A major MWV U 138
Piano solo
In brief

This piece projects a bright clarity and lively rhythmic drive, often led by sprightly figurations that call for light agility rather than sheer force. Technically, watch the Phrasing (2.5/5): you must shape each small musical line by anticipating breath points, which involves subtle wrist releases and careful fingering to keep phrases seamless; and the Legato (2.5/5) which requires clean connections between quick notes, mainly through precise finger transitions and controlled wrist connection to avoid breaks. The work sits within Mendelssohn’s solo piano output but its exact place in his catalogue is uncertain; it nonetheless reflects his taste for concise forms and contrapuntal elegance. (I do not give a reference performance because I am not certain of a definitive recording.)

MusicCoach difficulty
45/100
Intermediate
Likely range : 29–61/100
Confidence : 52% · to confirm
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
4
38/100 normalised · 2 obs.
Relative difficulty
33%
Among Felix Mendelssohn
44%
Era
Genre
Estimated skills
Technique
Legato
1
Interpretation
Dynamics
1
Interpretation
Phrasing
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.

See the whole progression