Get the sheet music here.
What should I know before learning the original Moonlight Sonata?
Beethoven’s Moonlight Sonata is a very special piece that requires great sensitivity from the player. You’ll need experience balancing melody and accompaniment on the same hand, plus a precise use of the sustain pedal. This tutorial is for the first of three large sections–called movements–within the sonata. While the first two movements are within reach of intermediate pianists, the third is an advanced-level virtuoso piece.
How do you use the pedal correctly in the Moonlight Sonata?
In the first movement of Beethoven’s Moonlight Sonata, the sustain pedal will be used throughout, but carefully. The foot should be lifted and reapplied at every chord change to “clean out” the harmony. This prevents one harmony from bleeding into the next and causing unintended dissonance.
You can practice this type of pedaling away from the piano.
Sit comfortably on a chair or bench with your left hand on your left knee and both feet flat on the floor.
Lift your left hand and let it drop onto your left knee. The instant this happens, let your right foot lift at the ankle and then drop quickly.
After a few seconds, lift your left hand again but keep your right foot down.
Repeat steps 2-3 over and over. Take care that your right foot doesn’t lift at the last second and go down with your left hand. Remember, you’re teaching the pedal foot to go up when the left hand goes down.
When you feel you’ve got it, sit back at the piano and play the Moonlight Sonata, this time with your right foot on the sustain pedal. Lift and quickly drop your foot at the exact instant you begin a new arpeggio. This will clean out the previous broken chord in the accompaniment and sustain the new one.
What does "adagio sostenuto" mean for piano players?
Adagio is an Italian term for a slow, subdued tempo, with a usual range between about 55 and 70 beats per minute. Sostenuto, another Italian term, literally means “sustained,” which supports Beethoven’s direction that the sustain pedal be used throughout. In later music from the Romantic era, sostenuto could also indicate a slight holding back of the tempo in certain passages, or even a careful, unrushed treatment of each note.
How is this tutorial different from the early intermediate version?
This tutorial is for the original first movement of
Beethoven’s Piano Sonata No. 14 in C-sharp minor, Op. 27, No. 2, not an arrangement. Its skill level is ideally for intermediate to late intermediate students, and requires both a comfortable octave stretch in both hands and an ability to handle both melody and accompaniment on the same hand. The original version is also considerably longer than the early intermediate arrangement.
How do you balance melody and accompaniment in the right hand?
This is arguably the biggest technical challenge of the first movement. The melody has to sing out in the foreground and not be overwhelmed by the flowing arpeggios of the accompaniment. The hand itself adds to the challenge. The weakest fingers, 4 and 5, are mostly used for the melody, while the accompaniment is taken by the strongest fingers. So a good balance is a matter of playing louder with the weak fingers and softer with the strong ones. It takes a while to learn how to use more pressure with the melody fingers while easing off from too much pressure for the accompaniment. One way to do this is to practice playing the melody with fingers 4 and 5 while only lightly touching the keys with fingers 1, 2, and 3 so that they don’t make any sound at all. Once you can do this easily, add a little more pressure to fingers 1, 2, and 3, enough that you can hear the sound of the keys.
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