The latest recording by the celebrated Ukrainian pianist Sergei Edelmann for Triton features three of Beethoven’s sonatas for solo piano: Sonata No.4 in E flat major Op.7, and two of his best known works, Sonatas No.14 in C# minor Op.27 No.2 known as the ‘Moonlight’, and No.23 in F minor Op.57 ‘Appassionata’.

Born in Lvov, Ukraine in 1960, Sergei Edelmann was taught to play by his father, Alexander Edelmann, a renowned pianist and teacher who had links with Vladimir Horowitz and Sviatoslav Richter. His BMG Classics/RCA Red Seal CDs feature recordings of both Mendelssohn Concertos and the Strauss Burlesque, and his series of solo recordings of Beethoven, Schubert, Schumann, Chopin and Prokofiev, have gathered enthusiastic critical acclaim. In recent times he has made several recordings for Triton, including discs devoted to the music of Schumann (EXCL00025), and Chopin (OVCT00058).

Following closely after the Op.2 set of three sonatas, which were written in 1796, the next in the series, Op.7, stands alone, and bears the designation ‘Grande Sonate’. It was composed around the same time as the first two piano concertos. The two Sonatas which make up Beethoven’s Op.27 were composed in 1801, between the First and Second Symphonies. Both have the same sub-title, ‘Sonata in the manner of a fantasia’, the fantasy element of No.2 coming through having the slow movement at the start. It was this that prompted the work’s poetic nickname of ‘Moonlight’ Sonata.

The Op.57 Sonata was written in around 1805, the same time as the 3rd and 4th Symphonies, the 4th Piano Concerto, the ‘Rasumovsky’ String Quartets, and the Violin Concerto. The title ‘Appassionata’ is thought to have been added to the work by the publisher.