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 major sonata has a bright, lively character, with bouncing figures and quick exchanges that call for crisp articulation and a dance-like sense of pulse rather than long legato lines. Technically, the skill “Connaissance des formes (3.6/5)” is important to recognize the binary structure and handle repeats and internal modulations by shaping dynamics and breath across sections; the skill “Ornements baroque (3.1/5)” requires precise execution of small embellishments (mordents, short trills, appoggiaturas) using firm fingers and subtle wrist control so ornaments slot in without upsetting the flow. The piece belongs to the Baroque period and is part of Scarlatti’s many keyboard sonatas that frequently explore virtuosic effects and sharp contrasts within short binary forms. I do not provide a reference recording here because I am not 100% certain of a specific standard interpretation for this particular sonata.