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.
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.
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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.
Each suggestion combines difficulty gap, risk, confidence and skill overlap. The first two cards in each column are the most useful pedagogically.
A genuine step up, without a jolt.
A useful leap with guided practice.
The atmosphere of Metamorphosis is hypnotic and meditative, built on repeated motifs that slowly evolve and require focused attention to the tone of each repetition. Technically, the piece presents concrete demands in terms of Technique générale (2.5/5) — you will need precise finger control to keep articulations clear and to bring out inner voices without forcing sound — and Rythme général (2.5/5) — you must sustain an even pulse through repetitive cells while allowing measured, intentional micro-variations, which calls for a stable wrist/forearm motion and reliable right/left hand coordination. In Philip Glass's catalogue, it belongs to his solo piano output and exemplifies his minimalist approach based on repetition and gradual transformation of motifs.