Scherzo in C Minor, W. 2 (from the F-A-E Sonata) - Johannes Brahms (1833–1897)

Music Day Concert 21.06.2025 Scherzo in C Minor, W. 2 (from the F-A-E Sonata) Johannes Brahms (1833–1897) Maya Maalouf, violin Wiaam Haddad, piano This Scherzo forms the fiery third movement of the F-A-E Sonata, a collaborative composition created in 1853 as a gift for violinist Joseph Joachim. The sonata’s initials—Frei aber einsam (“Free but lonely”)—reflect Joachim’s personal motto and serve as a unifying musical cipher throughout the work such that each letter of the motto (F, A, and E) corresponds to a musical note. The outer movements were composed by Albert Dietrich and Robert Schumann, while Brahms contributed the Scherzo which has endured as a concert piece in its own right. Unlike Dietrich and Schumann, Brahms didn’t explicitly quote the F-A-E motif, but his contribution still fits thematically and emotionally with the motto’s sentiment. Marked Allegro, the movement bursts forth with intensity and rhythmic drive, characteristic of Brahms’s early style. The Scherzo’s structure is taut and economical; its dramatic contrasts evoke a sense of restless energy, interjected by a sweet and lyrical trio.