Scherzo

The scherzo (Italian for 'joke' or 'jest') began as the playful third movement in symphonies and sonatas, replacing the stately minuet from Beethoven onwards. Chopin transformed the scherzo into a large-scale, fiercely dramatic concert piece — his four scherzos are among the most demanding works in the piano repertoire, full of wild energy, sharp contrasts, and technical fireworks. The typical scherzo alternates a fast, driving outer section with a lyrical trio in the middle, creating a dramatic ABA structure. At the piano, the challenge is maintaining rhythmic precision at high speed while still projecting the humour or drama that the title implies — practise the outer sections with a metronome and save the expressive freedom for the trio.