Allegro con brio, 4/4 time, C major

Sonata form. It begins with powerful, life-affirming repeated chords. An unexpected modulation to B-flat major, a major second below, creates a sensation of falling into a chasm, but it quickly returns to C minor. From measure 14, a tremolo emerges, clearing the air, ascending a major second to D minor. The transition section proceeds further to E minor, a major second above, and the chorale-like second theme is presented in E major. Although this is a major third above the first theme's key (a distant key), a skillful transition that masks this relationship envelops the listener in a sense of heavenly bliss. The first theme is developed, and from measure 112, the harmonic colors are layered, blurring the contours of the figures, as the bass stirs like mist drifting in a valley, from which sparkling right-hand figures burst forth, leading to the recapitulation. The recapitulation of the second theme is in A major, a minor third below the tonic, demonstrating a thorough key design based on structural third intervals. The coda repeats unexpected modulations and striking sf (sforzandos), concluding with the third appearance of the second and first themes.