Sonatina, Sz. 55, BB. 69 is a piece for solo piano

Piano

The piano is a musical instrument played by means of a keyboard. It is one of the most popular instruments in the world. Widely used in classical and jazz music for solo performances, ensemble use, chamber music and accompaniment, the piano is also very popular as an aid to composing and rehearsal...

 written in 1915 by Hungarian composer Béla Bartók

Béla Bartók

Béla Viktor János Bartók was a Hungarian composer and pianist. He is considered one of the most important composers of the 20th century and is regarded, along with Liszt, as Hungary's greatest composer...

. Initially entitled Sonatina on Romanian folk tunes, it is based on folk tunes

Folk music

Folk music is an English term encompassing both traditional folk music and contemporary folk music. The term originated in the 19th century. Traditional folk music has been defined in several ways: as music transmitted by mouth, as music of the lower classes, and as music with unknown composers....

 Bartók collected in his neighbour country Romania

Romania

Romania is a country located at the crossroads of Central and Southeastern Europe, on the Lower Danube, within and outside the Carpathian arch, bordering on the Black Sea...

, which, even he proclaimed Hungarian folk music was clearly superior, was a direct source of inspiration all along his active years.

Structure

This sonatina consists of three movements and, according to Bartók's notes, takes three minutes and forty-seven seconds to perform:

• I. Dudások (Bagpipes). Molto moderato
• II. Medvetánc (Bear Dance). Moderato
• III. Finale. Allegro vivace

Though Bartók arranged it in three movements, the piece actually consists of five different folk tunes: he used two in the first movement, in an A-B-A form

Ternary form

Ternary form, sometimes called song form, is a three-part musical form, usually schematicized as A-B-A. The first and third parts are musically identical, or very nearly so, while the second part in some way provides a contrast with them...

, and two in the last movement, which he then combines snatches of in the coda

Coda (music)

Coda is a term used in music in a number of different senses, primarily to designate a passage that brings a piece to an end. Technically, it is an expanded cadence...

. In a radio broadcast of the Sonatina in 1944, Bartók described the piece:

This sonatina was originally conceived as a group of Rumanian folk dances for piano. The three parts which Mrs. Bartók will play were selected from a group and given the title of Sonatina. The first movement, which is called "Bagpipers", is a dance – these are two dances played by two bagpipe players, the first by one and the second by another. The second movement is called "Bear Dance" – this was played for me by a peasant violinist on the G and D string, on the lower strings in order to have it more similar to a bear’s voice. Generally the violin players use the E string. And the last movement contains also two folk melodies played by peasant violin players.

Bartók arranged this piece for orchestra sixteen years later. He called the orchestral version Transylvanian Dances, Sz. 96, BB 102.

Notable recordings

Notable recordings of this composition include:

Piano Solo	Record Company	Year of Recording	Format
Jenő Jandó Jeno Jandó Jenő Jandó is a Hungarian pianist and Professor of the Franz Liszt Academy of Music in Budapest, Hungary.He studied piano at the Liszt Academy with Katalin Nemes and Pál Kadosa, later going on to win many major international piano competitions, including the Georges Cziffra and Ciani Piano...	Naxos Records Naxos Records Naxos Records is a record label specializing in classical music. Through a number of imprints, Naxos also releases genres including Chinese music, jazz, world music, and early rock & roll. The company was founded in 1987 by Klaus Heymann, a German-born resident of Hong Kong.Naxos is the largest...	2005	CD

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