Sonata for clarinet and piano (Poulenc)

The Sonata for Clarinet and Piano , composed in 1962 , is one of the last works by the French composer Francis Poulenc . It is dedicated to Arthur Honegger .

The composition consists of three movements:

1. Allegro tristamente
2. Romanza
3. Allegro con fuoco

The sonata was premiered after the composer's death, on April 10, 1963 by Benny Goodman and Leonard Bernstein at Carnegie Hall in New York City .

The sonata is the penultimate of Poulenc's three sonatas for woodwind instruments; the sonata for flute and piano (1956) and the sonata for oboe and piano (1962).

analysis

The first movement begins with an atonal introduction in which a sixteenth-note motif is repeated with ever new notes. This is followed by the main topic. It's at the same fast pace, but mostly contains quarters, which makes it feel much quieter and more vocal. It begins in C major, swings through many keys , and finally goes back to the atonal introduction, which now forms the transition to the slow middle section. In contrast to the rest of the movement ( four-four time ), this is in three- four time and is also characterized by a rhythmic motif: a dotted eighth note and two sixty- fourth note. The whole middle section revolves around the tonal center in A minor. Eventually the main theme reappears. Starting again in C major, a little later a mysterious B minor is reached, in which the movement also ends with a tremolo on the clarinet.

The slow second movement, which is completely in three-four time, is essentially characterized by a lyrical theme that is constantly being modified and developed. It's in G minor.

The conclusion - in sharp contrast to the middle movement - is a quick, extremely happy finale that begins and ends in C major, but occasionally stays in all possible keys. The movement is essentially in four-four time, but two and three-quarter time are always inserted. In some places the sixteenth note reappears from the beginning of the first movement.