<span class="mw-page-title-main">Sonata</span>

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Sonata

<p><b>Sonata</b> (<span class="rt-commentedText nowrap"><span class="IPA nopopups noexcerpt"><a href="/en/Help:IPA/English" title="Help:IPA/English" class="wl">/<span style="border-bottom:1px dotted"><span>s</span><span>ə</span><span>ˈ</span><span>n</span><span>ɑː</span><span>t</span><span>ə</span></span>/</a></span></span>; Italian: <small about="#mwt17" typeof="mw:Transclusion" data-mw="{&quot;parts&quot;:[{&quot;template&quot;:{&quot;target&quot;:{&quot;wt&quot;:&quot;IPA-it&quot;,&quot;href&quot;:&quot;./Template:IPA-it&quot;},&quot;params&quot;:{&quot;1&quot;:{&quot;wt&quot;:&quot;soˈnaːta&quot;},&quot;2&quot;:{&quot;wt&quot;:&quot;&quot;}},&quot;i&quot;:0}}]}"></small><span class="IPA"><a href="/en/Help:IPA/Italian" title="Help:IPA/Italian" class="wl">[soˈnaːta]</a></span>, pl. <i>sonate</i>; from Latin and Italian: <i>sonare</i> [archaic Italian; replaced in the modern language by <i>suonare</i>], "to sound"), in <a href="/en/Music" title="Music" class="wl">music</a>, literally means a piece <i>played</i> as opposed to a <a href="/en/Cantata" title="Cantata" class="wl">cantata</a> (Latin and Italian <i>cantare</i>, "to sing"), a piece <i>sung</i>.<span class="mw-ref reference" id="cite_ref-:0_1-0"><a href="#cite_note-:0-1" style="counter-reset: mw-Ref 1;"><span class="mw-reflink-text">[1]</span></a></span><sup class="reference nowrap"><span><span>:</span><span> </span>17<span> </span></span></sup> The term evolved through the <a href="/en/Music_history" title="Music history" class="wl">history of music</a>, designating a variety of forms until the <a href="/en/Classical_music_era" title="Classical music era" class="mw-redirect wl">Classical</a> era, when it took on increasing importance. Sonata is a vague term, with varying meanings depending on the context and time period. By the early 19th century, it came to represent a principle of composing large-scale works. It was applied to most instrumental genres and regarded—alongside the <a href="/en/Fugue" title="Fugue" class="wl">fugue</a>—as one of two fundamental methods of organizing, interpreting and analyzing concert music. Though the musical style of sonatas has changed since the Classical era, most 20th- and 21st-century sonatas still maintain the same structure.</p>

<div class="shortdescription nomobile noexcerpt noprint searchaux" style="display:none" about="#mwt1">Type of instrumental composition</div>
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<figure class="mw-default-size wiki-thumb"><a href="/en/File:Beethoven_opus_101_manuscript.jpg" class="mw-file-description image media-thumb" data-hash="File:Beethoven_opus_101_manuscript.jpg"><img loading="lazy" src="//upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/2/2a/Beethoven_opus_101_manuscript.jpg/290px-Beethoven_opus_101_manuscript.jpg" decoding="async" data-file-width="1175" data-file-height="1821" data-file-type="bitmap" height="449" width="290" srcset="//upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/2/2a/Beethoven_opus_101_manuscript.jpg/435px-Beethoven_opus_101_manuscript.jpg 1.5x, //upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/2/2a/Beethoven_opus_101_manuscript.jpg/580px-Beethoven_opus_101_manuscript.jpg 2x" alt="Beethoven_opus_101_manuscript.jpg"></a><figcaption><a href="/en/Ludwig_van_Beethoven" title="Ludwig van Beethoven" class="wl">Ludwig van Beethoven</a>'s manuscript sketch for <a href="/en/Piano_Sonata_No._28_(Beethoven)" title="Piano Sonata No. 28 (Beethoven)" class="wl">Piano Sonata No. 28</a>, Movement IV <i>Geschwind, doch nicht zu sehr und mit Entschlossenheit</i> (<a href="/en/Tempo" title="Tempo" class="wl">Allegro</a>), in his own handwriting. The piece was completed in 1816.</figcaption></figure>
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<div class="side-box-flex">
<div class="side-box-image"><figure class="mw-halign-center"><span><img loading="lazy" alt="Gnome-mime-audio-openclipart.svg" src="//upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/c/cb/Gnome-mime-audio-openclipart.svg/50px-Gnome-mime-audio-openclipart.svg.png" decoding="async" data-file-width="160" data-file-height="160" data-file-type="drawing" height="50" width="50" srcset="//upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/c/cb/Gnome-mime-audio-openclipart.svg/75px-Gnome-mime-audio-openclipart.svg.png 1.5x, //upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/c/cb/Gnome-mime-audio-openclipart.svg/100px-Gnome-mime-audio-openclipart.svg.png 2x"></span><figcaption></figcaption></figure></div>
<div class="side-box-text plainlist"><div class="listen-header">Beethoven's Piano Sonata No. 28 in A major, Op. 101</div>
<div class="haudio">
<div class="listen-file-header"><a href="/en/File:Beethoven_-_Piano_Sonata_No._28_in_A_Major,_Op._101_-_I._Etwas_lebhaft,_und_mit_der_innigsten_Empfindung.ogg" title="File:Beethoven - Piano Sonata No. 28 in A Major, Op. 101 - I. Etwas lebhaft, und mit der innigsten Empfindung.ogg" class="wl">I. Allegro, ma non troppo</a></div>
<div><span class="mw-default-audio-height"><span><div class='audio-player' title='I. Allegro, ma non troppo'><audio controls="" preload="none" height="32" width="232" resource="./File:Beethoven_-_Piano_Sonata_No._28_in_A_Major,_Op._101_-_I._Etwas_lebhaft,_und_mit_der_innigsten_Empfindung.ogg"><source src="//upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/f/fe/Beethoven_-_Piano_Sonata_No._28_in_A_Major%2C_Op._101_-_I._Etwas_lebhaft%2C_und_mit_der_innigsten_Empfindung.ogg" type="audio/ogg; codecs=&quot;vorbis&quot;" data-title="Original Ogg file (128 kbps)" data-shorttitle="Ogg source"><source src="//upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/transcoded/f/fe/Beethoven_-_Piano_Sonata_No._28_in_A_Major%2C_Op._101_-_I._Etwas_lebhaft%2C_und_mit_der_innigsten_Empfindung.ogg/Beethoven_-_Piano_Sonata_No._28_in_A_Major%2C_Op._101_-_I._Etwas_lebhaft%2C_und_mit_der_innigsten_Empfindung.ogg.mp3" type="audio/mpeg" data-title="MP3" data-shorttitle="MP3"></audio></div></span></span></div>
<div class="description"></div></div><hr><div class="haudio">
<div class="listen-file-header"><a href="/en/File:Beethoven_-_Piano_Sonata_No._28_in_A_Major,_Op._101_-_II._Lebhaft._Marschmäßig.ogg" title="File:Beethoven - Piano Sonata No. 28 in A Major, Op. 101 - II. Lebhaft. Marschmäßig.ogg" class="wl">II. Vivace alla marcia</a></div>
<div><span class="mw-default-audio-height"><span><div class='audio-player' title='II. Vivace alla marcia'><audio controls="" preload="none" height="32" width="232" resource="./File:Beethoven_-_Piano_Sonata_No._28_in_A_Major,_Op._101_-_II._Lebhaft._Marschmäßig.ogg"><source src="//upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/b/bb/Beethoven_-_Piano_Sonata_No._28_in_A_Major%2C_Op._101_-_II._Lebhaft._Marschm%C3%A4%C3%9Fig.ogg" type="audio/ogg; codecs=&quot;vorbis&quot;" data-title="Original Ogg file (132 kbps)" data-shorttitle="Ogg source"><source src="//upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/transcoded/b/bb/Beethoven_-_Piano_Sonata_No._28_in_A_Major%2C_Op._101_-_II._Lebhaft._Marschm%C3%A4%C3%9Fig.ogg/Beethoven_-_Piano_Sonata_No._28_in_A_Major%2C_Op._101_-_II._Lebhaft._Marschm%C3%A4%C3%9Fig.ogg.mp3" type="audio/mpeg" data-title="MP3" data-shorttitle="MP3"></audio></div></span></span></div>
<div class="description"></div></div><hr><div class="haudio">
<div class="listen-file-header"><a href="/en/File:Beethoven_-_Piano_Sonata_No._28_in_A_Major,_Op._101_-_III._Langsam_und_sehnsuchtsvoll_and_IV._Geschwind,_doch_nicht_zu_sehr_und_mit_Entschlossenheit.ogg" title="File:Beethoven - Piano Sonata No. 28 in A Major, Op. 101 - III. Langsam und sehnsuchtsvoll and IV. Geschwind, doch nicht zu sehr und mit Entschlossenheit.ogg" class="wl">III. Adagio, ma non troppo, con affetto<br>IV. Allegro</a></div>
<div><span class="mw-default-audio-height"><span><div class='audio-player' title='III. Adagio, ma non troppo, con affettoIV. Allegro'><audio controls="" preload="none" height="32" width="232" resource="./File:Beethoven_-_Piano_Sonata_No._28_in_A_Major,_Op._101_-_III._Langsam_und_sehnsuchtsvoll_and_IV._Geschwind,_doch_nicht_zu_sehr_und_mit_Entschlossenheit.ogg"><source src="//upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/2/20/Beethoven_-_Piano_Sonata_No._28_in_A_Major%2C_Op._101_-_III._Langsam_und_sehnsuchtsvoll_and_IV._Geschwind%2C_doch_nicht_zu_sehr_und_mit_Entschlossenheit.ogg" type="audio/ogg; codecs=&quot;vorbis&quot;" data-title="Original Ogg file (132 kbps)" data-shorttitle="Ogg source"><source src="//upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/transcoded/2/20/Beethoven_-_Piano_Sonata_No._28_in_A_Major%2C_Op._101_-_III._Langsam_und_sehnsuchtsvoll_and_IV._Geschwind%2C_doch_nicht_zu_sehr_und_mit_Entschlossenheit.ogg/Beethoven_-_Piano_Sonata_No._28_in_A_Major%2C_Op._101_-_III._Langsam_und_sehnsuchtsvoll_and_IV._Geschwind%2C_doch_nicht_zu_sehr_und_mit_Entschlossenheit.ogg.mp3" type="audio/mpeg" data-title="MP3" data-shorttitle="MP3"></audio></div></span></span></div>
<div class="description">Performed by Daniel Veesey</div></div></div></div>
<div class="side-box-abovebelow"><hr><i class="selfreference">Problems playing these files? See <a href="/en/Help:Media" title="Help:Media" class="wl">media help</a>.</i></div>
</div>
<p>The term <a href="/en/Sonatina" title="Sonatina" class="wl">sonatina</a>, pl. <i>sonatine</i>, the <a href="/en/Diminutive" title="Diminutive" class="wl">diminutive</a> form of sonata, is often used for a short or technically easy sonata.</p>



Sonata , in music, literally means a piece played as opposed to a cantata , a piece sung.: 17  The term evolved through the history of music, designating a variety of forms until the Classical era, when it took on increasing importance. Sonata is a vague term, with varying meanings depending on the context and time period. By the early 19th century, it came to represent a principle of composing large-scale works. It was applied to most instrumental genres and regarded—alongside the fugue—as one of two fundamental methods of organizing, interpreting and analyzing concert music. Though the musical style of sonatas has changed since the Classical era, most 20th- and 21st-century sonatas still maintain the same structure. The term sonatina, pl. sonatine, the diminutive form of sonata, is often used for a short or technically easy sonata. 