MusicCoach difficulty
72/100
Advanced
Level of the complete work
We have no level specific to this movement. The figure above is that of the complete work: within a cycle, movements often differ widely in demand.
Estimated skills
Theory
Harmonic analysis
1
Theory
Knowledge of forms
1
Rhythm
Polyrhythm 2 against 3
1
Style
Modern and contemporary style
1
Technique
Legato
1
Interpretation
Dynamics
1
Pedaling
Sustain pedal
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.
Gentle step
The safest next step.
Gentle
Piano Sonata in E flat minor, op. 26
Samuel Barber
close skills
low risk
to confirm
A short step up, staying in Advanced (around grade 8 ABRSM/RCM). The skill that will carry the work: Connaissance des formes and Style moderne et contemporain — understand the form and the harmony before memorising, or memory collapses the moment you play for someone.
Gentle
Piano Sonata no. 3 in A minor, op. 28, "From Old Notebooks"
Sergei Prokofiev
close skills
low risk
to confirm
A short step up, staying in Advanced (around grade 8 ABRSM/RCM). The skill that will carry the work: Connaissance des formes and Style moderne et contemporain — understand the form and the harmony before memorising, or memory collapses the moment you play for someone.
Balanced step
A genuine step up, without a jolt.
Balanced
Piano Sonata, op. 17
Paul Hindemith
close skills
moderate risk
to confirm
A real step up, staying in Advanced (around grade 8 ABRSM/RCM). The skill that will carry the work: Connaissance des formes and Style moderne et contemporain — understand the form and the harmony before memorising, or memory collapses the moment you play for someone.
Balanced
Piano Sonata no. 7 in B flat major, op. 83
Sergei Prokofiev
close skills
moderate risk
to confirm
A real step up, staying in Advanced (around grade 8 ABRSM/RCM). The skill that will carry the work: Connaissance des formes and Style moderne et contemporain — understand the form and the harmony before memorising, or memory collapses the moment you play for someone.
Ambitious challenge
A useful leap with guided practice.
Challenge
Piano Sonata no. 4
Michael Tippett
close skills
high risk
to confirm
An ambitious leap into Great repertoire (diploma level, beyond grade 8) — only worth starting if the practice time is really there. New compared with the previous piece: Pédale una corda and Doubles notes — the pedal is set by ear, note by note: misjudged, it blurs the harmony instead of joining it.
Challenge
Piano Sonata no. 3, op. 54
Alberto Ginastera
close skills
high risk
to confirm
An ambitious leap into Great repertoire (diploma level, beyond grade 8) — only worth starting if the practice time is really there. New compared with the previous piece: Passages rapides and Connaissance des formes — practise it slowly and hands separately before any attempt at tempo: that is where tension builds up.
Same level
Same level
Suite for Piano, op. 14, BB70, Sz.62
Béla Bartók
partial transfer
low risk
to confirm
Equivalent demands, still Advanced (around grade 7 ABRSM/RCM): what changes is the ground. What changes is the skill in play: Style baroque and Ornements baroque — the notes are not enough: articulation and ornaments follow performance conventions best checked in an urtext edition.
Same level
Prelude and Fugue in B minor, for organ
Samuel Barber
close skills
low risk
to confirm
Equivalent demands, still Advanced (around grade 7 ABRSM/RCM): what changes is the ground. What changes is the skill in play: Polyphonie à trois voix ou plus and Connaissance des formes — practise it slowly and hands separately before any attempt at tempo: that is where tension builds up.
Same level
Fugue in C minor on a theme by Henri Rabaud
Maurice Duruflé
partial transfer
low risk
to confirm
Equivalent demands, still Advanced (around grade 7 ABRSM/RCM): what changes is the ground. What changes is the skill in play: Polyphonie à trois voix ou plus and Analyse harmonique — practise it slowly and hands separately before any attempt at tempo: that is where tension builds up.
This fugal finale feels brisk and taut, with tightly woven contrapuntal entries and a driving rhythmic thrust that propels rather than lingers; the mood is urgent and focused, each voice asserting itself. The technical challenges include Analysis harmonique (3.6/5) — you will need to track tonal shifts and bass doublings to bring out the thematic exchanges — and Polyrhythmie 2 contre 3 (3.1/5), which requires precise subdivision and independent hand gestures to keep the voices clear. This movement is the fourth of Barber's Piano Sonata, Op. 26, a modern-period work whose closing fugue provides a rigorous contrast to the earlier movements. I am not giving a reference recording here to avoid risking an incorrect attribution.