Beethoven: Sonata in G Major, “Cuckoo“ (Goode, Lewis, Kovacevich)

I’ve got a real soft spot for this sonata: it’s the shortest of the three-movement sonatas and contains no emotional extremities, no bravura, no structural extravagance, no demonstrations of new technique or sonority (despite coming after the radically new Appassionata). And yet this sonata is beautiful, because what it is is a completely spontaneous and unforced expression of joy (listen to 23:52 - the whole coda is wonderful). It’s the kind of thing you enjoy from the first listen and love from the second