The early piano trio, the two piano concertos, the three piano sonatas and the late cello sonata op. 65 comprise Chopin’s few contributions to sonata form, the principal form of the Classical era. Especially the two Piano Sonatas opp. 35 and 58 fully deserve their reputation as two of Chopin’s most distinctive creations.
Chopin composed the Sonata in b minor op. 58 in 1844 at the country estate of George Sand in Nohant. This piece may be somewhat more conventional than the earlier b flat minor one, but Chopin shows in it that, contrary to the occasionally expressed view that strict (sonata) form was not to his liking, he most certainly mastered this genre, too, and was able to express himself as genuinely and intensely as in the smaller romantic character pieces.
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- Piano Sonata b minor op. 58
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ABRSM: Piano FRSM (recommended)
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Preface
As a sequel to the early Piano Sonata in c minor op. 4 written in 1827 but not published until after the composer’s death, and the Sonata in bb minor op. 35 which took two years to complete (1837–1839), Chopin, after a visit of his relatives in Paris in August 1844, devoted his undivided attention to writing his third and last Piano Sonata in b minor op. 58. As early as … more
Critical Commentary
About the composer

Frédéric Chopin
Pianist and composer. His work is concentrated around piano music that enjoys extraordinary popularity and has become an integral part of the concert repertoire. His music influenced subsequent generations in France (Franck, Saint-Saëns, Fauré, Debussy) as well as Smetana, Dvořák, Balakirev, Grieg, Albéniz.
1810 | Born in Żelazowa Wola near Warsaw on March 1. First compositions at age seven, his first public performance at eight. |
1822 | Private instruction in composition. |
1825 | Rondo in C minor, Op. 1, his first published work. |
1826–29 | Studies at the Institute of Music in Warsaw. |
1829 | “Fantaisie sur des airs nationaux polonaise” in A major, Op. 13; Piano Trio in G minor, Op. 8. Travels to Vienna, where he gives two concerts of his compositions and improvisations. |
1829–33 and 1835–37 | Etudes, Opp. 10 and 25 -- a new type of virtuosic etude that also makes aesthetic demands. |
1830 | Premieres in Warsaw of his two piano concerti, Op. 21 in F minor and Op. 11 in E minor. |
1831 | Unable to return to Warsaw due to the Polish uprising, he goes to Paris, where he will remain until the end of his life. |
1832 | Debut concert in Paris to great acclaim. |
1835/38 | “Trois valses brillantes,” Op. 34. |
1836/39 | “24 Preludes,” Op. 28, in a cyclic succession: compactly-designed short pieces. |
1835/39 | Piano Sonata in B-flat minor, Op. 35, with the funeral march. |
1842/43 | Ballade No. 4 in F minor, Op. 52; “Grande Polonaise brillante” in A-flat major, Op. 53; Scherzo No. 4 in E major, Op. 54. |
1844 | Piano Sonata in B minor, Op. 58 |
1849 | Completion of the mazurkas in G minor and F minor. Death in Paris on October 17. |