Repertoire › Dumka, for violin and piano, JW VII/4 › What to play next
What to play after Dumka, for violin and piano, JW VII/4 ?
Leoš Janáček · difficulty 57/100

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
4 Pieces for Violin and Piano, op. 115
Jean Sibelius
61/100 +5 pts 6-12 weeks
close skills low risk to confirm
A short step up, staying in Intermediate (around grade 7 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.
Gentle
3 Pieces for Violin and Piano, op. 116
Jean Sibelius
63/100 +6 pts 6-12 weeks
close skills low risk to confirm
A short step up, staying in Intermediate (around grade 7 ABRSM/RCM). The skill that will carry the work: Vibrato — what matters is a steady sustained tone: bow speed, contact point and pressure even, before any thought of speed.
Gentle
La Lugubre gondola, for violin and piano, S.134bis
Franz Liszt
63/100 +6 pts 6-12 weeks
close skills low risk to confirm
A short step up, staying in Intermediate (around grade 7 ABRSM/RCM). The skill that will carry the work: Vibrato — what matters is a steady sustained tone: bow speed, contact point and pressure even, before any thought of speed.
Gentle
La notte, for violin and piano, S.377a
Franz Liszt
60/100 +3 pts 6-12 weeks
close skills low risk to confirm
A short step up, staying in Intermediate (around grade 6 ABRSM/RCM). New compared with the previous piece: Ornements romantiques and Vibrato — ornaments must be secure before the piece goes up to tempo, otherwise they break the line instead of decorating it.
Gentle
Rève d'enfant, for violin and piano, op. 14
Eugene Ysaÿe
60/100 +3 pts 5-10 weeks
close skills low risk to confirm
A short step up, staying in Intermediate (around grade 6 ABRSM/RCM). New compared with the previous piece: Voix chantante and Changements de position — the notes will be secure long before the musical line: work in whole phrases, singing the main voice.
Balanced step

A genuine step up, without a jolt.

Balanced
Violin Sonata in D major, op. 12
Edouard Lalo
68/100 +11 pts 12-24 weeks
close skills moderate risk to confirm
A real step up: this piece moves you into Advanced (around grade 7 ABRSM/RCM). New compared with the previous piece: Connaissance des formes and Positions hautes — understand the form and the harmony before memorising, or memory collapses the moment you play for someone.
Balanced
Violin Sonata no. 3 in C minor, op. 45
Edvard Grieg
67/100 +10 pts 12-24 weeks
close skills moderate risk to confirm
A real step up: this piece moves you into Advanced (around grade 7 ABRSM/RCM). New compared with the previous piece: Connaissance des formes and Positions hautes — understand the form and the harmony before memorising, or memory collapses the moment you play for someone.
Balanced
Violin Sonata, JW VII/7
Leoš Janáček
70/100 +13 pts 12-24 weeks
close skills moderate risk to confirm
A real step up: this piece moves you into Advanced (around grade 7 ABRSM/RCM). New compared with the previous piece: Connaissance des formes and Positions hautes — understand the form and the harmony before memorising, or memory collapses the moment you play for someone.
Balanced
Ruralia Hungarica, for violin and piano, op. 32c
Ernst von Dohnányi
70/100 +13 pts 14-28 weeks
close skills moderate risk to confirm
A real step up: this piece moves you into Advanced (around grade 7 ABRSM/RCM). New compared with the previous piece: Rythmes pointés and Vibrato — the pitfall is the pulse drifting as soon as the writing thickens: subdivide with the metronome.
Ambitious challenge

A useful leap with guided practice.

Challenge
Violin Concerto in D major, op. 61
Ludwig van Beethoven
75/100 +18 pts 28-56 weeks
partial transfer high risk to confirm
An ambitious leap into Advanced (around grade 8 ABRSM/RCM) — only worth starting if the practice time is really there. New compared with the previous piece: Contrôle du toucher — what matters is a steady sustained tone: bow speed, contact point and pressure even, before any thought of speed.
Challenge
Violin Sonata no. 2 in E minor, op. 108
Gabriel Fauré
74/100 +17 pts 28-56 weeks
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. New compared with the previous piece: Connaissance des formes and Positions hautes — understand the form and the harmony before memorising, or memory collapses the moment you play for someone.
Challenge
Violin Sonata no. 3 in D minor, op. 108
Johannes Brahms
77/100 +21 pts 28-56 weeks
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. New compared with the previous piece: Connaissance des formes and Passages rapides — understand the form and the harmony before memorising, or memory collapses the moment you play for someone.
Same level

To widen the repertoire without raising the level.

Same level
Violin Sonata no. 1 in D major, op. 12 no. 1
Ludwig van Beethoven
59/100 +2 pts 4-6 weeks
close skills 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: Connaissance des formes and Style classique — understand the form and the harmony before memorising, or memory collapses the moment you play for someone.
Same level
Violin Sonata no. 2 in A major, op. 12 no. 2
Ludwig van Beethoven
59/100 +3 pts 4-6 weeks
close skills 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: Connaissance des formes and Style classique — understand the form and the harmony before memorising, or memory collapses the moment you play for someone.
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.