6 Piano Variations on "Mio caro Adone" K. 180 (173c)
Variations Piano solo 8 min
In brief

These Six Variations on “Mio caro Adone” feel playful and witty, shifting between brisk figurations and more songlike episodes that require steady rhythmic clarity. Technical challenges include Harmonic analysis (3.8/5), which here means quickly identifying modulations and voice-leading so you can allocate lines between the hands without muddying the harmony, and Nuances (2.5/5), which demand refined touch control to shape dynamic contrasts within variations that often sit close in register. The piece belongs to Mozart’s keyboard variation repertoire, typical of the Classical period and his practice of elaborating a popular tune through small changes of character and figuration.

MusicCoach difficulty
46/100
Intermediate
Likely range : 37–54/100
Confidence : 57% · fair confidence
BeginnerIntermediateAdvancedVirtuoso
Exam grade
About grade 5

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
Henle Verlag
5
50/100 normalised · 2 obs.
Relative difficulty
44%
Among Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart
44%
Era
25%
Genre
Estimated skills
Theory
Harmonic analysis
1
Theory
Knowledge of forms
1
Style
Classical style
1
Technique
Legato
1
Interpretation
Dynamics
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.

See the whole progression