Thema Op.68 No.35
Piano solo ~1 min
In brief

The theme feels intimate and dreamlike, alternating singing lines with moments where the pulse seems held back as if by a suspended breath. Technically, Phrasing (3.9/5) here requires shaping each phrase like a small vocal breath, attending to attacks and releases so the melodic direction is clear, and Legato (3.9/5) demands control of connections through smooth fingering and weight transfer of the hand rather than relying solely on the pedal to maintain continuity of tone. The piece belongs to Schumann's piano repertory and reflects his taste for lyrical, introspective motifs within his keyboard output. I do not provide a specific reference performance because I prefer not to risk citing an uncertain recording.

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MusicCoach difficulty
39/100
Elementary
Likely range : 34–44/100
Confidence : 57% · fair confidence
BeginnerIntermediateAdvancedVirtuoso
Exam grade
About grade 4

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.

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 4
36/100 normalised
MusicCoach consensus
43.0
43/100 normalised
Relative difficulty
34%
Among Robert Schumann
32%
Era
Genre
Estimated skills
Interpretation
Dynamics
1
Style
Romantic style
1
Technique
Legato
2
Interpretation
Phrasing
2
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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