Arrau plays Beethoven Piano Sonata No. 21 WALDSTEIN (1977)

00:39 Allegro con brio (in C major and common time) 12:19 Introduzione: Adagio molto (in F major and compound duple time) 15:55 Rondo. Allegretto moderato — Prestissimo (in C major and duple time) Beethoven’s Piano Sonata No. 21 in C major, Op. 53, known as the Waldstein, is one of the three most notable sonatas of his middle period (the other two being the Appassionata, Op. 57, and Les Adieux, Op. 81a). Completed in summer 1804 and surpassing Beethoven’s previous piano sonatas in its scope, the Waldstein is a key early work of Beethoven’s “Heroic“ decade (1803–1812) and set a standard for piano composition in the grand manner. The sonata’s name derives from Beethoven’s dedication to his close friend and patron Count Ferdinand Ernst Gabriel von Waldstein, member of Bohemian noble Waldstein family (Valdštejn). Like the Archduke Trio (one of many pieces dedicated to Archduke Rudolph), it is named for Waldstein even though other works are dedicated to him. I