The Haydn Piano Sonatas
Scott Foglesong, piano

Sonata in E-flat Major HXVI:16

It's not certain whether or not Haydn actually wrote this sonata; the first movement in particular is rather oddly different from other Haydn sonatas of his early years. However, the second and third movements are similar to many other movements of the 1750s, and so all in all we can probably consider this work to be by Haydn, albeit an extremely early one (it is placed first in the Haydn Institute/Henle edition).

First Movement: Andante-Presto

The first movement an interesting binary form, not quite sonata-allegro form but similar in some respects. Each of the two parts of the binary consists of an Andante passage, ending with a short cadenza, and then a concluding Presto. The first part can be considered as an Exposition:

There is, however, no distinction made between a Development and a Recapitulation: the second part of the binary serves in both functions:

Second Movement: Menuet

The placement of a Menuet-and-Trio movement was by no means well-established by the 1750s. A second movement minuet was not at all unusual. The piece itself is typical of Haydn's early minuets, in partiicular in its use of triplets and "Scotch snaps" -- i.e., sixteenth-dotted-eighth rhythms.

The irregular-length phrases in the Trio are a common feature in Haydn's early music.

Third Movement: Presto

The movement is cast in three-part song form, with definite leanings towards sonata form; all of the elements are there (exposition, development, recapitulation) but in miniature.