Piano Sonatas

Franz Joseph Haydn's surviving 52 keyboard sonatas were written during a time of important changes to both keyboard instruments and the structure of sonata form. The harpsichord, for which Haydn wrote his earlier sonatas, was being replaced by the fortepiano with it's more expressive hammer action, which in turn evolved into the robust pianoforte. The sonatas presented here show Haydn exploring the dynamic possibilities of the new instrument.