I am back.
And oh boy. You've placed what are arguably Beethoven's two best sonatas against each other. Though I was quick to choose Pathétique last night, Mondschein is also incredible. The decision was harder than my above post implies. If it were simply adagio versus adagio, I'd pick Moonlight. But I assume you meant the full sonatas.
Pathétique...where to begin? I first started listening to classical music for my own pleasure at around the age of 13/14. I'd heard most of the big orchestral works by Mozart, Tchaikovsky, Mahler and Beethoven in music class. Not many piano pieces. On a whim, I picked up a cheap CD one day - Alfred Brendel performing Pathétique. I listened to it about five times on repeat, absolutely stunned by the quality. It is in my opinion, from start to finish, Beethoven's greatest work for piano. It is
the piece that made me fall in love with Beethoven. The allegro is brilliant. That mournful, eerily beautiful first two minutes or so leads into that wonderful technical section, before slowing down again to repeat the beginning. That first repeat...it still sends shivers down my spine, and I must have listened to this piece hundreds of times. Then the adagio. Oh God, the adagio! It is quite simply one of the most beautiful pieces of music ever arranged. I can't really say much more about it than that. Into the final movement...the rondo is the reason why I begged my parents for piano lessons for seven years, to no avail. There is not a single note out of place. Simply perfect.
Moonlight on the other hand...were it not for the second movement, it would be flawless. Alas, the allegretto is there and will always be there. I have never enjoyed it. It has always seemed very pointless to me. Very average, as far as Beethoven goes. Don't get me wrong, it's a beautiful little section. I suppose the only reason why it seems so average to me is that it is sandwiched by the brilliant first and final movements. The adagio never fails to make me teary. It's not a technical marvel, but emotionally, not much else can come close. As I said, if it were adagio versus adagio, I would pick Moonlight in a heartbeat. We already know how I feel about the second movement. The final movement is wonderful. So much anger! The last few minutes are...well, there are no words to describe them.
So in the end, it's the pointless second movement in Moonlight and my own personal attachment to Pathétique that makes me choose the way I do.
I think I've waffled on long enough.