The first of these is in F minor, which is followed by a brief episode that features the "fate motif" from Ludwig van Beethoven's Symphony No.
The exposition is repeated and leads to a complex development section in which the "fate motif" is incorporated.
After the beginning of the recapitulation, the piece moves directly to the second subject, by-passing the C minor episode, in the parallel key of F major, and finishes with an extended coda.
In contrast to the tumult of the scherzo, the trio in D♭ major is calm and lyrical, and the accompanying bass too refers to Beethoven's "fate motif".
Once the trio brings back the movement's opening material at its close, the scherzo is repeated in whole.
The fourth movement is marked as an intermezzo and is given the title "Rückblick", literally "Remembrance".
Notably, the first diversion from the rondo theme begins with a musical cryptogram that was a personal musical motto of his lifelong friend Joseph Joachim, the F–A–E theme, which stands for Frei aber einsam (free but lonely).