How ‘Moonlight’ Sonata provides a telling glimpse into Beethoven’s soul

When lists of the most popular piano sonatas of all time are compiled, Beethoven’s Moonlight Sonata inevitably lands in the top 10 or 5, or even rises to No. 1. For instance, a recent survey by Classic FM puts the work in the pole position.

When Benjamin Grosvenor appears on the SCP Piano series on March 8, he will lead off his recital with Beethoven’s Piano Sonata No. 14 in C-sharp Minor, Op. 27, No. 2 (Moonlight).

From 1795 to 1822, Beethoven wrote 32 piano sonatas, many of them legend, such as the Waldstein (No. 21), Appassionata (No. 23) and Hammerklavier (No. 29). So why the special love for the Moonlight? 

"Surely I’ve written better things," Beethoven himself once said of his Piano Sonata No. 14.

With its ethereal power, the sonata has been called a glimpse into Beethoven’s soul. “It has a haunting beauty in its opening movement, tender lyricism in its middle section and stormy passion in the finale,” as one critic has written. "More than two centuries later, Moonlight Sonata still moves audiences and inspires pianists of every generation."

Musicologists have singled out many reasons for the sonata’s continued popularity, among them:

Haunting resonance: The arpeggiating triplets of the first movement, instantly recognizable, evoke feelings of sadness and introspection. 

Of the first movement, Berlioz once said, “It is one of those poems that human language does not know how to qualify.”

An indelible mood: Musicologist Joseph Kerman believes that part of the sonata’s appeal comes from the "half-improvisatory texture, the unity of mood and especially the mood itself — that romantic mestizia which will have overwhelmed all but the stoniest of listeners by the end of the melody’s first phrase."

A deviation from the standard format: Most sonatas follow a traditional fast-slow-fast structure, but Moonlight starts with a slow movement (Adagio sostenuto), followed by a light Allegretto and ends with a roiling Presto agitato.

An evocative nickname: Beethoven didn’t bestow the Moonlight label upon his work. That honor went to critic and poet Ludwig Rellstab, who compared the first movement’s effect to the appearance of moonlight dappling over Lake Lucerne in Switzerland.

A fixture in popular culture: Cartoons, movies, video games have paid a debt to Beethoven’s genius by incorporating selections from the sonata on their soundtracks. “Sid and Nancy” (1986), “Misery” (1990), “Immortal Beloved” (1994), “Crimson Tide” (1995) and “The Pianist” (2002) are just a few examples. The music provides just the right element of conflict and resolution to power a narrative to an emotional peak.

A tragic backstory: Beethoven wrote the sonata in 1801, during the early stages of his hearing loss, and this fact affirms the accepted narrative of Beethoven as a tortured, heroic artist. 

Acclaimed pianist Murray Perahia, who has spent years studying Beethoven’s original manuscripts and then co-edited the 2020 Henle Urtext edition of The Complete Beethoven Piano Sonatas, has said of Sonata No. 14: "It’s very innovative, that’s how I rank it. I love all of Beethoven’s sonatas, and this is one of the greats."

Of its enduring allure, Perahia observes: “The challenge of this music is still alive because one can get deeper and deeper into its mysteries. That’s endless — both musicologically and emotionally. Everything in it is connected. There isn’t a random note, yet it feels improvisatory. So it’s a mystery that will intrigue and occupy musicians forever.”