MusicCoach difficulty
65/100
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
Knowledge of forms
1
Pedaling
Sustain pedal
1
Style
Romantic style
1
Rhythm
Tempo rubato
1
Theory
Harmonic analysis
1
Technique
Hand independence
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
Sonata in B flat major, D.617, op. 30
Franz Schubert
close skills
low risk
to confirm
A short step up, staying in Intermediate (around grade 6 ABRSM/RCM). New compared with the previous piece: Style classique and Balance mains — the notes are not enough: articulation and ornaments follow performance conventions best checked in an urtext edition.
Gentle
Piano Sonata no. 1 in C major, op. 2, no. 3
Johann Nepomuk Hummel
close skills
low risk
to confirm
A short step up, staying in Intermediate (around grade 6 ABRSM/RCM). New compared with the previous piece: Style classique and Connaissance des formes — the notes are not enough: articulation and ornaments follow performance conventions best checked in an urtext edition.
Balanced step
A genuine step up, without a jolt.
Balanced
Piano Sonata no. 3 in F minor, op. 20
Johann Nepomuk Hummel
close skills
moderate risk
to confirm
A real step up, staying in Intermediate (around grade 6 ABRSM/RCM). The skill that will carry the work: Connaissance des formes — understand the form and the harmony before memorising, or memory collapses the moment you play for someone.
Balanced
Sonata no. 2 in B flat minor, op. 35
Frédéric Chopin
close skills
moderate risk
to confirm
A real step up, staying in Intermediate (around grade 6 ABRSM/RCM). The skill that will carry the work: Connaissance des formes and Indépendance des mains — 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. 9 in C
Johann Nepomuk Hummel
close skills
high risk
to confirm
An ambitious leap while staying in Intermediate (around grade 7 ABRSM/RCM) — only worth starting if the practice time is really there. The skill that will carry the work: Connaissance des formes and Indépendance des mains — understand the form and the harmony before memorising, or memory collapses the moment you play for someone.
Challenge
Piano Sonata in E flat major, D.568, op. posth.122
Franz Schubert
close skills
high risk
to confirm
An ambitious leap into Advanced (around grade 7 ABRSM/RCM) — only worth starting if the practice time is really there. New compared with the previous piece: Style classique and Polyphonie à trois voix ou plus — the notes are not enough: articulation and ornaments follow performance conventions best checked in an urtext edition.
Same level
Same level
March in E major, D.606
Franz Schubert
partial transfer
low risk
to confirm
Equivalent demands, still Intermediate (around grade 5 ABRSM/RCM): what changes is the ground. What changes is the skill in play: Technique générale — practise it slowly and hands separately before any attempt at tempo: that is where tension builds up.
Same level
Bagatelles, op. 119
Ludwig van Beethoven
partial transfer
low risk
to confirm
Equivalent demands, still Intermediate (around grade 5 ABRSM/RCM): what changes is the ground. What changes is the skill in play: Technique générale — practise it slowly and hands separately before any attempt at tempo: that is where tension builds up.
Same level
Etude in C sharp minor, op. 2 no. 1
Alexander Scriabin
partial transfer
low risk
to confirm
Equivalent demands, still Intermediate (around grade 5 ABRSM/RCM): what changes is the ground. What changes is the skill in play: Passages rapides — practise it slowly and hands separately before any attempt at tempo: that is where tension builds up.
This movement has an intimate, singing character, with broad breaths and melodic lines that require sustained attention to nuance to maintain expressive tension without overstatement. You will specifically need to work on Tempo rubato (3.1/5), which here means subtle phrase stretching and slight delays at bar-ends to keep the musical speech alive, and Pedal de sustain (3.1/5), requiring precise use — quick lifts and half-pedaling — to keep harmonic clarity while preserving resonance. Within Hummel’s piano output, this Adagio shows a move toward a more Romantic language among his sonatas for keyboard. I do not give a reference performance because I am not 100% confident of a single widely recognized recording for this exact piece.