Repertoire › Variations concertantes, for cello and piano, op. 17 › What to play next
What to play after Variations concertantes, for cello and piano, op. 17 ?
Felix Mendelssohn · difficulty 48/100

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
Suite pour violoncelle et piano, op. 16 : II. Sérénade
Camille Saint-Saëns
53/100 +5 pts 5-10 weeks
partial transfer low risk to confirm
A short step up, staying in Intermediate (around grade 6 ABRSM/RCM). New compared with the previous piece: Position du pouce and Ornements baroque — practise it slowly, separating left hand from bow: bow alone on open strings, then the fingering silently.
Gentle
Albumblätter, for cello and piano, op. 51
Reinhold Glière
53/100 +5 pts 5-10 weeks
partial transfer low risk to confirm
A short step up, staying in Intermediate (around grade 6 ABRSM/RCM). New compared with the previous piece: 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
Papillon, for cello and piano, op. 77
Gabriel Fauré
52/100 +4 pts 5-10 weeks
partial transfer low risk to confirm
A short step up, staying in Intermediate (around grade 6 ABRSM/RCM). New compared with the previous piece: 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 major, op. 104
Johann Nepomuk Hummel
54/100 +6 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: Legato d'archet (violoncelle) and Style classique — practise it slowly, separating left hand from bow: bow alone on open strings, then the fingering silently.
Gentle
Cello Sonata no. 1 in B-flat major, op. 45: II. Andante
Felix Mendelssohn
51/100 +4 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: Legato d'archet (violoncelle) and Voix chantante — practise it slowly, separating left hand from bow: bow alone on open strings, then the fingering silently.
Balanced step

A genuine step up, without a jolt.

Balanced
Cello Sonata no. 1, op. 45
Felix Mendelssohn
60/100 +12 pts 10-20 weeks
close skills moderate risk to confirm
A real step up, staying in Intermediate (around grade 6 ABRSM/RCM). New compared with the previous piece: Legato d'archet (violoncelle) and Vibrato (violoncelle) — practise it slowly, separating left hand from bow: bow alone on open strings, then the fingering silently.
Balanced
Cello Sonata no. 1 in C minor, op. 32
Camille Saint-Saëns
58/100 +10 pts 10-20 weeks
close skills moderate risk to confirm
A real step up, staying in Intermediate (around grade 6 ABRSM/RCM). New compared with the previous piece: Legato d'archet (violoncelle) and Doigté complexe — practise it slowly, separating left hand from bow: bow alone on open strings, then the fingering silently.
Balanced
Variations on a string, for cello and piano
Niccolò Paganini
60/100 +12 pts 12-24 weeks
close skills moderate risk to confirm
A real step up, staying in Intermediate (around grade 6 ABRSM/RCM). New compared with the previous piece: Changements de position (violoncelle) and Connaissance des formes — practise it slowly, separating left hand from bow: bow alone on open strings, then the fingering silently.
Balanced
Cello Sonata no. 1 in B-flat major, op. 45: I. Allegro vivace
Felix Mendelssohn
60/100 +12 pts 12-24 weeks
close skills moderate risk to confirm
A real step up, staying in Intermediate (around grade 6 ABRSM/RCM). New compared with the previous piece: Legato d'archet (violoncelle) and Vibrato (violoncelle) — practise it slowly, separating left hand from bow: bow alone on open strings, then the fingering silently.
Ambitious challenge

A useful leap with guided practice.

Challenge
Theme and Variations in D minor, for solo cello, JS 196
Jean Sibelius
67/100 +19 pts 24-48 weeks
partial transfer high risk to confirm
An ambitious leap into Advanced (around grade 7 ABRSM/RCM) — only worth starting if the practice time is really there. New compared with the previous piece: Position du pouce and Connaissance des formes — practise it slowly, separating left hand from bow: bow alone on open strings, then the fingering silently.
Challenge
Cello Sonata no. 2, op. 58
Felix Mendelssohn
69/100 +21 pts 24-48 weeks
close skills high risk to confirm
An ambitious leap into Advanced (around grade 7 ABRSM/RCM) — only worth starting if the practice time is really there. New compared with the previous piece: Legato d'archet (violoncelle) and Vibrato (violoncelle) — practise it slowly, separating left hand from bow: bow alone on open strings, then the fingering silently.
Challenge
Lied ohne Worte, for cello and piano, op. 109
Felix Mendelssohn
42/100 -5 pts 16-32 weeks
partial transfer low risk to confirm
Next piece in the same collection, Elementary (around grade 5 ABRSM/RCM): the order its editor chose, a progression already tested. New compared with the previous piece: Voix chantante and Legato d'archet (violoncelle) — the notes will be secure long before the musical line: work in whole phrases, singing the main voice.
Same level

To widen the repertoire without raising the level.

Same level
Danse bohémienne, for cello and piano, op. 28
Jacques Offenbach
48/100 +1 pts 3-4 weeks
partial transfer low risk to confirm
Equivalent demands, still Intermediate (around grade 5 ABRSM/RCM): what changes is the ground. What changes is the skill in play: Rythmes pointés and Détaché (violoncelle) — the pitfall is the pulse drifting as soon as the writing thickens: subdivide with the metronome.
Same level
Gavotte, for cello and piano in G minor
Camille Saint-Saëns
46/100 -1 pts 3-4 weeks
new reflexes low risk to confirm
Equivalent demands, still Intermediate (around grade 5 ABRSM/RCM): what changes is the ground. What changes is the skill in play: Style baroque and Ornements baroque — the notes are not enough: articulation and ornaments follow performance conventions best checked in an urtext edition.
Same level
Waltz, for cello and piano, op. 48
Reinhold Glière
45/100 -3 pts 3-4 weeks
partial transfer low risk to confirm
Equivalent demands, still Intermediate (around grade 5 ABRSM/RCM): what changes is the ground. What changes is the skill in play: Rythmes pointés and Détaché (violoncelle) — the pitfall is the pulse drifting as soon as the writing thickens: subdivide with the metronome.
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.