Waltz in A minor Op.18a (posthumous)
Waltz Piano solo ~6 min
In brief

This A minor waltz feels both dance-like and wistful, with phrases that breathe like small reminiscences and ornamental figures that require lightness and a singing touch. The main technical challenges are Phrasing (3.9/5), which here means shaping long lines by sculpting attacks and releases so the melody sings above the accompaniment, and Tempo rubato (3.9/5), which requires delicate adjustments between a flexible right hand and a steady bass so delays and anticipations remain subtle and natural. The piece belongs to the composer's posthumously published piano salon pieces and sits among his smaller waltzes rather than his major mature works.

MusicCoach difficulty
31/100
Elementary
Likely range : 10–52/100
Confidence : 53% · to confirm
BeginnerIntermediateAdvancedVirtuoso
Exam grade
On the syllabus: Grade 2 LCM

Official level, taken from the exam syllabus.

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
Combined exam syllabi
Grade 2
20/100 normalised
MusicCoach consensus
uncertain
Relative difficulty
5%
Among Frédéric Chopin
21%
Era
14%
Genre
Estimated skills
Rhythm
Tempo rubato
1
Interpretation
Phrasing
2
Interpretation
Dynamics
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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