How hard is Two Scherzos, D. 593 to play?

Its passages grade from level 8 to level 9 on Real Sight Reader's ten-level reading scale, so the full piece is intermediate to advanced reading. The hardest stretch is bars 26–33 at level 9.

Is there an easy part of Two Scherzos, D. 593 for beginners?

Its easiest passage is level 8, so it suits a reader past the beginner stage. Start with bars 31–34 for both hands together, the level-8 passage in the reader at the top of this page; it is level 8 because it uses triplets or other tuplets and its chords go beyond simple triads.

What key and time signature is Two Scherzos, D. 593 in?

The engraving on this page is in 3/4 time.

Who composed Two Scherzos, D. 593?

Franz Schubert, Austrian romantic (1797–1828). Schubert wrote the two scherzos in 1817, when he was twenty.

Can I practice Two Scherzos, D. 593 online for free?

Yes. The reader on this page plays any of the 3 graded passages from Two Scherzos, D. 593 in your browser, with an on-screen keyboard or a MIDI keyboard, and marks every note as you play. No signup.

Which scherzo does this page show?

The passages on this page come from the second scherzo, in D-flat major, but both pieces share the same title in the Schubert catalogue as D 593.

How long does it take to learn Schubert's D 593 scherzos?

Each piece is moderate in length, and a player with solid intermediate technique can often read a scherzo in a couple of weeks. Polishing the voicing and pedaling takes longer.

Were the D 593 scherzos part of a sonata?

Not as published. Scholars have suggested that the second scherzo could have been a third movement for the Piano Sonata in D-flat major, D 567, and its trio is related to the minuet trio of the E-flat major sonata.

← All pieces

Two Scherzos, D. 593

Franz Schubert (1797–1828) · sheet music

Time 3/4
Levels 8–9
Passages 3

Your turn · both hands

Preparing your passage…

Franz Schubert, Austrian romantic (1797–1828). The reading release has 3 passages from this piece at levels 8–9; the reader above opens on the easiest, bars 31–34 for both hands together.

Practice the hard bars →

The hardest stretch is bars 26–33 at level 9.

Your practice path

Learn it the way teachers do: each hand on its own, then together, then the hard bars. Each step is a real graded passage of Two Scherzos, D. 593.

Hands together · bars 31–34 level 8
The hardest bars · bars 26–33 level 9

How to play Two Scherzos, D. 593

Tempo:The second scherzo is marked Allegro moderato, so aim for a moderately lively dance, not a sprint. If the chords feel crowded, slow down until each one sounds clean.
Right hand:The right hand carries the melody in chords and sometimes in broken figures. Practice the top line alone, then add the lower notes as a soft cushion.
Left hand:The left hand supplies the dance pulse with a bass note and chords. Keep the bass on the beat and let it stay lighter than the melody.
Hands together:Combine the hands one phrase at a time and look for where the right-hand chords and left-hand bass line up. Count in three, not in one.
Pedal:Use the pedal to connect bass notes and chords, but change it with each harmony so the sound does not blur. Lift fully on rests.
Dynamics:Plan each phrase's dynamic shape in advance so the music grows toward its peak instead of getting loud only at the end.
Reading:The harmony shifts quickly, so many accidentals appear. Scan a bar ahead and note where sharps, flats and naturals change the chord.
Practice:Practice the chord passages silently first, shaping each hand position in the air, then play them at a slow tempo with the pedal off. Add the pedal last.

Common mistakes

Playing the repeated chords evenly loud so the melody disappears. Fix: Practice the top note of each chord louder than the inner notes, then try the chord with the lower notes as soft as possible.
Counting in one instead of three, which makes the dance feel stiff. Fix: Count one-two-three aloud and lean on beat one.
Holding the pedal through a harmony change. Fix: Change the pedal at each new chord and listen for a clean break.
Missing accidentals as the harmony turns. Fix: Pencil a small reminder above each accidental in the passage before practicing.

Structure: scherzo and trio (A-B-A)

Each of the two pieces is a scherzo with a contrasting trio. The scherzo is a lively triple-meter dance in the home key. The trio brings a more lyrical or Landler-like mood, and then the scherzo returns. The passages on this page come from the second scherzo, in D-flat major, so the examples below focus on that piece.

Scherzo 1 · B-flat major scherzo (B-flat major): Graceful, dance-like writing in B-flat major, with a trio in E-flat major. A friendly place to start on Schubert's lighter side.
Scherzo 2 · D-flat major scherzo (D-flat major): More emotional than the first, with repeated chords under the melody and harmonic turns that bring plenty of accidentals.
Trio 2 · Ländler-style trio (A-flat major): A Ländler-like middle section in A-flat major, a gentler country-dance contrast before the scherzo returns.

About Two Scherzos, D. 593

Schubert wrote the two scherzos in 1817, when he was twenty. The autograph is lost, but a manuscript copy made in the 1840s suggests that the pieces date from November of that year. They stand at the start of his long run of piano dances and were not printed until 1871, decades after his death in 1828.

The first scherzo, in B-flat major, is described as dance-like and graceful. The second, in D-flat major, is more emotional and has a Landler-like middle section in A-flat major. Scholars have suggested that the second scherzo could once have served as the third movement of Schubert's Piano Sonata in D-flat major, D 567, and its trio matches the trio of the minuet in the related E-flat major sonata.

For a pianist, the pieces are an accessible way into Schubert's piano style: much shorter than his sonatas, and rewarding careful voicing and phrasing. Henle rates the B-flat scherzo easier than the D-flat one on its own difficulty scale.

The autograph manuscript is lost, so the date comes from a later copy and from friends' catalogues of Schubert's work.
The trio of the second scherzo is essentially the same music as the trio of the minuet in Schubert's Piano Sonata in E-flat major, D 568.
The scherzos were published in 1871, forty-three years after Schubert died.

Why the first passage is level 8

That passage is level 8 rather than 7 because it uses triplets or other tuplets, its chords go beyond simple triads.

These passages come from the second scherzo, in D-flat major, in 3/4, built from repeated chords and wide broken octaves. Many of the flats appear as accidentals in this engraving, so read each bar's accidentals carefully.

Questions about Two Scherzos, D. 593

How hard is Two Scherzos, D. 593 to play?: Its passages grade from level 8 to level 9 on Real Sight Reader's ten-level reading scale, so the full piece is intermediate to advanced reading. The hardest stretch is bars 26–33 at level 9.
Is there an easy part of Two Scherzos, D. 593 for beginners?: Its easiest passage is level 8, so it suits a reader past the beginner stage. Start with bars 31–34 for both hands together, the level-8 passage in the reader at the top of this page; it is level 8 because it uses triplets or other tuplets and its chords go beyond simple triads.
What key and time signature is Two Scherzos, D. 593 in?: The engraving on this page is in 3/4 time.
Who composed Two Scherzos, D. 593?: Franz Schubert, Austrian romantic (1797–1828). Schubert wrote the two scherzos in 1817, when he was twenty.
Can I practice Two Scherzos, D. 593 online for free?: Yes. The reader on this page plays any of the 3 graded passages from Two Scherzos, D. 593 in your browser, with an on-screen keyboard or a MIDI keyboard, and marks every note as you play. No signup.
Which scherzo does this page show?: The passages on this page come from the second scherzo, in D-flat major, but both pieces share the same title in the Schubert catalogue as D 593.
How long does it take to learn Schubert's D 593 scherzos?: Each piece is moderate in length, and a player with solid intermediate technique can often read a scherzo in a couple of weeks. Polishing the voicing and pedaling takes longer.
Were the D 593 scherzos part of a sonata?: Not as published. Scholars have suggested that the second scherzo could have been a third movement for the Piano Sonata in D-flat major, D 567, and its trio is related to the minuet trio of the E-flat major sonata.

Every passage, easiest first

The reading release grades 3 distinct passages of this piece. Open any of them in the reader:

Level 8: bars 31–34 both hands
Level 9: bars 26–33 both hands · bars 29–32 both hands

More pieces to sight-read

Score: public-domain engraving from the corpus (pdmx), graded by the piano-reading-v2-20261023-identity-audit reading release.

Keep training on your phone Practice with your own pieces — free on the App Store