Ludwig van Beethoven wrote his Piano Sonata no. 26, Op. 81a, also known as Les Adieux, between 1809 and 1810. It was titled Les Adieux in what Beethoven himself considered to be a poor translation of the German 'Lebewohl'. The piece itself was dedicated to Rudolph of Austria, who was Beethoven's greatest patron, and it is considered to be one of Beethoven's most challenging in terms of technical difficulty and emotional depth. A standard performance lasts about 17 minutes.
