sonata

a piece of music Hear this out loudPauseThis word sonata originally meant simply a piece of music. It comes from the Latin word sonare, to sound; so a sonata is anything that is sounded by instruments, as opposed to a cantata, which is anything that is sung (from the Latin word, cantare, to sing).

Hear this out loudPausesonate; from Latin and Italian: sonare [archaic Italian; replaced in the modern language by suonare], "to sound"), in music, literally means a piece played as opposed to a cantata (Latin and Italian cantare, "to sing"), a piece sung.

Hear this out loudPauseIn relation to classical music, sonata means the piece is performed by an instrument typically a piano or another instrument accompanied by a piano – rather than being something that is performed vocally (the term 'cantata' is used to describe a piece that is sung).

Hear this out loudPause3 Sonata Principle. Important to sonata form is sonata principle, which Charles Rosen discusses in his book Sonata Forms. The exposition of a sonata form presents the thematic material and articulates the movement from tonic to dominant in various ways so that it takes on the character of a polarization or opposition.

7 Examples of Classical Sonatas

• Sonata in G Major Hob XVI:8 by Franz Joseph Haydn.
• Sonata in F major Hob. XVI:9 by Franz Joseph Haydn.
• Sonatina Op. 36 No.
• Sonatina Op.
• Sonata No.
• Sonata in C Major K 545 ("Sonata Facile") by Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart.
• Sonata in G Major K 283 by Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart.

Hear this out loudPauseThese definitions are by no means set in stone, but in general terms, a sonata is a musical work for a solo instrument, a concerto is written for a solo instrument with an orchestra, and a symphony is written for an orchestra.

Hear this out loudPauseA sonata is a piece for 1,2,3 instruments composed in the construction described above. A symphony is the similar composition like a sonata but for a chamber orchestra or a full orchestra. A (classical) Concerto can be explained as a Symphony for a solo instrument (or more) and a full orchestra.

Hear this out loudPauseOriginally published as Sonata quasi una fantasia per il clavicembalo, the 'Moonlight' sonata received its name from the poet Ludwig Rellstab five years after Beethoven's death. In 1832 Rellstab compared the first movement to the moonlight shining on Lake Lucerne.

Hear this out loudPauseDeriving from the past participle of the Italian verb sonare, “to sound,” the term sonata originally denoted a composition played on instruments, as opposed to one that was cantata, or “sung,” by voices. Its first such use was in 1561, when it was applied to a suite of dances for lute.

classical compositions Hear this out loudPauseSonatas are similar to symphonies as they are both types of classical compositions that are usually written for orchestras. But there are some key differences between symphonies and sonatas. Symphonies typically have four movements, while sonatas usually only have three (or sometimes four).

Hear this out loudPause1710): the sonata da chiesa (that is, suitable for use in church), which was the type "rightly known as Sonatas", and the sonata da camera (proper for use at court), which consists of a prelude followed by a succession of dances, all in the same key.

Hear this out loudPauseThe basic elements of sonata form are three: exposition, development, and recapitulation, in which the musical subject matter is stated, explored or expanded, and restated. There may also be an introduction, usually in slow tempo, and a coda, or tailpiece.