Sonata in B-flat Major, D. 960 (2nd Movement)

Sheet music for the second movement of Franz Schubert's great Piano Sonata in B-flat Major, D. 960. One of the most effective slow movements in the literature, this piece opens with utter despair in the key of C-sharp minor. The theme appears in thirds as a series of sighs, with desolate broken octaves leaping far above. Climbing to an agonized outburst, this passage is then transposed to the key of E major, resulting in a brief but powerful consolation before the bleak return to the tonic key. A central section in A major lifts the mood with a hopeful new melody in longer phrases, with repeated low bass notes in hushed excitement. For all its catharsis, it is not enough to prevent the return to the opening theme in C-sharp minor. But the movement quietly turns to C-sharp major, ending with a hope that did not survive the piece's opening. A profound, introspective movement for advanced-level students, 9 PDF pages.