This two-album Signum Classics release presents Ludwig van Beethoven’s five cello sonatas, performed by cellist Paul Watkins and pianist Alessio Bax. The works were composed over a wide period and illustrate Beethoven’s early, middle and late styles, from the Op. 5 sonatas written during his 1796 Berlin visit, through the A Major Sonata Op. 69 from the period of the Fifth and Sixth Symphonies, to the Op. 102 sonatas marking the beginning of his final creative phase. Recorded in December 2024 at Cedars Hall, Wells, the set reflects close collaboration between cello and piano and Beethoven’s evolving formal and expressive concerns.
BEETHOVEN: The Sonatas for Piano and Cello
Paul Watkins – Cello
Alessio Bax – Piano
Release date: May 1st 2026
Catalogue number: SIGCD969
Barcode: 635212096925
CD 1
Cello Sonata No. 1 in F Major, Op. 5, No. 1
[1] I. Adagio sostenuto
[2] II. Allegro
[3] III. Rondo: Allegro vivace
Cello Sonata No. 2 in G Minor, Op. 5, No. 2
[4] I. Adagio sostenuto e espressivo –
[5] II. Allegro molto più tosto presto
[6] III. Rondo: Allegro
CD 2
Cello Sonata No. 3 in A Major, Op. 69
[1] I. Allegri ma non tanto
[2] II. Scherzo. Allegro molto
[3] III. Adagio cantabile – Allegro vivace
Cello Sonata No. 4 in C Major, Op. 102, No. 1
[4] I. Andante – Allegro vivace
[5] II. Adagio – Allegro vivace
[6] III. Allegro vivace
Cello Sonata No. 5 in D Major, Op. 102, No. 2
[7] I. Allegro con brio
[8] II. Adagio con molto sentimento d’affetto
[9] III. Allegro