DESCRIPTION:
Opus 28 has four movements: 1. Allegro; 2. Andante (at 16:04); 3. Scherzo - Allegro Vivace (at 25:52); 4. Rondo - Allegro ma non troppo (at 29:01). This sonata has got the nickname "Pastorale", not from Beethoven but from the publisher Cranz from Hamburg. Yes, indeed, it is a pastoral sonata. Therefore I take it easy. I don't hurry. Pastoral means: in the sphere of the quiet countryside. Therefore I play the first movement "Allegro" not too fast, and the fourth movement "Allegro ma non troppo" in the literally meaning of this tempo indication. I play it on my French harmonium with pressing air, built by Maugé (Paris, ca. 1860). On this harmonium it is possible to play with accents, crescendos and decrescendos, by moving the pedals very carefully with my feet. Because of the compass of the harmonium I have transposed it a quarter down to A major.