Description

Ludwig van Beethoven composed a total of 35 piano sonatas. The three sonatas from his early period in Bonn, published in 1783, lack an opus number and are therefore excluded from the recognized set of 32 sonatas. Nevertheless, these early compositions should not be overlooked, as they present significant technical challenges, particularly in their nuanced articulation, while their compositional style hints at the sophistication of his later Viennese works. Notably, the main theme of the Second Sonata in F minor's first movement foreshadows the theme found in the first movement of the Grande Sonate pathétique.

This edition is based on the original publication and a surviving copy annotated by Beethoven himself, along with a reprint from Haslinger’s complete edition, where these sonatas are designated as Nos. 1–3 among all of Beethoven's piano sonatas, presented as if this numbering were entirely conventional.