If you’ve been listening to a symphony and suddenly feel like there’s a manic interlude in the music, you’ve probably encountered a scherzo.
This is the third part of the most important works of the 19th century. Symphony. Sonata. String Quartet. That’s where it lives. But it didn’t come out of nowhere. Its origins are intertwined with a history that stretches back to what most people associate with the Romantic era.
Originally, during the Baroque period from 1600 to 1750, “scherzo” was only light music. It can be heard on vocal and instrumental tracks. Claudio Monteverdi composed the Scherzo musical in 1607. It was playful. It was brief. It is not the structural backbone of a large body.
After that, things get complicated.
By the 19th century, the scherzo had evolved. This will be an independent orchestral piece. However, its most important function was to replace the minuet.
Replacement of the festive minuet
In the 18th century, the minuet was an aristocratic dance. It’s very festive. It was dignified. It moved with a polite, measured grace.
Scherzo doesn’t care about that.
Scherzos are mainly composed by Beethoven and start at 3/4 speed. It is very fast. It was surprising. It creates a sudden dynamic change. It used orchestration to startle the listener. A minuet is a waltz composed for court use. A scherzo is a joke told at high speed.
The fast 3/4 scherzo is full of surprises in dynamics and arrangement.
It’s not just the pace of change. This is a change of attitude. Composers need energy. They want unpredictability. The minuet was too stiff for the new romantic spirit.
Trio and ABA structure
Both movements share a specific architectural trick. They both contain a contrasting section called the trio.
The structure is simple: ABA.
- The main theme (A).
- Trio (B).
- The return of the main theme (A).
Joseph Haydn anticipated this change. His minuet repeated its rhythm. They were abrupt. They hinted at the chaos to come. In fact, Haydn actually uses the word “scherzo” in Opus 33 quartets. They’re known as the Russian Quartets or Gli scherzi. He was on the label before it became a strict rule.
Beethoven went a step further. He composed almost all the scherzos in his nine symphonies. He didn’t label them all as such. Only Symphonies No. 2 and No. 3 are specifically named “Scherzo”. But the functionality is there. The energy is there. The surprise was there.
Standalone Character Pieces
In the 19th century scherzo was no longer just a movement. It became a standalone piece.
It remained swift. It remained characteristically fast. But it didn’t need a symphony to hold it up.
Felix Mendelssohn knew how to use it
