Second Movement: Menuetto sostenuto

A major, 3/4 time, variation form. A simple and elegant minuet serves as the theme, followed by six variations. All variations are classical figural variations, adhering to the harmonic progression of the theme. In the first variation, the right hand is subdivided into elegant arpeggios of sixteenth notes; symmetrically, in the second variation, the left hand is similarly subdivided, while the right hand plays the theme's melody. The third variation is further subdivided based on triplets, and the fourth variation progresses to subdivisions of thirty-second notes. While it might be difficult to maintain the same tempo as the theme on modern pianos due to their heavier key action, it would have been entirely possible on the fortepiano of the composer's time. Therefore, this section should not be played as a display of virtuosity, but rather as a musical expression, lightly, as if the wind were dancing. The fifth variation shifts to A minor and resets to a simpler rhythm centered on syncopation. The sixth variation, befitting a final variation, has a bright and cheerful character.