Scherzo No. 3 (Chopin)

Scherzo No. 3 (Chopin)

The Scherzo No. 3 (opus 39) by Frédéric Chopin begins in the key of C-sharp minor, then moves to D-flat major, and returns to C-sharp minor, concluding in C-sharp major. It was completed in 1839. The composition opens with an almost Lisztian introduction, leading to a subject in octaves of pent-up energy. The key changes to D-flat major, with a chorale-like subject, interspersed with delicate falling arpeggios. Louis Kentner thinks of it as "a Wagnerian melody of astonishing beauty, recalling the sound of tubas, harps and all the apocalyptic orchestra of Valhalla." This is the most terse, ironic, and tightly constructed of the four scherzos, with an almost Beethovenian grandeur.