The dawning of romanticism

Around 1800, the piano became one of the defining instruments of the Romantic era. Significant advances in instrument-making saw the piano undergo a considerable transformation by the 1820s, opening up new possibilities for performers. The keyboard embraced it all: from sonatas and variations to martial pieces and popular melodies; from historical theatre to street songs; and from academicism to the first stirrings of modern virtuosity. Candeille, Steibelt, Jadin, Adam, Beethoven and Hérold created a shifting landscape, still close to the eighteenth century, but already showing a new expressiveness and a quest for virtuosity. Here Roberto Prosseda explores pieces written for the salons or for the stage, and also more whimsical compositions.