Repertoire › Ballade no. 1, S.170, "Le Chant du Croise" › What to play next
What to play after Ballade no. 1, S.170, "Le Chant du Croise" ?
Franz Liszt · difficulty 85/100

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
Etudes-tableaux, op. 39
Sergei Rachmaninoff
88/100 +3 pts 8-16 weeks
partial transfer low risk to confirm
A short step up, staying in Great repertoire (diploma level, beyond grade 8). New compared with the previous piece: Doubles notes — practise it slowly and hands separately before any attempt at tempo: that is where tension builds up.
Gentle
Mephisto Waltz no. 3, S.216, R.38
Franz Liszt
92/100 +7 pts 9-18 weeks
close skills low risk to confirm
A short step up, staying in Great repertoire (diploma level, beyond grade 8). New compared with the previous piece: Trilles — practise it slowly and hands separately before any attempt at tempo: that is where tension builds up.
Gentle
Mephisto Waltz no. 4, S.696
Franz Liszt
92/100 +7 pts 9-18 weeks
close skills low risk to confirm
A short step up, staying in Great repertoire (diploma level, beyond grade 8). New compared with the previous piece: Trilles and Rythmes pointés — practise it slowly and hands separately before any attempt at tempo: that is where tension builds up.
Gentle
Liszt: Cadenza on Hungarian Rhapsody no. 2, TN iii/6
Sergei Rachmaninoff
92/100 +7 pts 9-18 weeks
close skills low risk to confirm
A short step up, staying in Great repertoire (diploma level, beyond grade 8). New compared with the previous piece: Rythmes pointés and Ornements romantiques — 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
Rhapsodie espagnole, S.254, R.90, "Folies d'Espagne et jota aragonesa"
Franz Liszt
95/100 +10 pts 18-36 weeks
close skills moderate risk to confirm
A real step up, staying in Great repertoire (diploma level, beyond grade 8). New compared with the previous piece: Doubles notes — practise it slowly and hands separately before any attempt at tempo: that is where tension builds up.
Balanced
Piano Sonata no. 29 in B flat major, op. 106, "Hammerklavier"
Ludwig van Beethoven
95/100 +10 pts 18-36 weeks
partial transfer moderate risk to confirm
A real step up, staying in Great repertoire (diploma level, beyond grade 8). 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.
Balanced
Piano Sonata no. 10 in C, op. 70, "Trill"
Alexander Scriabin
93/100 +8 pts 18-36 weeks
partial transfer moderate risk to confirm
A real step up, staying in Great repertoire (diploma level, beyond grade 8). New compared with the previous piece: Connaissance des formes and Ornements romantiques — understand the form and the harmony before memorising, or memory collapses the moment you play for someone.
Balanced
Mephisto Waltz no. 4, S.216a, R.60c, "Bagatelle sans tonalité"
Franz Liszt
93/100 +8 pts 18-36 weeks
close skills moderate risk to confirm
A real step up, staying in Great repertoire (diploma level, beyond grade 8). New compared with the previous piece: Trilles and Rythmes pointés — practise it slowly and hands separately before any attempt at tempo: that is where tension builds up.
Ambitious challenge

A useful leap with guided practice.

Challenge
Ab irato, S.143, "The Perfect Etude"
Franz Liszt
100/100 +15 pts 40-80 weeks
partial transfer moderate risk to confirm
An ambitious leap while staying in Great repertoire (diploma level, beyond grade 8) — only worth starting if the practice time is really there. New compared with the previous piece: Gammes et arpèges and Demi-pédale — practise it slowly and hands separately before any attempt at tempo: that is where tension builds up.
Challenge
Sonata in G major, K.471, L.82
Domenico Scarlatti
100/100 +15 pts 40-80 weeks
new reflexes moderate risk to confirm
An ambitious leap while staying in Great repertoire (diploma level, beyond grade 8) — only worth starting if the practice time is really there. New compared with the previous piece: Connaissance des formes and Style baroque — understand the form and the harmony before memorising, or memory collapses the moment you play for someone.
Challenge
A.r.
Iannis Xenakis
100/100 +15 pts 40-80 weeks
new reflexes moderate risk to confirm
An ambitious leap while staying in Great repertoire (diploma level, beyond grade 8) — only worth starting if the practice time is really there. New compared with the previous piece: Technique générale — practise it slowly and hands separately before any attempt at tempo: that is where tension builds up.
Same level

To widen the repertoire without raising the level.

Same level
Hungarian Rhapsody no. 9 The Carnival at Pest
Franz Liszt
87/100 +2 pts 6-9 weeks
new reflexes low risk to confirm
Equivalent demands, still Great repertoire (diploma level, beyond grade 8): what changes is the ground. What changes is the skill in play: Ornements romantiques and Doubles notes — ornaments must be secure before the piece goes up to tempo, otherwise they break the line instead of decorating it.
Same level
Hungarian Rhapsody no. 2
Franz Liszt
87/100 +2 pts 6-9 weeks
partial transfer low risk to confirm
Equivalent demands, still Great repertoire (diploma level, beyond grade 8): what changes is the ground. The skill that will carry the work: Passages rapides — practise it slowly and hands separately before any attempt at tempo: that is where tension builds up.
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.