The “Waldstein Sonata” is one of Beethoven's most famous sonatas, and is an excellent example of one of his more Romantic sonatas. Its first movement is a sonata in somewhat standard sonata form; however, Beethoven modulates to the mediant when moving from theme I to theme II, which is not a typical key relation in a classical sonata. The development involves repeated instances of various themes from the exposition set over myriad modulations throughout various obscure keys.
	The second movement is an extremely slow introduction to the third movement. Its slow speed is not calm, but rather tense. The tension increases slowly throughout the piece, reaching a strong climax and then leading the listener to a suspenseful transition into the third movement. Most of the material of the piece is built on a simple dotted rhythm with a rising interval.
	The final movement of the Waldstein sonata is a long journey from a large variety of emotions, from dark and blisteringly fast, to soft and quiet. This is perhaps the most romantic of the movements of the sonata, with many blurred harmonies due to long pedal markings, dramatic moments, and extreme emotions. It achieves a sort of transcendental feeling found in compositions of the Romantic periods with its long pedal markings, shimmering textures, and its slow harmonic rhythm. These characteristics foreshadow elements of Beethoven's later sonatas where he capitalized on slow harmonic rhythm and muddied textures that seem to lose any melodic content.

This is from my senior recital on December 2, 2012.

Sonata No.21 in C Major, Op.53 "Waldstein" - Ludwig Van Beethoven

The Duet for Clarinet and Piano is my most significant composition to date and also my first substantial instrumental piece. It is not merely a clarinet piece with piano accompaniment, but a true duet with a significant, meaningful piano part. This is due to me being a pianist and enjoying interesting piano parts, rather than simple, unimportant accompaniments. The result is a piece that both the pianist and clarinetist will be challenged by, and will hopefully enjoy playing.
	My instrumental writing focuses on thematic development to progress the music. Almost every theme you hear in the piece will be reused and approached in a different way throughout the piece. Additionally, some fragments of the themes are taken and used motivicly to further relate the various sections of the music.
	The interval of a falling fourth is an important motive in the piece. Introduced by the clarinet as the first two notes of the piece, it appears in various ways, one of the most obvious being its frequent usage in the pianos accompaniment, which is then developed into a motive of its own. Also, in the choral introduced by solo piano, the three opening notes of the melody could be considered merely an alteration of the falling fourth motive.
	Fourths play another significant role in this piece in that they are a foundation of much of the harmony. My harmonic language is a mixture of both tertiary and quartal/quintal harmonies. It is my opinion that to rely merely on quartal/quintal chords would be akin to writing a piece with merely major seventh chords. It would be greatly limiting the expression of the piece. Similarly, I choose to use a variety of chords, and feel that the mixture of tertiary and quartal/quintal only serves to highlight the uniqueness of both types of harmonies.

This was from my senior recital on December 2, 2012

Duet for Clarinet and Piano

Allegro Con Brio, Sonata No.21 in C major Op.53 "Waldstein" - Ludwig van Beethoven

Introduzione, Molto Adagio, Sonata No.21 in C major, Op.53 "Waldstein" - Ludwig van Beethoven

Rondo, Allegretto Moderato, Sonata in C major, Op.53 "Waldstein" - Ludwig Van Beethoven

I'm a pianist, music teacher, and fledgling composer who is now trying to use my gift for the Lord. You'll find recordings of me playing various pieces throughout my past educational process as well as recordings of performances of my works

Introduzione, Molto Adagio, Sonata No.21 in C major, Op.53 "Waldstein" - Ludwig van Beethoven

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