The sonata, heir to the suite.

     In a previous post, we had talked about the suite and its development throughout history.

    The baroque suite was superseded by the sonata (note, not to be confused with the sonata form, which we will talk about later), its main heir, which dominated much of the production of musical classicism and romanticism.

    In common with the suite, the classical sonata is made up of several movements (usually three or four, although there is no specific rule as to how many), with a slower moving on to a livelier one.

    Usually (let's take an example of a four-movement soanta), the first is usually an allegro (whose musical form is sonata form), the second an andante (there is no specific form, although some composers used to opt for a sonata form without development), the third a minuet (Beethoven changed it to a scherzo, whose form is similar to that of the minuet, but with a more lively character and, as the name suggests, playful) and the fourth, a rondo, used to be an allegro or even a presto.

    The difference with the suite is that in the sonata its movements are not necessarily dances.

    It should also be noted that the classical sonata was composed for one or two instruments, since, if more were involved, they used to be called a tercet, quartet, quintet, etc.

This type of musical composition by interspersed fast and slow movements (the first in the form of a sonata) transcended other compositions such as the symphony or the concerto.

    In the 20th century, although the sonata declined, it did not stop being composed, although it was reduced to a single movement (like the Italian baroque sonata).

    And you, what do you prefer a suite or a sonata? Tell me in the comments!