MusicCoach difficulty
70/100
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
Tone
Touch control
1
Technique
Hand independence
1
Interpretation
Dynamics
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 no. 3 in F major, op. 46
Dmitry Kabalevsky
close skills
low risk
to confirm
A short step up, staying in Intermediate (around grade 6 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. 2 in D minor, op. 14
Sergei Prokofiev
close skills
low risk
to confirm
A short step up, staying in Intermediate (around grade 6 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.
No suggestion yet.
Ambitious challenge
A useful leap with guided practice.
Challenge
Piano Sonata no. 2 in E major, op. 2
Erich Wolfgang Korngold
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. 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.
Challenge
Piano Sonata no. 3 in A minor, op. 28, "From Old Notebooks"
Sergei Prokofiev
close skills
high risk
to confirm
An ambitious leap into Advanced (around grade 8 ABRSM/RCM) — only worth starting if the practice time is really there. 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.
Same level
Same level
Intermezzo no. 3 in A flat major, FP118
Francis Poulenc
partial transfer
low risk
to confirm
Equivalent demands, still Intermediate (around grade 6 ABRSM/RCM): what changes is the ground. The skill that will carry the work: Style moderne et contemporain — the notes are not enough: articulation and ornaments follow performance conventions best checked in an urtext edition.
Same level
2 Sonatinas, op. 54
Sergei Prokofiev
partial transfer
low risk
to confirm
Equivalent demands, still Intermediate (around grade 6 ABRSM/RCM): what changes is the ground. What changes is the skill in play: Passages rapides and Style moderne et contemporain — practise it slowly and hands separately before any attempt at tempo: that is where tension builds up.
Same level
Sarabande, for piano, H. 26
Arthur Honegger
new reflexes
low risk
to confirm
Equivalent demands, still Intermediate (around grade 6 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.
The III. Largo of this sonata unfolds a nocturnal, slightly mournful mood, with suspended melodic replies and harmonies that create contained tension rather than overt drama. Technically, you will need to work on Harmonic analysis (3.6/5) to understand and highlight the chordal progressions and implicit modulations — this means anticipating harmonic accents and adjusting touch to bring out inner voices — and on 2-against-3 polyrhythm (3.1/5) when ternary figures cross binary values, requiring a steady pulse and clear finger distribution between the hands. The piece belongs to the composer's modern-period output and is part of his early contributions to the piano sonata repertoire, already showing an orchestral sense of color.