuslaureano6103]

their friends you should hear to Richie Ray, incredible version in other rhythmic melodies

[@baghirovali2361]

Similar to Schumann's First Sonata?

[@diyetautres8105]

Bonjour vous me connaissez j ai fait partie de l oratorio pour la paix et j était dans l orchestre vous êtes même venu faire une interview à mon école j espère que vous allez bien aurevoir

[@paxwallacejazz]

Well he always said he liked Tchaikovsky. Must be early.

[@DeflatingAtheism]

Who's willing to say they hate Tchaikovsky?

[@fredrickroll06]

@@DeflatingAtheism When I entered college in 1961 it was almost obligatory to hate Tchaikovsky - which was very humiliating for me, as I've worshiped Tchaikovsky all my life!

[@segmentsAndCurves]

@@fredrickroll06 Worst college.

[@republiccooper]

Looking at the music, at times I remember the 3rd Chopin sonata.

[@klop4228]

Given the coda, I feel like the first movement is supposed to be played a bit faster.

[@klop4228]

Also, it reminds me a little of Lyapunov's Piano Sonata

[@felipepoloche211]

Estoy aquí por Sonido Bestial de Richie Ray.

[@jiyujizai]

🌾💙💚🌿🌾

[@herbrichster]

Listen to his another sonata

[@Ar1osssa]

1-st Prokofiev sonata = sonata Stravinsky

[@Xyriak]

Not one of his best pieces, but I respect the effort.

[@prs_81]

The first movement is oddly Schumannesque.

[@SirDamned]

"Stravinsky didnt write much for piano" *stares*

[@segmentsAndCurves]

Best name

[@davidhughes3260]

This is juvenilia. I wouldn't say it's terrible, but it's not too great. Just because Stravinsky wrote it doesn't mean you need to gush praises in the comments, folks.

[@Emanuel-Turhani]

I think this is inspired by Chopin sonata 3

[@mariuszzwijacz9058]

he didnt like vivaldi but honestly i think he envied him.

[@PavelAMamoushkin]

реально больше на сонаты Глазунова похоже

[@steffen5121]

Brahms like

[@timothythorne9464]

Steffen W. I hear a lot of early Brahms in that first movement. Not what I was expecting out of Stravinsky

[@elorengle]

sounds like prokofiev's first sonata

[@adanayup9268]

Me sono a Rachmaninoff, completamente diferente a el Stravinky que habia escuchado...

[@Soytu19]

Claro, es porque es un Stravinsky joven que todavía copia a sus papás los románticos. Stravinsky no se muestra aquí con su verdadera personalidad musical, eso es algo que desarrolló más adelante.

[@raulfranco7452]

@@Soytu19 Qué descubrimiento tan descomunal hizo usted estimad@ Soytu. Quedo admirado de su sabio y perspicaz análisis!! Un día de estos descubre ud que el agua moja o que por la noche no brilla la luz del sol jejejeje

[@PointyTailofSatan]

As you probably tell, it was only later in life that Stravinsky evolved to his far more famous style, a style so innovative in terms of rhythm and harmony , it's difficult to name it anything but Stravinskyism. Here you can clearly hear the influence of his primary instructor Rimsky-Korsakov and Russian based romanticism. The Firebird in 1910 was the real beginning of Stravinsky's breakout period.

[@donnytello1544]

I’ve heard some describe Stravinsky as a futurist, and his music sounds similar to that of many neoclassicist composers, however Stravinsky remains completely unique in his style, as genius as it is

[@GH-iw5ew]

Sheet music en.scorser.com/Out/300539733.html

[@rubenseam]

Can't help but hearing Rachmaninoff's third piano concerto at [4:46]. kzbin.info/www/bejne/b3LQqY2kobeUbLMm51s

[@joeppeeters6222]

This piece disappoints die-hard Stravinskyfans like me too much. It's such a beautiful piece but the name of the composer changes the whole story.

[@perplexingpantheon]

Joehoep Pjeters From what I'm aware Stravinsky was never overly fond of this work.

[@Tizohip]

Fuck you.

[@JafuetTheSame]

@@perplexingpantheon He was actually glad it was lost during his lifetime :D ...then someone found it

[@giuseppedimarco8358]

Sounds like Rachmaninoff! Beautiful! Just The Same! Why Pianist don't Play This In Concerts! should be in there Repertoire!

[@timothythorne9464]

Giuseppe Di Marco the lush, sensuous Andante sounds more like Faure than any other composer. The whole sonata is lovely, although you can't deny it's derivative.

[@napkinshoplifta5163]

This should be age restricted

[@SaxandRelax]

why

[@segmentsAndCurves]

SO that you can't see it! Right, my darling?

[@mysterium364]

I love the piano technique in the composing... sounds like he was already a good pianist when he wrote this. It sounds really fun. But looking at the big picture, the chords are kind of boring imo.

[@Phi1618033]

Sounds like a student piece.

[@jimcarleton3122]

Which is, in fact, what it is. He wrote this before he began his studies with Rimsky-Korsakov, and used it as an example of what he could do, to convince Rimsky to accept him as a private pupil.

[@jimcarleton3122]

Which is, in fact, what it is. He wrote this before he began his studies with Rimsky-Korsakov, and used it as an example of what he could do, to convince Rimsky to accept him as a private pupil.

[@javiercanizares316]

you're wrong. This work is from 1905. Stravinsky starts teaching with Rimsky in 1902 after the death of his father. The piece you comment is the Scherzo kzbin.info/www/bejne/rITPdmaPbs6Zitk

[@antonflegias]

Impossible stravinsky

[@charlescxgo7629]

Doesn't sound Stravinsky at all

[@kirklurkpu4470]

that's how amazing Stravinsky is. Even people had no idea Firebird and The Rite of Spring were written by the same person! If you read the events that occurred in his life, everytime there's a theme given to him, he would learn that style and apply it with his own original touch. :)

[@sergiogodinez3770]

If you look for them, there are a few moments in The Rite Of Spring with very strong tinges of Firebird and Petroushka, even if only for a few measures at a time, but they are definitely there.

[@segmentsAndCurves]

Tell that to his neoclassical and serialism works.

[@jasonenosart]

More akin to Rachmaninov than Stravinsky.

[@sanchezcalixto4107]

parasonatiensses

[@jdiwkall]

this work is very...bland

[@Whatismusic123]

when people praise a piece by a bad composer not because the piece is good but because it's "not as bad as his later work". Pathetic.

[@user-bc9mn7gq2c]

Oh dear, oh dear ,,, yet another oracle of judgment!

[@KiranKumar-bs3re]

man im sorry but this is terrible. Stravisinky what were you thinking??

[@bartwatts1921]

Why is it terrible? If the name of Chopin or Schumann or perhaps Rachmaninoff was attached, I suspect you would find it beautiful. As it is, you come off as a pretentious, uneducated musical snob...so typical of you tubers, though. Most of you haven’t a clue!

[@KiranKumar-bs3re]

​@@bartwatts1921 Stravinsky is a well known composer, it's not like i'm underrating this piece because it wasn't written by a "big name" or something. there are some good parts in it but overall this is a boring piece because it's not original- Stravinsky is writing in this late romantic style and imitating Rach/Tchaik/some elements of Chopin and Schumann, but imo he writes better in his signature jump cut style than he does in the neoclassical/neoromantic style. Bartok/Prokofiev/Scriabin (his contemporaries) wrote sonatas that were more percussive/original, and neoromantic composers like Rach improved on the work of his contemporaries, writing more captivating melodies/textures- Stravinsky did neither here. there's a reason why Rite of Spring/Firebird are famous and this isn't

[@Zdrange03]

It depends what you call original. If this had been written 20 years earlier, you would have called it original, and yet it would be the same piece.... Don't pieces have an intrinsic value independent of their composer and year of their composition?

[@SpaceAgeOdyssey]

This is very possibly the only piece by Stravinsky that I could come within 1,000 miles of liking. IMHO everything else he has written in the vein of ROS is total garbage. Call me a classical music snob, I don't care.

[@christophermacintyre5890]

...except he wrote very few works in the vein of The Rite of Spring.

[@lc1715]

Nobody who's a "classical music snob" would call The Rite of Spring "garbage." Phony.

[@DimitriRastoropov]

Wow. This is so bad. :DD

[@bartwatts1921]

Precisely why?

[@mv848]

What a horrid piece

[@NordicHealer]

Very boring piece. No wonder its so seldom played by any notable concert pianists. He certainly had NO GIFT for Melody!!! Its just a jumbled mess! It rambles about with no distinct direction or satisfying climactic conclusions. Everything feels vague and unresolved.

[@dAvrilthebear]

Nordic Healer No gift for melody? Have you even heard Pulcinella or Apollon Musaget?

[@kellikim3850]

do you need melody for it to be music? i think not.

[@LandOfPhilosophy]

You might be interested in his Tango for piano. Great melody, though you might not like the chords he uses on top of some parts.

[@karlpoppins]

I do think it's a bit boring, but I find most of Romanticism boring anyway. Stravinsky definitely had a nack for melody - Rite of Spring, anyone?

[@segmentsAndCurves]

@@karlpoppins If you can hear melodies, that's your loss. Even 12-tones have melodies, of you can hear.

[@ethansaltmere]

awful pianist

[@MegaPianogenius]

rubbish music but hardly awful

[@JafuetTheSame]

what?!

[@MegaPianogenius]

JafuetTheSame awful pianist

[@JafuetTheSame]

can you elaborate? i have the naxos cd where he is playing nearly complete stravinsky's piano music and he is great.

[@MegaPianogenius]

JafuetTheSame yes i was answering to ethan who said he was an awful pianist you are mistaken, i think he is great also

[@v.p.ohlson2414]

This very early sonata shows Stravinsky's developmental potential in full

[@v.p.ohlson2414]

This very early sonata shows Stravinsky's developmental potential in full

[@v.p.ohlson2414]

This very early sonata shows Stravinsky's developmental potential in full