Overview

It is no exaggeration to state that the genre of sonatas for solo clavier (keyboard instrument) (hereinafter, solo sonatas) was at the core of Clementi's creative activities. Over the 40-year period from the publication of Sonata Op. 2 in 1781 to the publication of Sonata Op. 50 in 1821, he published a total of 70 solo sonatas (including sonatinas).

Opus 10 was published in 1783, after Clementi signed a contract with a local publisher during his stay in Vienna. As this period predated the widespread popularization of the piano, the title page of the score stated, "for harpsichord or fortepiano." This is likely considered to be one of the publisher's sales strategies, rather than an instrument specification by the composer Clementi.