No other work of Liszt's has attracted anywhere near the amount of scholarly attention paid to the Sonata in B minor. It has provoked a wide range of divergent theories from those of its admirers who feel compelled to search for hidden meanings. Walker claims the quiet ending of the Sonata was an afterthought; the original manuscript contains a crossed-out ending section which would have ended the work in a loud flourish instead. The Sonata unfolds in approximately 30 minutes of unbroken music. While its distinct movements are rolled into one, the entire work is encompassed within an overarching sonata form — exposition, development, and recapitulation. Liszt effectively composed a sonata within a sonata, which is part of the work's uniqueness, and he was quite economical with his thematic material. The first page contains three motive ideas that provide the basis for nearly all that follows, with the ideas being transformed throughout. Some analyses suggest that the Sonata has four movements (Newman, 1972) although there is no gap between them. Superimposed upon the four movements is a large sonata form structure, although the precise beginnings and endings of the traditional development and recapitulation sections have long been a topic of debate. Others claim a three-movement form (Longyear, 1973), a one-movement structure (Winklhofer, 1980), and a rotational three-movement work with a double exposition and recapitulation (Whitelaw, 2017). The first theme is a descending scale marked "sotto voce"; full of ominous undertow. It reappears at crucial points in the work's structure. This leads immediately to a jagged, forceful motif in octaves. This is quickly followed by a hammering "marcato" motif in the left hand. A dialogue ensues, with mounting energy, until reaching the noble Grandioso material in D major. Liszt transforms the "marcato" motif into a lyrical melody later. The slow movement, an "Andante sostenuto", is the centerpiece of the Sonata. This fully-fledged movement, in compound ternary form, features, in quick succession, a number of themes heard earlier in the Sonata in a "tour de force" of thematic economy. The final recapitulatory section is launched by a driving "fugato" of contrapuntal skill which leads to the compressed return of the opening material. Calling upon every intellectual resource and fully exploiting the pianist's technical arsenal, it is at this point where a performer's concentration might wane.