With the Bagatelle op. 33 no. 2, Beethoven left to posterity an autonomous Scherzo; Schubert, in turn, left three independent pieces with this title. As time went by, the Scherzo developed independently of the sonata cycle. We know of five Scherzi by Mendelssohn and four by Chopin – all very extensive. Typical of this genre are the triple time, a slower middle section (Trio) and a generally brisk tempo; all four Scherzi of Chopin’s are marked Presto. Chopin’s Scherzos have secured themselves a lasting place in pianists’ concert repertoire, no matter whether it is pieces full of brilliance and refinement, or bursting with demonic power and – in the Trio sections – replete with delicate cantilenas.