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 rating is computed automatically from heterogeneous sources. It gets things wrong, sometimes badly. If you know this work, your answer is worth more than our computation: it tells us which ratings to review.
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 piece has an incisive, driving character: deep parallel movements that are often percussive, producing a focused energy rather than a lyrical flow, like a march played with strict precision. You will need to pay particular attention to Staccato (4.4/5) — here that means achieving very detached attacks through quick finger release and wrist control so the sound doesn’t linger — and Legato (4.4/5), which, despite the parallel writing, requires subtle finger coordination and careful use of arm weight so lines don’t feel chopped. The work sits within Bartók’s solo piano output and exemplifies his exploration of parallel textures and timbral contrasts rather than extended formal development. I do not give a recording reference because I am not sufficiently certain of a definitive interpretation for this specific piece.