Jean-Baptiste Bréval

Sonata C major Op. 40/1

It is impossible to imagine today's cello lessons without the works by Jean-Baptiste Bréval (1753-1823). Even his contemporaries praised Bréval for his works for 'amateurs' which offered pleasant melodies of moderate technical demands. In addition, he also wrote more demanding works, of course, such as his seven violoncello concertos and the sonatas which he performed himself at the popular concerts of virtuosos.The present Sonata in C major is the first of the Six Sonates non difficiles pour le violoncelle Op. 40 (1795). To this day, it is very popular among cello teachers and pupils alike. Because of its convenient tonality and technical simplicity, it is an interesting classical sonata for cello pupils who are experienced in playing in the first position and do not shy away from occasional excursions into the other neck positions.The sonata is particularly suitable for music lessons and concertos in the popular version for violoncello and piano by Joachim Stutschewsky, which was revised for the Schott Student Edition by Rainer Mohrs and edited and prefaced by Beverly Ellis.The new Schott Student Edition series offers varied literature at five different levels of difficulty, from 1 (easy) to 5 (difficult), for instrumental lessons.