Pat Goddard was left to ponder what the great composers were doing in their early years. Following meticulous research, the result was a new series for piano: Great Little Composers. The examples of Beethoven’s early piano works included in this album were written when Beethoven was between the ages of 11 and 27 — he did not have such an early start as Mozart! All but one have been relegated to the end of the catalogue of his works under the heading “Werke ohne Opuszahl” (works without an Opus number WoO). However, they are varied and interesting and although showing strong traits of Haydn and Mozart, the germ of Beethoven’s future strikingly individual expressive language is clear.
