Repertoire › 4 Pieces for Violin and Piano, op. 115 › What to play next
What to play after 4 Pieces for Violin and Piano, op. 115 ?
Jean Sibelius · difficulty 61/100

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.

Back to the full work page
Gentle step

The safest next step.

Gentle
L'air de la pendule in A minor, for violin and piano
Camille Saint-Saëns
65/100 +4 pts 6-12 weeks
close skills low risk to confirm
A short step up — but it is the one that moves you into Advanced (around grade 7 ABRSM/RCM). New compared with the previous piece: Passages rapides — practise it slowly, separating left hand from bow: bow alone on open strings, then the fingering silently.
Gentle
Chant d'Hiver in B minor, for violin and orchestra, op. 15
Eugene Ysaÿe
65/100 +4 pts 6-12 weeks
close skills low risk to confirm
A short step up — but it is the one that moves you into Advanced (around grade 7 ABRSM/RCM). The demand here is musical rather than mechanical: Pédale de sustain — the pedal is set by ear, note by note: misjudged, it blurs the harmony instead of joining it.
Gentle
Violin Concerto in A major, op. 101
Max Reger
65/100 +4 pts 6-12 weeks
close skills low risk to confirm
A short step up — but it is the one that moves you into Advanced (around grade 7 ABRSM/RCM). The demand here is musical rather than mechanical: Pédale de sustain — the pedal is set by ear, note by note: misjudged, it blurs the harmony instead of joining it.
Gentle
Violin Sonata in A minor
Jean Sibelius
68/100 +7 pts 6-12 weeks
partial transfer low risk to confirm
A short step up — but it is the one that moves you into Advanced (around grade 7 ABRSM/RCM). New compared with the previous piece: Vibrato and Legato d'archet — what matters is a steady sustained tone: bow speed, contact point and pressure even, before any thought of speed.
Gentle
Ballade in D minor, for violin and piano
Josef Suk
68/100 +7 pts 6-12 weeks
close skills low risk to confirm
A short step up — but it is the one that moves you into Advanced (around grade 7 ABRSM/RCM). New compared with the previous piece: Octaves — 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
Violin Concerto in E minor, op. 64
Felix Mendelssohn
73/100 +12 pts 14-28 weeks
close skills moderate risk to confirm
A real step up: this piece moves you into Advanced (around grade 8 ABRSM/RCM). The demand here is musical rather than mechanical: Pédale de sustain — the pedal is set by ear, note by note: misjudged, it blurs the harmony instead of joining it.
Balanced
6 Humoresques for Violin and Orchestra, op. 87 and 89
Jean Sibelius
70/100 +9 pts 14-28 weeks
partial transfer 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: Ornements romantiques and Indépendance des mains — ornaments must be secure before the piece goes up to tempo, otherwise they break the line instead of decorating it.
Balanced
Violin Concerto in F major, op. 20
Edouard Lalo
75/100 +14 pts 14-28 weeks
close skills moderate risk to confirm
A real step up: this piece moves you into Advanced (around grade 8 ABRSM/RCM). The demand here is musical rather than mechanical: Pédale de sustain — the pedal is set by ear, note by note: misjudged, it blurs the harmony instead of joining it.
Balanced
Duos concertant in E major, for violin and piano, op. 112
Louis Spohr
69/100 +8 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: Passages rapides — 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
Violin Concerto no. 1 in G minor, op. 26
Max Bruch
80/100 +19 pts 32-64 weeks
close skills high risk to confirm
An ambitious leap into Great repertoire (diploma level, beyond grade 8) — only worth starting if the practice time is really there. The demand here is musical rather than mechanical: Pédale de sustain — the pedal is set by ear, note by note: misjudged, it blurs the harmony instead of joining it.
Challenge
Violin Sonata no. 9 in A major, op. 47, "Kreutzer"
Ludwig van Beethoven
80/100 +19 pts 32-64 weeks
partial transfer high risk to confirm
An ambitious leap into Great repertoire (diploma level, beyond grade 8) — only worth starting if the practice time is really there. New compared with the previous piece: Legato d'archet and Connaissance des formes — practise it slowly, separating left hand from bow: bow alone on open strings, then the fingering silently.
Challenge
Violin Sonata no. 3 in D minor, op. 108
Johannes Brahms
77/100 +16 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: Legato d'archet and Connaissance des formes — practise it slowly, separating left hand from bow: bow alone on open strings, then the fingering silently.
Same level

To widen the repertoire without raising the level.

Same level
Impromptu in G minor, for solo violin, JS deest
Jean Sibelius
60/100 -1 pts 4-7 weeks
partial transfer 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: Positions hautes — practise it slowly, separating left hand from bow: bow alone on open strings, then the fingering silently.
Same level
Violin Sonata in A major, op. 162, D.574
Franz Schubert
62/100 +1 pts 4-7 weeks
partial transfer low risk to confirm
Equivalent demands, still Intermediate (around grade 7 ABRSM/RCM): what changes is the ground. What changes is the skill in play: Analyse harmonique and Legato d'archet — understand the form and the harmony before memorising, or memory collapses the moment you play for someone.
Same level
Violin Sonata no. 4 in A minor, op. 23
Ludwig van Beethoven
63/100 +2 pts 4-7 weeks
partial transfer low risk to confirm
Equivalent demands, still Intermediate (around grade 7 ABRSM/RCM): what changes is the ground. What changes is the skill in play: Legato d'archet and Connaissance des formes — practise it slowly, separating left hand from bow: bow alone on open strings, then the fingering silently.
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.