Repertoire › Violin Concerto no. 2, op. 139 › What to play next
What to play after Violin Concerto no. 2, op. 139 ?
Vagn Holmboe · difficulty 40/100

Choose your level of commitment: consolidate, move up a tier or prepare a challenge. The top-ranked cards combine difficulty, risk, shared skills and confidence.

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Gentle step

The safest next step.

Gentle
Bagatelle for violin and piano no. 1
Vagn Holmboe
45/100 +5 pts 4-8 weeks
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). 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.
Gentle
Silent Night, for violin and piano
Alfred Schnittke
45/100 +5 pts 4-8 weeks
partial transfer 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: Vibrato — what matters is a steady sustained tone: bow speed, contact point and pressure even, before any thought of speed.
Gentle
Sonatina for Violin and Piano: II. Scherzo
Carlos Chávez
44/100 +4 pts 4-8 weeks
partial transfer low risk to confirm
A short step up, staying in Elementary (around grade 5 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.
Gentle
Sérénade mélancolique, for violin and orchestra in B minor, op. 26
Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky
47/100 +7 pts 4-8 weeks
new reflexes low risk to confirm
A short step up — but it is the one that moves you into Intermediate (around grade 5 ABRSM/RCM). The demand here is musical rather than mechanical: Tempo rubato — the pitfall is the pulse drifting as soon as the writing thickens: subdivide with the metronome.
Balanced step

A genuine step up, without a jolt.

Balanced
Improvisation, for violin and piano, op. 21
Dmitry Kabalevsky
52/100 +12 pts 10-20 weeks
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: Positions hautes and Style moderne et contemporain — practise it slowly, separating left hand from bow: bow alone on open strings, then the fingering silently.
Balanced
Prelude no. 1, for violin and piano
Aaron Copland
50/100 +10 pts 8-16 weeks
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 Vibrato — the notes will be secure long before the musical line: work in whole phrases, singing the main voice.
Balanced
Melody, for violin and piano
Ernest Bloch
53/100 +13 pts 10-20 weeks
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 Vibrato — the notes will be secure long before the musical line: work in whole phrases, singing the main voice.
Balanced
Sonata for Violin and Piano no. 2, op. 16: II. Andante tranquillo
Vagn Holmboe
54/100 +14 pts 10-20 weeks
partial transfer 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: Vibrato and Connaissance des formes — what matters is a steady sustained tone: bow speed, contact point and pressure even, before any thought of speed.
Ambitious challenge

A useful leap with guided practice.

Challenge
Sonata for Violin and Piano no. 3, op. 89: III. Adagio ma non troppo
Vagn Holmboe
56/100 +16 pts 20-40 weeks
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. New compared with the previous piece: Connaissance des formes and Vibrato — understand the form and the harmony before memorising, or memory collapses the moment you play for someone.
Challenge
2 Pieces for Violin and Piano
William Walton
55/100 +15 pts 20-40 weeks
partial transfer moderate risk to confirm
An ambitious leap into Intermediate (around grade 6 ABRSM/RCM) — only worth starting if the practice time is really there. New compared with the previous piece: Passages rapides and Style moderne et contemporain — practise it slowly, separating left hand from bow: bow alone on open strings, then the fingering silently.
Challenge
Sonata for Violin and Piano no. 2, op. 16: I. Allegro moderato
Vagn Holmboe
61/100 +21 pts 24-48 weeks
partial transfer high risk to confirm
An ambitious leap into Intermediate (around grade 7 ABRSM/RCM) — only worth starting if the practice time is really there. New compared with the previous piece: Vibrato and Connaissance des formes — what matters is a steady sustained tone: bow speed, contact point and pressure even, before any thought of speed.
Same level

To widen the repertoire without raising the level.

Same level
Sonatina for Violin and Piano: IV. Largo
Carlos Chávez
38/100 -2 pts 2-3 weeks
partial transfer low risk to confirm
Equivalent demands, still Elementary (around grade 4 ABRSM/RCM): what changes is the ground. What changes is the skill in play: 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
Berceuse, for violin and piano, op. 16
Gabriel Fauré
37/100 -3 pts 2-3 weeks
new reflexes low risk to confirm
Equivalent demands, still Elementary (around grade 4 ABRSM/RCM): what changes is the ground. What changes is the skill in play: Vibrato and Legato d'archet — what matters is a steady sustained tone: bow speed, contact point and pressure even, before any thought of speed.
Same level
Sonatina for Violin and Piano: III. Adagio
Carlos Chávez
37/100 -3 pts 2-3 weeks
partial transfer low risk to confirm
Equivalent demands, still Elementary (around grade 4 ABRSM/RCM): what changes is the ground. What changes is the skill in play: Style classique and Connaissance des formes — the notes are not enough: articulation and ornaments follow performance conventions best checked in an urtext edition.
Progressions computed from difficulty, skill overlap and style between works. A What do we play next? recommendation should remain a pedagogical starting point, not an automatic prescription.