Sonata quasi una Fantasia: Piano (Solo)

This 28-page sonata stands as a fully realized work that rewards serious study without demanding virtuosity for its own sake. Finney's command of harmonic language and formal structure creates the feeling of spontaneous exploration that the "quasi una Fantasia" subtitle promises, making it an excellent choice for pianists navigating the twentieth-century repertoire at the intermediate-advanced level.

The work unfolds with the introspective quality of a musician thinking aloud, moving between moments of crystalline clarity and harmonic ambiguity. Its improvisatory character contrasts with underlying architectural strength, creating a listening experience that feels both spontaneous and inevitable.

This sonata is designed for advanced pianists and serious students who have developed technical independence and are ready to engage with twentieth-century idioms. It works equally well as a recital piece for accomplished amateurs or as a learning resource for musicians exploring the bridge between traditional form and modernist expression.

• Treat the form as a single continuous thought rather than as disconnected sections; the fantasia element demands fluidity between transitions.
• Explore the sonority of the instrument by experimenting with pedal changes throughout, as Finney often uses harmonic color as a structural device.
• Pay close attention to dynamics and their relationship to phrasing; sudden shifts in volume often signal new harmonic or thematic territory.
• Let fingering patterns emerge naturally from your hand position rather than defaulting to standard approaches; twentieth-century piano writing often rewards unconventional fingering that serves the sound rather than technique.

This sonata serves as an excellent centerpiece for a twentieth-century piano recital or as a contemporary pairing alongside Romantic-era repertoire to demonstrate how twentieth-century composers extended rather than abandoned the language of the sonata. It also works as a capstone work for advanced piano students preparing for competitions or degree recitals.

• Reading extended harmonic language and adjusting harmonic hearing to twentieth-century idioms
• Maintaining large-scale structural coherence across a 28-page work with multiple tempi and character changes
• Interpreting fantasia-like forms that require flexibility in pacing and rubato
• Pedal coordination and sonority control in contemporary keyboard writing
• Balancing technical demands with interpretive expression in modernist piano literature