Scarlatti: Selected Sonatas: Piano Book

This collection captures Scarlatti at his most inventive without overwhelming students with obscure material. The editorial notes on ornamentation and Spanish influences transform what could be a dry anthology into a guided tour through a composer whose voice deserves far more airtime in intermediate repertoire.

Scarlatti's sonatas crackle with wit and energy, their keyboard writing often exuberant and surprisingly angular. The influence of Spanish music surfaces in rhythmic vitality and occasional harmonic boldness, creating a Baroque world that feels more modern and unpredictable than the German counterpart.

Intermediate to early-advanced pianists ready to engage with pre-Classical keyboard writing and explore a composer whose technical and musical demands exceed standard method book fare. Teachers seeking repertoire that stretches technique while introducing students to Baroque keyboard aesthetics will find these sonatas essential.

• Treat ornaments as integral melodic gestures, not decorative afterthoughts. The editor's notes on ornamentation style will clarify which turns and trills belong to the harmonic structure versus which ones sit on top of it.
• Balance the hand with independence between melody and accompaniment. Scarlatti's textures often pit rapid figuration against sustained voices, requiring deliberate control of tone color and weight distribution.
• Lean into the rhythmic vitality suggested by Spanish folk influences. Even when the notation looks restrained, these sonatas thrive on a sense of forward momentum and rhythmic clarity.
• Shape phrases around harmonic landmarks rather than by-the-bar divisions. Scarlatti's quick harmonic changes reward players who listen ahead and commit to long-range direction.

Include a Scarlatti sonata on a recital exploring the evolution of keyboard writing from Baroque into the Classical period, or pair it with Classical-era sonatas to show the lineage. These pieces also serve as excellent ear-training material for students learning to recognize the shift from Baroque to Classical compositional thinking.

• Baroque ornamentation conventions and historical performance practice
• Hand independence and voice leading at faster tempos
• Rhythmic precision with Spanish/dance-inflected meters and syncopation
• Harmonic analysis across rapid chord changes
• Interpretive choices around tempo and articulation within a single movement form