Listening Guide
The Work
Tempo: Langsam, schwer (slow and heavy).
Key: F# major; beginning in D minor, with a main theme in B minor/major that goes through a series of modulations until it reaches the intended tonic before the final coda.
Time Signature: The introduction shifts from 4/4 to 3/4 to 2/4 (and one measure of 5/4) in nearly every measure, but when the principal theme is introduced the meter stabilizes into common time (4/4) for most of the remainder of the movement.
Form: Introduction-A-B-A-B-A Coda.