Beethoven wrote his Piano Sonata No. 14 in 1801 and dedicated it to 17-year-old Countess Giulietta Guicciardi, with whom he was deeply in love. Its original title, Quasi una Fantasia, was in keeping with that dedication. However, in 1832, the poet Ludwig Rellstab compared the music to "moonlight shining on a lake." Since then, it became known as the Moonlight Sonata.
Its powerful, haunting and quiet melody was at first disturbing to audiences. But Beethoven later complained of its popularity, writing "Surely I've written better things."
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