Sonatina
A small, shorter sonata.
What it means
The sonatina is a small sonata: multi-movement like it, but shorter, technically less demanding, and formally kept more concise. The opening movement usually follows the sonata-movement principle, but the development is short or absent altogether, and the themes are compact. Two or three movements are usual. To distinguish: the bagatelle is a single movement and formally free, the sonatina, by contrast, a scaled-down cycle with the same constructive principle as the sonata.
Musical use
The genre has its fixed place in teaching, because it makes musical forms accessible within a manageable frame: whoever plays a sonatina learns exposition, recapitulation, key relations, and movement characters in a shape that is technically manageable. Alongside this there are sonatinas not conceived pedagogically but using the concise cut as an artistic decision — above all in the twentieth century, where sonatinas of high ambition arose. The title thus says something about scope and craftsmanship, not necessarily about difficulty.
Performance practice
Take the form seriously: mark the sections and make the key changes audible, even though the piece is short. Watch for clean articulation and exact rhythm, for in lean movements every inaccuracy stands out. Keep the tempo stable and play lighter than the note values suggest. Use the pedal sparingly. Plan the movements as a cycle with matching tempo relations, instead of considering them individually.
Bear in mind that the title says nothing about difficulty: alongside pedagogical literature there are sonatinas of high ambition, in which conciseness is an artistic decision. Check the piece before classifying it. Alongside Clementi, Kuhlau and Diabelli are well-known sonatina composers. Ravel wrote a sonatina for piano, which shows that the title is not limited to teaching.
Check whether the opening movement has a development, because the formal shaping follows from that.
Also check whether the piece is intended for teaching or for the concert hall, because the shaping follows from that.