The term "bagatelle" generally is used to describe an insignificant triviality. However, when it is used in a musical context, it refers to a short composition resulting from improvisation. The German composer Ludwig van Beethoven (1770-1827) is primarily associated with his opulent nine symphonies for orchestra. But if one assumes that the composer’s numerous bagatelles for piano are only "casual pieces", written more or less in passing between one symphony and the next, one would be seriously ...