November / Month of the Sonata – 23

by richibi

The treachery of images (This is not a pipe), 1928 - 1929 - Rene Magritte

    “The treachery of images (This is not a pipe)“ (1928 – 1929) 

 

            René Magritte

 

                 _______

 

     

when is a sonata not a sonata, when, 

to my mind, it has less than two 

movements, but here’s Alban Berg 

doing just that in his Sonata, Opus 1

                                

Alban Berg was a student of Arnold 

Schoenberg, the composer who did 

the most to break down the pillars

of Classical music, tempo, tonality,

and repetition, you’ll here it all here

                                

Berg was working on a piece he 

expected would be a sonata, but 

after the first segment, he couldn’t 

find the inspiration to continue, 

Schoenberg replied that that must 

mean his work was complete, 

and Berg went along with that, 

calling it, nevertheless, a sonata, 

playing fast and loose with the

definition, poets do that, also 

painters, see above 

 

here’s Glenn Gould playing it, the

pianist I believe the greatest who 

ever lived, Gould admired the 

Berg, how could I argue with that

 

 

R ! chard