The finale of Beethoven’s Sonata No. 31, Op. 110, joins a slow introduction, two sorrowful arioso passages, and two connected fugues. Its textures range from a single recitative-like line to closely interwoven voices and broad keyboard arpeggios. The second arioso breaks the melody into shorter gestures, while the second fugue reshapes its theme in inversion. A growing final section brings the sonata to a strong close.

Introduction and first arioso: The opening Adagio places an ornamented upper line over slow chords. A passage marked Recitativo moves through rising figures, pauses, and changes of tempo. Repeated upper notes sound above a sustained harmony before the melody descends and softens. The Arioso dolente then introduces a longer singing line over repeated left-hand chords. Dotted rhythms, ties, and brief ornamental figures shape its phrases. Inner notes become more active as the sound grows, then diminishing dynamics and a fermata close the passage.

First fugue: The fugue begins quietly with a theme in the lower part, followed by entries in the upper and inner voices. Moving eighth notes accompany the longer thematic notes. The lines overlap and exchange positions, creating three independent parts across the two hands. Chromatic changes and small accents gradually increase the activity. Strong bass octaves later enter beneath the continuing upper lines. A closer exchange of thematic fragments and a brief acceleration build toward a forceful chordal passage, which then subsides.

Return of the arioso: The slow music returns in a changed key and with a more fragmented melodic line. Short rests interrupt the upper phrases, while repeated lower chords maintain the accompaniment. Grace notes, close intervals, and shifting inner voices give this return a different shape from the first arioso. The sound weakens toward a quiet phrase marked una corda. Repeated chords then grow from soft to very strong, followed by a rising arpeggio that leads into the second fugue.

Inverted fugue: The new entry begins in the right hand, softly, while the lower part leaves space through rests. The theme’s intervals now move in the opposite direction. Other voices gradually join it, and the original material is also heard in longer and shorter note values. Sustained bass notes support increasingly active upper lines. The soft-pedal instruction gradually gives way to the full-string sound as the counterpoint becomes more forceful.

Final build: A slightly slower passage introduces sixteenth-note figures around the longer theme. These gain motion and lead into an Animato section. The rapid notes first appear above the bass, then transfer to the left hand beneath upper chords and melodic phrases. Wide arpeggios, repeated accents, and rising registers increase the energy. On the final page, the lower running line supports larger upper harmonies before a descending figure and broad arpeggios across the keyboard lead to the last emphatic chord.

Interesting fact: The second fugue is explicitly labeled “L’inversione della Fuga” in the score, identifying its reversal of the original theme’s interval directions.