Rhapsody for Violin and Orchestra no. 1, BB94b, Sz.87
Modern Rhapsody Violin and Orchestra
In brief

This Rhapsody projects a dramatic, virtuosic character, switching between raw folk-like outbursts and lyrical passages that push the violin toward the extremes of its range. Technically, you will face notably Rapid passages (3.9/5) requiring precise left-hand shifts and a controlled alternation of détaché and legato to maintain clarity and intonation, and Octaves (3.9/5) that demand exact wrist alignment and strong, even bow control to produce a homogeneous sound in extreme registers. The piece belongs to Bartók's modern period and occupies a place in his violin-and-orchestra repertoire that emphasizes rhythmic exploration and solo virtuosity.

MusicCoach difficulty
80/100
Master repertoire
Likely range : 68–92/100
Confidence : 35% · to confirm
BeginnerIntermediateAdvancedVirtuoso
Exam grade
About grade 8

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.

Does this rating look right to you?

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.

Add a note (optional)

Your note is not published on the site: it is read in review.

Relative difficulty
58%
Among Béla Bartók
92%
Era Modern
29%
Genre
Estimated skills
Interpretation
Dynamics
1
Technique
Octaves
1
Technique
Fast passages
2
Rhythm
Polyrhythm 2 against 3
1
Style
Modern and contemporary style
1
Tone
Touch control
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.

Ambitious challenge

A useful leap with guided practice.

No suggestion yet.

See the whole progression