Open Access
Table 1
Characteristics of the four periods of composition.
| Musical periods | Youth | Promethean | Ethereal |
p-value | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Period of mental distress | Final Ethereal | ||||
| Year of composition | 1792–1801 | 1802–1813 | 1814–1819 | 1820–1827 | |
| Nos. of sonatas | 1–15, 19, 20 | 16–18, 21–26 | 27–29 | 30–32 | |
| Number of sonatas/ | 17 | 9 | 3 | 3 | |
| Number of movements | 58 | 26 | 10 | 7 | |
| Frequency of pitches occurrence (beats): | |||||
| Sum | 80 461 | 44 790 | 20 964 | 9553 | |
| Median (IQRa) | 5.75 (22.8) | 8 (28) | 11.9 (37.2) | 10.5 (23.5) | <0.001 |
| 95% CI Medianb | 5.00–6.33 | 6.92–9 | 9.75–14.9 | 8.5–12 | |
| Pitch range (MIDI notation) | 26–91 | 26–101 | 24–101 | 24–99 | |
| Number of pitches per movement: | |||||
| Median (IQRa) | 1856 (1663) | 2730 (2108) | 3218 (3267) | 2708 (2409) | <0.001 |
| Number of rests per movement: | |||||
| Median (IQRa) | 197.5 (180) | 269.5 (280) | 337.5 (297) | 187 (125) | <0.001 |
| Number of measures per movement: | |||||
| Median (IQRa) | 150 (111) | 194 (167) | 216 (232) | 162 (74) | <0.001 |