Fugue in G minor, K.401
Classical Fugue Piano solo 4 min
In brief

This G minor fugue projects an urgent contrapuntal drive, alternating sharp subject entries with more discurs ive episodes that require crisp articulation so each voice remains clear. Technically, pay close attention to the listed skill « Polyphonie à trois voix ou plus (4.4/5) »: you must balance three independent lines by choosing fingerings and touch that let the subject sing without masking inner voices; additionally « Analyse harmonique (4.4/5) » is required to predict modulations and set up hand shifts that produce clean transitions. As a Classical-period piece, it shows Mozart engaging with contrapuntal forms within his instrumental output, blending learned counterpoint with the clarity of the classical style. I do not name a reference recording here because I am not fully certain of a single, widely recognized interpretation for this specific fugue.

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Is this the right work?
MusicCoach difficulty
61/100
Intermediate
Likely range : 56–67/100
Confidence : 55% · fair confidence
BeginnerIntermediateAdvancedVirtuoso
Exam grade
About grade 6 to 7

Estimated from our difficulty score, not taken from an exam syllabus. Checked against 333 works on the ABRSM syllabus: the exact grade is right 7 times out of 10, and within one grade 99 times out of 100.

Difficulty estimate by MusicCoach on a scale of 1 to 100.

Where this work sits
050100

Most works cluster between 45 and 65: a small score gap often marks a real step. The highlighted bar shows this work among those for the same instrument.

The MusicCoach difficulty measures a work's overall demands (technique, reading, stamina) on a shared 0-100 scale, consolidated from editorial and pedagogical reference points (Henle, exam syllabuses, curation) and our own analyses. It measures neither musical value nor the practice time YOU will need: two musicians of the same level can experience the same work very differently depending on their strengths (hands used to octaves, quick sight-reading…). The confidence reflects how many reference points sit behind the score and how well they agree — a lightly documented score is flagged “to validate”. For a truly personal bearing, the diagnostic and your space compare each work to YOUR estimated level, which the score alone cannot do.

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Difficulty sources
Henle Verlag
6
62/100 normalised · 4 obs.
Relative difficulty
88%
Among Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart
90%
Era Classical
44%
Genre
Estimated skills
Theory
Harmonic analysis
1
Technique
Three-or-more-voice polyphony
3
Theory
Knowledge of forms
1
Style
Classical style
1
Technique
Hand independence
1
Technique
Legato
1
Technique
General technique
1
What to play next?

Each suggestion combines difficulty gap, risk, confidence and skill overlap. The first two cards in each column are the most useful pedagogically.

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