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.
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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This A minor sonata has a brisk, biting character, with quick responses and crisp detaché figures alternating with more singing, ornamented passages; the overall effect is playfully sharp and tightly controlled rather than reflective. Practically, you will need to work on Analysis harmonique (3.6/5) to trace the shifting modulations and shape resolutions with subtle phrasing adjustments, and on Bass clef reading (Lecture clé de fa, 3.1/5) to secure the accuracy of the left-hand jumps and the underlining counter-lines that hold the harmony. Historically, the piece belongs to the Baroque keyboard repertoire and is typical of Scarlatti's large output of single-movement sonatas that explore rhythmic contrasts and idiomatic keyboard figuration. I do not provide performance references here because I am not fully confident naming a single definitive recording for this specific sonata.