Beethoven's Piano Sonata No 8 in C minor is another one of Beethoven's most popular ballads. It was the second sonata of Beethoven's that I attempted (the first being the Moonlight Sonata). And I can confidently say that it is a very difficult piece to master. While it doesn't have the very quick notes of the Moonlight Sonata, it makes up for it with very awkward and fast jumps. The first movement itself has many different ideas and tones that make it incredibly hard to play.
The piece starts off with slow dramatic chords. These are meant to set up for the first theme of the piece which has the difficult jumps I mentioned earlier. Additionally, this theme is accompanied with tremolos (rapid reiterations of notes) in the left hand. This part can be very taxing for the hands so it needs to be played efficiently. To prevent fatigue of the fingers, I had to use my wrist to hit the notes rather than just my fingers. This eased the burden on them and allowed me to be less relaxed. The piece has lots of repetition but with new ideas every time. The 1st movement ends dramatically, with loud, massive chords.
This was one of the most fun pieces to play especially because of all the different techniques I learnt through it. I am also playing the second movement of this piece now, which is a very slow and emotional piece. It's melancholy mood really contrasts with the aggressive and fast sections of the first movement.