First Movement: Larghetto maestoso - Allegro assai

F minor, 2/2 time - 4/4 time. After a lamenting arpeggio is played f, a passage follows p, as if murmuring weakly, having given up everything. Then, over the left hand writhing in the lowest register as if mimicking the depths of the earth, the right hand struggles to ascend, but fails to achieve its aim and falls. This mere 9-measure introduction is colored by various kinds of despair and terror.

From measure 10, the tempo becomes Allegro assai, and a whirlwind of emotions pours forth as if the shackles of the heart have been unleashed.

The subordinate theme (from m. 18) shifts to A-flat major, its relative major.

The development section (from m. 37) begins in A-flat major, but immediately darkens into minor, unleashing passionate outbursts. At measure 47, the opening introduction returns (this structural device culminates in the later Piano Sonata 'Pathétique'). Following this, it returns to a rapid Allegro assai, and both the main theme and subordinate theme are recapitulated in the tonic key of F minor.