Piano Sonata No.14 in C minor, K.457
Sonata · in C minor · K. 457
Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart 1756–1791
C minor
Key
Sonata
Form
Molto allegro
Tempo
K. 457
Catalogue
Score
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Themes & character
Rare minor-key sonata·Dramatic intensity·Paired with a Fantasia·Beethoven's admiration
At a glance
- Catalogue
- K. 457
- Key
- C minor
- Tempo / character
- Molto allegro
- Form
- Sonata
Movements
I
Molto allegroC minor
A stormy, dramatic opening built on sharply contrasted ideas.
II
AdagioE-flat major
A spacious, ornamented slow movement offering real relief from the drama around it.
III
Allegro assaiC minor
A restless, agitated finale that closes the sonata in unresolved tension.
About the piece
Composed in 1784 and dedicated to his pupil Therese von Trattner, this is one of only two Mozart piano sonatas in a minor key. Mozart later published it together with a Fantasia in the same key, K. 475, meant to be played as a preceding introduction.
Its stormy character and dramatic contrasts looked ahead to the next generation of composers; Beethoven owned and studied a copy of the sonata, and its influence on his own C minor works, including the Pathetique, has long been noted.
The composer
Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart
1756–1791
Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart was a Classical composer and musician. He completed more than 800 works in his life—including outstanding examples of most of the genres of his time: symphonies, concertos, chamber music, opera, and choral music—and is regarded as one of the greatest composers in the history of Western music.
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