Uploaded May 2026 | Updated September 2026, 2 weeks ago
Scherzo capriccioso may be the most uncharacteristic work ever written by Antonín Dvořák (1841–1904). When it premiered in May 1883 at the National Theatre in Prague, audiences were taken aback, wondering what had come over him. Critics speculated that he might be going through a personal crisis—never before had his music displayed such raw, dramatic intensity. This video presents a 2011 performance by the Lucerne Symphony Orchestra, conducted by Neeme Järvi at the Lucerne Culture and Congress Center.
Despite the title "Scherzo," which generally suggests a cheery and playful work, Dvořák’s Scherzo capriccioso in D-flat major, Op. 66, B. 131 embodies emotional lows — and is full of compositional mastery. Many presumed that depression, perhaps following the death of his mother in December 1882, or a midlife crisis may have triggered it. This otherwise highly productive phase also led to the creation of other major works such as the dramatic Symphony No. 7 and the Piano Trio in F minor.
The Scherzo capriccioso is marked by a sense of constant inner restlessness and agitation, even in its sonorous, idyllic passages. The score challenging for both orchestra musicians and conductor — it's a virtuosic tightly woven fabric of seemingly carefree, almost waltz-like tempos and dark, nearly grotesque accents (with echoes of Gustav Mahler). Added to this is a richly varied orchestration. Dvořák makes use of the tonal colors of instruments such as harp, bass clarinet, triangle, cymbals and tuba.
Neeme Järvi, born in 1937 in Tallinn, is the patriarch of a conducting family that includes his sons Paavo and Kristjan. After World War II, Estonia was absorbed into the Soviet Union, but a strong sense of national and cultural identity endured throughout the occupation. Järvi studied in Saint Petersburg, then known as Leningrad, before returning to Tallinn, where he played a key role in raising the country’s musical life to an international level as director of the opera house and the Estonian Radio Symphony Orchestra. From the 1980s onward, he has been an important advocate for Estonian culture abroad, helping bring the music of Arvo Pärt to major symphony orchestras in the West.
Text: Anastassia Boutsko
© 2011 Accentus Music
Watch more concerts: youtube.com/playlist?list=PL_SdnzPd3eBV5A14dyRWy1KSkwcG8LEey
great works by Dvořák: youtube.com/playlist?list=PL_SdnzPd3eBXbRp-GTVAk75FgNGTHM_C9
and more famous pieces from the Romantic era: youtube.com/playlist?list=PL_SdnzPd3eBXvpOWNmQ1AUBPQeyNanpxY
Subscribe to DW Classical Music: youtube.com/dwclassicalmusic
#dvořák #Romanticera #Scherzo
Scherzo capriccioso may be the most uncharacteristic work ever written by Antonín Dvořák (1841–1904). When it premiered in May 1883 at the National Theatre in Prague, audiences were taken aback, wondering what had come over him. Critics speculated that he might be going through a personal crisis—never before had his music displayed such raw, dramatic intensity. This video presents a 2011 performance by the Lucerne Symphony Orchestra, conducted by Neeme Järvi at the Lucerne Culture and Congress Center.
Despite the title "Scherzo," which generally suggests a cheery and playful work, Dvořák’s Scherzo capriccioso in D-flat major, Op. 66, B. 131 embodies emotional lows — and is full of compositional mastery. Many presumed that depression, perhaps following the death of his mother in December 1882, or a midlife crisis may have triggered it. This otherwise highly productive phase also led to the creation of other major works such as the dramatic Symphony No. 7 and the Piano Trio in F minor.
The Scherzo capriccioso is marked by a sense of constant inner restlessness and agitation, even in its sonorous, idyllic passages. The score challenging for both orchestra musicians and conductor — it's a virtuosic tightly woven fabric of seemingly carefree, almost waltz-like tempos and dark, nearly grotesque accents (with echoes of Gustav Mahler). Added to this is a richly varied orchestration. Dvořák makes use of the tonal colors of instruments such as harp, bass clarinet, triangle, cymbals and tuba.
Neeme Järvi, born in 1937 in Tallinn, is the patriarch of a conducting family that includes his sons Paavo and Kristjan. After World War II, Estonia was absorbed into the Soviet Union, but a strong sense of national and cultural identity endured throughout the occupation. Järvi studied in Saint Petersburg, then known as Leningrad, before returning to Tallinn, where he played a key role in raising the country’s musical life to an international level as director of the opera house and the Estonian Radio Symphony Orchestra. From the 1980s onward, he has been an important advocate for Estonian culture abroad, helping bring the music of Arvo Pärt to major symphony orchestras in the West.
Text: Anastassia Boutsko
© 2011 Accentus Music
Watch more concerts: youtube.com/playlist?list=PL_SdnzPd3eBV5A14dyRWy1KSkwcG8LEey
great works by Dvořák: youtube.com/playlist?list=PL_SdnzPd3eBXbRp-GTVAk75FgNGTHM_C9
and more famous pieces from the Romantic era: youtube.com/playlist?list=PL_SdnzPd3eBXvpOWNmQ1AUBPQeyNanpxY
Subscribe to DW Classical Music: youtube.com/dwclassicalmusic
#dvořák #Romanticera #Scherzo
