Understanding Form: The Scherzo

Link to book composition lessons:

In this video I discuss the surprisingly long history of the Scherzo and the nuances that separate it from its formulaic cousin the Minuet.

This video continues topics I introduced in my video on the Minuet, so if you haven't done so yet, watch that video first.

Understanding Form: The Minuet

[FictionWriter]

I personally think of "Scherzo" not conveying ha-ha funny-times as much as michief, unpredictability, or sprightliness. The best example I can think of is the Scherzo from Mendelssohn's music for A Midsummer Night's Dream, which communicates the otherworldly, mischievous, and slightly mysterious nature of the Fairies in the play.

[victorpaesplinio]

I love the scherzo from Beethoven's 5th.
Talking about jokes, I can see how some of the uses evokes this felling at some works. Like the Mercury from Holst, where we kind of have a telephone game between the instruments. If I not mistaken, Uranus also have this form and the movement feel like a pompous dance of the magician.
Mussorgsky uses this form in Pictures at an Exhibition. The Tuleries Garden is a joke itself, with children quarreling and running at the place.
The dance of the chicks in their eggshells and the Limoges market are also pretty fun to hear.

Thank you for the videos. I will watch the full playlist

[caterscarrots]

Wow, I'm the first to comment on this video. I never really realized that contrast as extreme as dramatic to whimsical was part of the Scherzo's identity, I thought it was just Beethoven's style and that other Scherzos might not necessarily have that much contrast, because you know, Beethoven tends to go extreme with his contrast anyway. However, I did know that the contrast of major vs minor key is part of the identity of a Scherzo.

[juanluisvalenzuela]

I can't wait for Sonata form or Theme and variations.

[tselyakov]

Your content is incredible! Thank you! 👏

[tamed]

I've really been looking forward to this video, I'm sure I'll enjoy it!

[T-J-S]

Chopin's Scherzo 1 definitely has humour imo

[guille____]

Great video! thanks, i love this series :)

[oketchoscar]

Thanks for the good work Mr. Wolfe. Kindly do a video on Sonata Form or Theme and Variations Form. TIA

[nicolasgalus]

There is another way to translate Scherzo, instead of seeing a joke, you can translate that by a mockery, the ability to transgress the codes/expectation, then it unveils all the possibility of expression :p, just by the sidestep of humor.

[mrcet]

I’m going to have to retitle some of my “Scherzo”s as “Scherzando, ” since they don’t really follow this sort of form.

[isaiahguy]

I think the reason the word scherzo is used by Haydn is because of the fact that they are too fast for people to dance for the minuet (look at womens dresses at that time they are the opposite of mobile) therefore the triple meter of the early scherzos along with the audiences implied assumption of a minuet and trio movement would be surprising and perhaps a little funny because it would be impossible to dance to.

[cliffpinchon]

Do you have versions of these videos without the background music?

[jopmens]

This confirms why i have been thoroughly confused with scherzo vs. capriccio form...

[dandbfilms]

Could you point me in the direction to where I could find Prokofiev stylistic analysis? I enjoy his works and am trying to understand his theory principals

[ilikeplayingffftonecluster]

Hmm you upload the Italian word for joke on April 1, interesting timing.

[benr]

My Italian friend says this means a trick instead of a joke or jest. 😊

[Harlem]

Scherzo = Classical court of elite smart assery...

[brandonwarweg]

Sorry but not a single composer, even Beethoven himself, come close to Chopin and his 4 Scherzo's. All 4 masterpieces imo. He took what Beethoven did with the Scherzo, composed & perfected the style into it's own completely new genre of piano repertoire. Chopin was pretty good at that actually...doing the same thing with the etude, nocturnes, preludes, Ballads, Polonaises, and Mazurkas(my favorites), and even Waltzes tbh...Honestly, no one before Chopin or since have composed music made so brilliantly perfect for the piano than Chopin(Mozart a distant 2nd lol!).