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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Each suggestion combines difficulty gap, risk, confidence and skill overlap. The first two cards in each column are the most useful pedagogically.
The safest next step.
A genuine step up, without a jolt.
A useful leap with guided practice.
This B-flat major sonata has a lively, sprightly character, with echoing responses and flowing passages that require crisp articulation to make the musical line sing. You will face specific challenges in Harmonic analysis (3.6/5): you must track quick modal and tonal shifts, anticipate harmonic downbeats to place cadences and shape exchanges between the hands, and in Baroque ornaments (3.1/5): the embellishments demand flexible fingers and clean execution of small trills and mordents without breaking the rhythmic flow. It belongs to the Baroque keyboard repertoire where Scarlatti often favours short, energetic sonata forms exploring contrast and virtuosity. I do not propose a reference recording here because I am not certain of a single widely recognized interpretation for this specific sonata.