Beethoven once reported that he had written down his three last piano sonatas (op. 109, 110, 111) in 1820 to 1822 in one go, and they certainly form a closely related group. The A flat major Sonata no. 31 op. 110 is informed by an elegiac and lyrical mood. Recitative and arioso figures in the strongly vocally-oriented last movement recall the fact that Beethoven was concurrently working on his famous ''Missa Solemnis''. Those who devote themselves to this carefully edited Henle Urtext edition of the sonata will be able to demonstrate how brilliant technique and inner expressive power merge within it.