Violin Sonata No. 8 (Beethoven)

The Violin Sonata No. 8 in G major, Op. 30, No. 3, by Ludwig van Beethoven, the third of his Opus 30 set, was written between 1801 and 1802, published in May 1803, and dedicated to Tsar Alexander I of Russia. In response, Alexander gave Beethoven a diamond when they met at the Congress of Vienna, in 1814.

Violin Sonata
No. 8
by Ludwig van Beethoven
1801 engraving by Johann Joseph Neidl, after a now-lost portrait of Beethoven by Gandolph Ernst Stainhauser von Treuberg, ca. 1800
Key	G major
Opus	30
Composed	1801 (1801)–1802
Dedication	Alexander I of Russia
Published	May 1803 (1803)
Duration	18 minutes
Movements	3

Structure

The sonata has three movements:

1. Allegro assai
2. Tempo di minuetto, ma molto moderato e grazioso – in E-flat major
3. Allegro vivace

This sonata is characteristic of early/middle Beethoven in its solid sonata structure, just beginning to get adventurous in syncopation, with some extraordinary off beat sforzandi.

The work takes approximately 18 minutes to perform.

Notable recordings

Famous recordings of the sonata include one by Fritz Kreisler with Sergei Rachmaninoff at the piano.^[1]