# Flute Sonata in Bb: What do you think?



## caters (Aug 2, 2018)

So what do you think of the Flute Sonata in Bb? I personally think that if the piece hadn't been attributed to Beethoven after finding the manuscript with his other works, that this would be late Mozart.

Really, that is what it sounds like to me. Here are the things that make it sound very Mozartian to me:


Alberti bass commonly used
Simple motifs for both hands being repeated
Delicate touch to the piano even at Forte
Happy and gentle
Flute accents the happy and gentle feeling

Nothing except the simple motif being repeated would I attribute as being characteristic of a Beethoven sonata.

But that's just it, it is only attributed to Beethoven. There is no proof that it is by Beethoven himself. Mozart might have very well written this flute sonata, gave it to Beethoven the first time he was in Vienna or to Haydn who would give it to Beethoven and then people just assumed it was Beethoven from then on.

Do you think that this could have been attributed wrongly to Beethoven and that this is more likely a late Mozart piece? Or what do you think could be the case for this sonata?





Here is the flute sonata





Here is a Mozart sonata





And here is 1 of Beethoven's earlier piano sonatas for comparison


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## Larkenfield (Jun 5, 2017)

(cancelled duplicate)


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## Larkenfield (Jun 5, 2017)

To me, it sounds a little bit more constructed like Haydn with its happy feeling, though of course Mozart could be upbeat too. Nevertheless, Beethoven studied Mozart’s music off and on throughout his entire life — even having a dream of meeting him — and it’s possible this Sonata could still be an example. As much as Beethoven accomplished in life — and it was magnificent — I never felt that he ever placed himself above Mozart as a composer, such as the balance and perfection of Mozart’s work was. I was more reminded of Haydn here because I feel that Mozart had a little bit more of an effervescent sparkle than he did. How fortunate that humanity was blessed with all three! (One man’s opinion.)


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## fluteman (Dec 7, 2015)

caters said:


> So what do you think of the Flute Sonata in Bb? I personally think that if the piece hadn't been attributed to Beethoven after finding the manuscript with his other works, that this would be late Mozart.
> 
> Really, that is what it sounds like to me. Here are the things that make it sound very Mozartian to me:
> 
> ...


It doesn't sound like Mozart to me, rather a young, or even a child composer, heavily influenced by Mozart, but it isn't remotely as good as Beethoven's mature violin sonatas 1 and 2. Also, it doesn't sound like a flute sonata, but rather a transcription of something else, perhaps a violin sonata. Perhaps a very early work of Beethoven composed when he was 13 or 14?


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## Merl (Jul 28, 2016)

There's an interesting small article about the piece here Btw, personally I don't think it sounds like Beethoven but what do I know?

https://books.google.co.uk/books?id=tbc0AAAAQBAJ&pg=PA138&lpg=PA138&dq=beethoven+flute+sonata+authenticity&source=bl&ots=bsQjHWPftM&sig=BWGrvpgOByJUZQkYn39MgqVeGP4&hl=en&sa=X&ved=0ahUKEwjxltLd3tXcAhUFO8AKHc9OCZQ4ChDoAQgeMAg#v=onepage&q&f=false


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## lachlan1415 (Jul 30, 2018)

I hate alberti bass it's just so boring in my opinion


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