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 B-flat major sonata combines sprightly momentum with more relaxed episodes, featuring accompaniment figures that require clear articulation and a strong sense of tonal balance to bring out the main themes. Technically, rely on the Analysis harmonique (3.6/5) — here that means quickly identifying modulations and chord inversions to adjust voice-leading and anticipate resolutions — and on Knowledge of forms (Connaissance des formes, 3.6/5), i.e. understanding the roles of exposition, transition and recapitulation to shape dynamics and timing during repeats or the coda. The piece belongs to Haydn's classical piano-sonata output, one of several works where he refines formal clarity and light contrapuntal textures. I do not list a reference recording because I am not fully certain of a single widely recognized interpretation for this specific sonata.