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In 1839, the health of Frederic Chopin took a turn for the worse in Majorca. It was time to leave for warmer and sunnier climes. But that Pleyel piano on which the Spanish customs officials had only collected half a ransom became an issue. They wouldn’t let it off the island, and Fred had to sell it to a local couple. Fred and George left for Barcelona and then Marseille. Finally the couple took off for George’s estate at Nohant.

It was during this period that Chopin wrote the first of his two mature sonatas. The first sonata, which we covered several weeks ago, was an early work. This new sonata was a huge hit, especially the slow movement. Schumann remarked that Chopin’s mature sonatas were not all of a piece like a Beethoven sonata, but the binding together of Chopin’s most unruly children.

It starts in a frantic minor key, but the sun comes out with the second subject. The development section gently unmoors from the concept of key, and the second subject begins the recap. There is just a hint of the first subject before he wraps it up.

Chopin: Sonata #2 in B-flat minor, Op. 35 (“Funeral March”) (first movement)

The scherzo in E-flat minor is a tough nut to crack. The middle or “trio” section presents a beautiful and calm contrast to the craggy and difficult exterior.

(second movement)

The slow movement is one of the most famous pieces of music in the world, and it’s safe to say that every man, woman and child on the planet has heard it. Chopin wrote it two years earlier and placed it in the desk drawer, only to take it out and set it as the emotional centerpiece of this sonata. This is the original version of a famous tune.

(third movement)

The finale involves the same note on the fingers of the right and left hand played in running octaves without any supporting harmony. Chopin writes no markings for expression, and it is played as though the composer were trying to find a musical way to depict the void. There is no afterlife in this sonata. One writer of the period characterized the finale as the wind whistling over the graves.

(fourth movement)