Ludwig van Beethoven's Cello Sonata No. 3 in A major, Op. 69 was written in 1808, Beethoven's second compositional period. Composed in the same year were the two piano trios of Op. 70 and the Choral Fantasy; in the same year Beethoven also completed and published his Fifth and Sixth Symphonies. The sonata was dedicated to Baron Ignaz von Gleichenstein and first performed in March 1809 by cellist Nikolaus Kraft and pianist Dorothea von Ertmann. Beethoven composed five sonatas for cello and piano over his lifetime; Steven Isserlis described his third sonata as the first cello sonata in history to give equally important parts to both of the instruments.
Form
The work consists of three movements:
- Allegro ma non tanto
- Scherzo. Allegro molto (in A minor)
- Adagio cantabile – Allegro vivace.
The first movement opens with the cello alone; variations of its expansive main theme and a pair of contrasting secondary ideas give much cause to contrapuntal and melodic interplay between the two players.
The scherzo which follows, in the tonic minor (i.e. A minor), prominently features off-beat accents; the trio in the major is heard twice as in many of Beethoven's later scherzos.
The briskly-paced finale is preceded by a short slow introduction.