Formation
Cello and piano · 2 performers
Required forces
Cello
1 performers
Piano
1 performers
Playable parts
Cello
Piano
MusicCoach difficulty
52/100
Intermediate
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
Tone
Vibrato (cello)
1
Technique
Bow legato (cello)
1
Style
Classical style
1
Technique
Position changes (cello)
1
Technique
Intonation (cello)
1
Interpretation
Dynamics
1
Interpretation
Phrasing
1
Technique
General technique
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
Cantabile, Op.16
Hippolyte François Rabaud
partial transfer
low risk
to confirm
A short step up, staying in Elementary (around grade 5 ABRSM/RCM). The skill that will carry the work: Legato d'archet (violoncelle) and Vibrato (violoncelle) — practise it slowly, separating left hand from bow: bow alone on open strings, then the fingering silently.
Gentle
Cello Sonata in A minor, RV.43, op. 14, no. 3
Antonio Vivaldi
close skills
low risk
to confirm
A short step up — but it is the one that moves you into Intermediate (around grade 5 ABRSM/RCM). New compared with the previous piece: Style baroque and Ornements baroque — 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
Cello Sonata no. 1 in B-flat major, op. 45: II. Andante
Felix Mendelssohn
close skills
moderate risk
to confirm
A real step up: this piece moves you into Intermediate (around grade 6 ABRSM/RCM). New compared with the previous piece: Voix chantante and Connaissance des formes — the notes will be secure long before the musical line: work in whole phrases, singing the main voice.
Balanced
Cello Sonata, op. 11, no. 3
Paul Hindemith
close skills
moderate risk
to confirm
A real step up: this piece moves you into Intermediate (around grade 6 ABRSM/RCM). New compared with the previous piece: Style moderne et contemporain and Passages rapides — the notes are not enough: articulation and ornaments follow performance conventions best checked in an urtext edition.
Ambitious challenge
A useful leap with guided practice.
Challenge
Cello Concerto in D major, G.479
Luigi Boccherini
partial transfer
high risk
to confirm
An ambitious leap into Intermediate (around grade 6 ABRSM/RCM) — only worth starting if the practice time is really there. The skill that will carry the work: Style classique and Connaissance des formes — the notes are not enough: articulation and ornaments follow performance conventions best checked in an urtext edition.
Challenge
Cello Concerto in C major, G.477
Luigi Boccherini
partial transfer
high risk
to confirm
An ambitious leap into Intermediate (around grade 6 ABRSM/RCM) — only worth starting if the practice time is really there. The skill that will carry the work: Style classique and Connaissance des formes — the notes are not enough: articulation and ornaments follow performance conventions best checked in an urtext edition.
Same level
Same level
Intermezzo for Cello and Piano in A minor, EG115
Edvard Grieg
new reflexes
low risk
to confirm
Equivalent demands, still Elementary (around grade 5 ABRSM/RCM): what changes is the ground. What changes is the skill in play: Voix chantante and Doubles notes — the notes will be secure long before the musical line: work in whole phrases, singing the main voice.
Same level
Romance, for cello and piano, op. 69
Gabriel Fauré
partial transfer
low risk
to confirm
Equivalent demands, still Elementary (around grade 5 ABRSM/RCM): what changes is the ground. What changes is the skill in play: Voix chantante and Vibrato (violoncelle) — the notes will be secure long before the musical line: work in whole phrases, singing the main voice.
Same level
Sonatina for Cello and Piano
Zoltán Kodály
partial transfer
low risk
to confirm
Equivalent demands, still Elementary (around grade 5 ABRSM/RCM): what changes is the ground. What changes is the skill in play: Style moderne et contemporain and Connaissance des formes — the notes are not enough: articulation and ornaments follow performance conventions best checked in an urtext edition.