C'sar Franck was born in Liege, Belgium in 1822 but became a naturalised French citizen and spent most of his life in Paris. Surprisingly enough, his music was largely unpopular during his lifetime and the String Quartet in D (from which this Scherzo is taken), written in 1889 and first performed the following year, was his first unqualified success. The Scherzo, which is in Franck's very best style, has been transposed up a semitone from F# minor and works very well on wind instruments. It should be played as fast as is practicable, and without heaviness.