Johann Nepomuk Hummels Sonate in fis-Moll Op. 81 – Studien zu Entstehungshintergrund, Rezeption und formaler Struktur

The article examines the significance of one of Johann Nepomuk Hummel’s masterpieces. First, it highlights the circumstances of its production and the contemporary critical acclaim in the AmZ. In a second step, Robert Schumann’s involvement with this work is shown. In his journal, the sonata of Hummel is mentioned several times which indicates the engagement of the young piano discipline. In a short article, published in the NZfM in the year 1839, Schumann links this sonata with the compositional “way of Mozart” and thus gives an important hint to the formal design of the piece itself. Aspects of formal organization and structure of this sonata are analyzed and presented in the third part of the essay. In opposition to Beethoven’s motivic development, Hummel pursues another strategy of formal structure by stringing together each of the segments and themes. Thus, the focus shifts from a dynamic design of sonata-form to a more epic layout of the piece. Additionally, technical development and innovations concerning piano techniques and virtuosity are examined.