I first became aware of the music of Anton Eberl (1765–1807), a contemporary of the “Viennese classics,” in 2013. Eberl was a composer whose first piano sonata was published as Mozart's last, under Mozart's name, even while Mozart was still alive; therefore it is presumed that Mozart must have approved of the deceptive attribution. Furthermore, Eberl's Symphony in E-flat Major was evaluated more highly than Beethoven's Eroica by contemporary critics when both were initially played in Vienna in 1805.

The following study, which focuses on two main examples drawn from Eberl's mature symphonies, seeks to demonstrate that our concept of “normative” sonata form, in terms of structure and design, is seriously incomplete. Taking the first movements of Eberl's symphonies in E-flat major and D minormajor as case studies, I shall argue that the sample of “known works” in the so-called classical style is still much too narrow for us to think that we have explored all of the possible models of sonata form. Consider the late Theophil Antonicek's 2012 comment on the symphonies of Antonio Cartellieri in the program booklet for the recording:

Antonicek's description may or may not be true, but, at this point it is difficult to verify because none of the scores of Cartellieri's symphonies have been published in modern editions. Yet it is obvious from the single available recording that Cartellieri was an accomplished composer who may well have influenced— and been influenced by—Beethoven. During the intermission at the premiere of Cartellieri's oratorio Gioas—Re di Giuda (Jesus—King of Juda), which took place on March 29–30, 1795, at the Wiener Burgtheater, Beethoven played his First Piano Concerto in his Viennese debut as a composer.