Piano Sonatas 101: Structure, Style, Examples & Sheet Music

What makes a piano sonata? Learn all about piano sonatas in this article, including some of the most popular examples from famous composers 

A sonata is a musical piece created with certain rules that determine its form. Just like in poetry, where poems like haikus and sonnets have a set number of lines and syllables, sonatas have a pattern that they follow. There are many sonatas that are written for different groups of instruments, including solos and duos, such as piano and violin. This article will discuss sonatas and sonatinas that were composed for solo piano, including an extensive list of sonatas for you to listen to and enjoy. Read on to learn more about sonata form, the many piano sonatas that have been composed, and more!  

Learn to play sonatas with Hoffman Academy! Find arrangements of piano sonatas from late elementary to advanced level in our store. Discover your piano potential at Hoffman Academy with the world’s best piano learning system.

How long are piano sonatas?

The length of different piano sonatas vary depending on the composer and the time period. Some piano sonatas are short, like Domenico Scarlatti’s Sonata in D Minor, K1, which is 3 minutes in length. Some are long, like Ludwig van Beethoven’s Sonata No. 29 “Hammerklavier” in B-flat Major, Op. 106, which takes around 40 minutes to perform. 

Piano sonatas were designed to follow a specific format, which is outlined below.

The standard form of a Classical-era Sonata

1. Sonatas begin with a fast movement, most commonly Allegro. This movement is written in sonata-allegro form, meaning that it has an exposition, development, and recapitulation.
   1. An exposition is a statement of two differing themes. The first theme establishes the tonic key (I) of the sonata. The second theme often modulates to the dominant (V) key.
   2. The development is when the composer takes the two themes and winds them around each other, modulates them, inverts them, and takes the performer/listener on a journey to explore the themes.
   3. Finally, the recapitulation restates the themes, normally in the tonic key, so that the movement ends in the same key that it began.
2. A slow movement, often Andante, Adagio, or Largo. Sometimes the themes of each movement are related, but this is not always the case.
3. Sometimes a dance movement, such as a Minuet and Trio, or sometimes a Scherzo and Trio.
4. A quick finale, often written in sonata-rondo form.
   1. Sonata-rondo form: The most common sonata-rondo forms are the five-part rondo (ABACA) and the seven-part rondo (ABACADA).

What’s the difference between a sonata and a sonatina?

Originally, piano sonatinas were considered to be shorter versions of sonatas with fewer movements, but they can sometimes be difficult to distinguish from piano sonatas. For example, Muzio Clementi wrote 110 pieces that he labeled as sonatas, but some are considered to be sonatinas due to their shorter lengths. Piano sonatas were also originally designed to follow a standard sonata form that was composed of four movements, similar to a classical symphony, but many do not follow this format. Some sonatinas may contain the same amount of movements or even more than some sonatas do. For example, Maurice Ravel’s Sonatine, M. 40 contains three movements and runs for around 10 minutes, but Haydn’s Sonata in C Major, Hob. XVI:1 also contains three movements and runs for only around 8 minutes.

Which composer wrote the most piano sonatas?

Several composers are known for their prolific composition of piano sonatas. Italian Classical-era composer Muzio Clementi composed 110 sonatas in his lifetime and Spanish Baroque-era composer Antonio Soler composed 200, but the prize for most piano sonatas composed by one person goes to Italian Baroque-era composer Domenico Scarlatti. During his lifetime, Scarlatti composed 555 piano sonatas. Some of these sonatas are listed below. Listen to them by clicking on the links:

• Sonata in D Minor, K1 (1738)
• Sonata in D Minor, K9 (1738)
• Sonata “Cat Fugue” in G Minor, K30 (1738)
• Sonata in D Minor, K34
• Sonata in G Minor, K35
• Sonata in F Major, K82
• Sonata “Minuet” in A Major, K83
• Sonata in C Minor, K84
• Sonata in E Minor, K198
• Sonata in A Major, K323

Scarlatti’s sonatas were written before the standardization of sonata form, so his sonatas had only one movement and were usually composed in binary form. This means that his sonatas normally follow the format AABB.

The sheet music for a few of our favorite sonatas by Domenico Scarlatti are available in our store:

• Sonata in D Minor, K. 9 – advanced
• Sonata “Cat Fugue” in G Minor, K. 30 – advanced
• Sonata in D Minor, K. 34 – intermediate
• Sonata in G Minor, K. 35 – early advanced
• Sonata in F Major, K. 82 – advanced
• Sonata “Minuet” in A Minor, K. 83 – intermediate
• Sonata in E Minor, K. 198 – advanced
• Sonata in A Major, K. 323 – late intermediate

Haydn piano sonatas 

Classical-era composer Joseph Haydn wrote 62 piano sonatas. Haydn is known for establishing the classical-era form of the sonata, which is very similar to the form of a symphony. 

• Sonata No. 1 in C Major, Hob. XVI:1 (1760)
• Sonata No. 4 in D Major, Hob. XVI:4 (1760)
• Sonata No. 11 in G Major, Hob. XVI:11 (1767)
• Sonata No. 20 in C Minor, Hob. XVI:20 (1771)
• Sonata No. 21 in C Major, Hob. XVI:21 (1773)

Check out the sheet music to sonatas by Joseph Haydn that are available in our store:

• Sonata No. 9, Scherzo – early intermediate
• Six Sonatinas, Op. 36 – early intermediate-intermediate

Mozart piano sonatas 

Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart composed 18 piano sonatas during his lifetime. Probably his best known is Sonata No. 16 “Facile” in C Major, K. 545 (1788). Even though this sonata was named the “Facile” or “Easy” sonata, it has its difficult challenges. If you are interested in checking out an advanced Mozart sonata, you’ll find our sheet music for this one here. More of his famous sonatas are listed below.

• Sonata No. 8 in A Minor, K. 310 (1778)
• Sonata No. 11 in A Major, K. 331 (1783)
• Sonata No. 13 in B-flat Major, K. 333 (1783)

The sheet music for the following sonatas by W.A. Mozart are available in our store:

• Sonata No. 4 in E-flat major, K. 282 – advanced
• Sonata No. 9 in D Major, K. 311, 2nd Mvt. – advanced
• Sonata No. 10 in C Major, K. 330, 1st Mvt. – advanced
  
• Sonata No. 11 in A Major, K. 331, 3rd Mvt. – late intermediate
• Sonata no. 16 in C Major, K. 545 – advanced
  

Which are the most famous Beethoven piano sonatas?

During his lifetime, Ludwig van Beethoven composed 32 piano sonatas and 7 piano sonatinas. The four most famous piano sonatas that he composed are:

• Sonata No. 8 “Pathétique” in C Minor, Op. 13 (1799)
• Sonata No. 21 “Waldstein” in C Major, Op. 53 (1804)
• Sonata No. 14 “Moonlight” in C-sharp Minor, Op. 27, No. 2 (1801)
• Sonata No. 17 “Tempest” in D Minor, Op. 31 No. 2 (1802)

Other wonderful Beethoven sonatas to check out are: 

• Sonata No. 1 in F Minor, Op. 2 No. 1 (1795)
• Sonata No. 15 “Pastorale” in D Major, Op. 28 (1801)
• Sonata No. 23 “Appassionata” in F Minor, Op. 57 (1805)
• Sonata No. 29 “Hammerklavier” in B-flat Major, Op. 106 (1818)
• Sonata No. 26 “Les adieux” in E-flat Major, Op. 81a (1811)
• Sonata No. 32 in C Minor, Op. 111 (1822)

Find the sheet music to these sonatas by Ludwig van Beethoven in our store:

• Sonata No. 5 in C Minor, Op. 10 No. 1, 1st Mvt.
• Sonata No. 8 “Pathétique” in C Minor, Op. 13, 2nd Mvt. – early advanced
• Sonata No. 14 “Moonlight” in C-sharp Minor, 1st Mvt. – late elementary
• Sonata No. 14 “Moonlight” in C-sharp Minor, 1st Mvt. – early intermediate
• Sonata No. 14 “Moonlight” in C-sharp Minor, 1st Mvt. – advanced
• Sonata No. 14 “Moonlight” in C-sharp Minor, 2nd Mvt.
• Sonata No. 17 “Tempest” in D Minor, Op. 31 No. 2, 3rd Mvt. – advanced
•  Sonata No. 19 in G Minor, Op. 49 No. 1
• Sonata No. 20 in G Major, Op. 49 No. 2

Chopin piano sonatas 

Frédéric Chopin only composed 3 piano sonatas.

• Sonata No. 1 in C Minor, Op. 4 (1828)
• Sonata No. 2 in B-flat Minor, Op. 35 (1840)
• Sonata No. 3 in B Minor, Op. 58 (1844)

Schubert piano sonatas

Franz Schubert composed around 21 piano sonatas.

• Sonata No. 19 in C Minor, D. 958 (1828)
• Sonata No. 20 in A Major, D. 959 (1828)
• Sonata No. 21 in B-flat Major, D. 960 (1828)

We also have sheet music for this sonata by Franz Schubert available in our store:

• Sonata in B-flat Major, D. 960, 2nd Mvt. – advanced

More sonata sheet music that you can find in our store

In addition to the composers you’ve already seen included in our store, our store provides sheet music to piano sonatas by other composers too!

C.P.E. Bach: 

• Sonata in F Minor, Wq. 63, No. 6

Georg F. Händel:

• Sonata in C Major, HWV. 577

Francesca Lebrun:

• Sonata in D Major, Op. 1 No. 6, Mvt. 2

Anna Bon:

• Sonata in B Minor, Op. 2 No. 5, 3rd Mvt.
• Sonata in G Minor, Op. 2 No. 1
• Sonata in C Major, Op. 2 No. 4

J.L. Dussek:

• Sonatina in B-flat major, Op. 46 No. 3

Christian Kalkbrenner:

• Sonatina in C Major, Op. 3 No. 1, 1st Mvt. 

Other piano sonatas for listening

There are so many piano sonatas that it is very difficult to list all of them. Below, I have included a broad list of a variety of sonatas by different composers from different time periods. For the very prolific composers, such as Scarlatti, I have only listed some of their most famous sonatas. Enjoy listening to different sonatas from different composers and time periods to broaden your repertoire knowledge.

Baroque

Antonio Soler 

• Sonata in B Minor, R. 10

• Sonata in D Minor, R. 15

• Sonata in F-sharp Major, R. 90

J.S. Bach

• Italian Concerto in F Major, BWV 971 (1735) – This is one of the first pieces that is most similar to the standard Classical-era sonata form.

Classical

Muzio Clementi 

• Sonata in B-flat Major, Op. 24 No. 2 (1781)
• Sonatina in C Major, Op. 36 No. 1 (1797)
• Sonatina in C Major, Op. 36 No. 3 (1797)

Domenico Cimarosa

• Sonata No. 12 in G Major 

John Field 

• Sonata No. 1 in E-flat Major, Op. 1 No. 1 (1801)
• Sonata No. 2 in A Major, Op. 1 No. 2 (1801)
• Sonata No. 3 in C Minor, Op. 1 No. 3 (1801)
• Sonata No. 4 in B Major, H17 (1812)

Friedrich Kuhlau 

• Sonatina in C Major, Op. 20 No. 1 (1820)
• Sonatina in C Major, Op. 55 No. 1 (1823)

Romantic

Felix Mendelssohn

• Sonata No. 1 in E Major, Op. 6 (1825)
• Sonata No. 2 in G Minor, Op. posth. 105 (1821)
• Sonata No. 3 in B-flat Major, Op. posth. 106 (1827)

Fanny Mendelssohn Hensel

• Sonata “Easter” in A Major (1828)

Richard Wagner

• Sonata in B-flat Major, WWV. 21 (1831)
• Sonata in A Major, WWV. 26 (1832)
• Sonata “Für Frau Wesendonck” in A-flat Major, WWV. 85 (1853)

Robert Schumann

• Sonata No. 1 in F-sharp Minor, Op. 11 (1833)
• Sonata No. 2 in G Minor, Op. 22 (1834)
• Sonata No. 3 in F Minor, Op. 14 (1836)

Clara Schumann

• Sonata in G Minor (1842)

Charles-Valentin Alkan 

• Grande Sonate “Les quatre âges”, Op. 33 (1847)
• Symphony for Solo Piano, Op. 39 No. 4-7 (1857)
• Concerto for Solo Piano, Op. 39 No. 8-10 (1857)
• Sonatina in A Minor, Op. 61 (1861)

Franz Liszt

• “Dante” Sonata (1849)
• Sonata in B Minor, S. 178 (1853) 

Johannes Brahms

• Sonata No. 1 in C Major, Op. 1 (1853)
• Sonata No. 2 in F-sharp Minor. Op. 2 (1852)
• Sonata No. 3 in F Minor, Op. 5 (1853)

Elfrida Andrée

• Sonata in A Major, Op. 3 (1870)

Maria Jaëll

• Sonata (1871)

Richard Strauss

• Sonata in B Minor, Op. 5 (1881)

Laura Valborg Aulin

• Sonata “Sérieuse” in F Minor, Op. 14 (1885)

Cécile Chaminade

• Sonata in C Minor, Op. 21 (1893)

20th Century

Alexander Scriabin

• Sonata-Fantasie in G-sharp Minor ,W6 (1886)
• Sonata in E-flat Minor, W19 (1889)
• Sonata No. 1 in F Minor, Op. 6 (1893)
• Sonata-Fantasie No. 2 in G-sharp Minor, Op. 19 (1898)
• Sonata No. 3 in F-sharp Minor, Op. 23 (1898)
• Sonata No. 4 in F-sharp Major, Op. 30 (1904)
• Sonata No. 5, Op. 53 (1907)
• Sonata No. 6, Op. 62 (1911)
• Sonata “White Mass” No. 7, Op. 64 (1911)
• Sonata No. 8, Op. 66 (1913)
• Sonata “Black Mass” No. 9, Op. 68 (1913)
• Sonata “Insect” No. 10, Op. 70 (1913)

Jean Sibelius

• Sonata in F Major, Op. 12 (1893)
• Sonatina No. 1 in F-sharp Minor, Op. 67 No. 1 (1912)
• Sonatina No. 2 in E Major, Op. 67 No. 2 (1912)
• Sonatina No. 3 in B-flat Minor, Op. 67 No. 3 (1912)

Paul Dukas

• Sonata in E-flat Minor (1900)

Sergei Bortkiewicz

• Sonata No. 1 in B Major, Op. 9 (1903)
• Sonata No. 2 in C-sharp Minor, Op. 60 (1942)

Leoš Janáček

• Sonata “1.X.1905” (1905)

Sergei Rachmaninoff

• Sonata No. 1 in D Minor, Op. 28 (1908)
• Sonata No. 2 in B-flat Minor, Op. 36 (1913)

Sergei Prokofiev

• Sonata No. 1 in F Minor, Op. 1 (1909)
• Sonata No. 2 in D Minor, Op. 14 (1912)
• Sonata No. 3 in A Minor, Op. 28 (1917)
• Sonata No. 4 “D’après des vieux cahiers” in C Minor, Op. 29 (1917)
• Sonata No. 5 in C Major, Op. 38 (1923)
• Sonata No. 6 in A Major, Op. 82 (1940)
• Sonata No. 7 “Stalingrad” in B-flat Major, Op. 83 (1942)
• Sonata No. 8 in B-flat Major, Op. 84 (1944)
• Sonata No. 9, Op. 103 (1947)

Igor Stravinsky

• Sonata No. 1 in F-sharp Minor (1904)
• Sonata No. 2 (1924)

Maurice Ravel

• Sonatine, M. 40 (1905)

Alban Berg

• Sonata, Op. 1 (1910)

Béla Bártok

• Sonatina, BB 69, Sz. 55 (1915)
• Sonata, BB 88, Sz. 80 (1926)

Kaikhosru Shapurji Sorabji 

• Sonata No. 0, KSS9 (1917)
• Sonata No. 1, KSS20 (1919)
• Sonata No. 4, KSS48 (1929)
• Sonata No. 5, KSS58 (1935)

Dmitri Shostakovich

• Sonata No. 1, Op. 12 (1926)
• Sonata No. 2 in B Minor, Op.  61 (1943)

Florence Price

• Sonata in E Minor (1932)

Carlos Guastavino 

• Sonatina in G Minor (1945)
• Sonata in C-sharp Minor (1947)

Alberto Ginastera

• Sonata No. 1, Op. 22 (1952)
• Sonata No. 2, Op. 53 (1982)
• Sonata No. 3, Op. 54 (1982)

Enjoy discovering the world of piano sonatas!

Now that you’ve learned all about the history and form of piano sonatas and have been provided with a long list of sonatas, I recommend listening and finding one that excites you. Sonatas can be so much fun to play and are really impressive to perform and memorize. Just as with learning anything new, remember to be patient, practice every day, and have fun!