Tobias Haslinger

2 Easy Sonatinas

In general, Tobias Haslinger is known as an eminent publisher of the works of Beethoven and Schubert. Although successful as a publisher, Haslinger is hardly known as a composer. The sonatinas presented here belong to a collection that seems to be the first of his compositions appearing in printed form. Bearing the title 'Musikalischer Jugendfreund für das Pianoforte, mit und ohne Begleitung und zu vier Händen', its 25 volumes combine piano works, chamber music and even piano quartets. The goal of this collection is to supply young beginners with easily playable literature. Obviously, the sonatinas with flute are easy to play and are characterized by the fact that the flautist plays an equal role throughout the pieces, even if s/he is designated as an 'accompanist' in the title as was customary in those days.