Repertoire › Nocturne et Tarentelle, for violin and piano, op. 28 › What to play next
What to play after Nocturne et Tarentelle, for violin and piano, op. 28 ?
Karol Szymanowski · difficulty 77/100

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
3 Myths, for violin and piano, op. 30
Karol Szymanowski
83/100 +7 pts 8-16 weeks
partial transfer low risk to confirm
A short step up — but it is the one that moves you into Great repertoire (diploma level, beyond grade 8). New compared with the previous piece: Harmoniques and Vibrato — practise it slowly, separating left hand from bow: bow alone on open strings, then the fingering silently.
Gentle
Violin Sonata in E flat major, op. 18, TrV151
Richard Strauss
80/100 +3 pts 8-16 weeks
close skills low risk to confirm
A short step up — but it is the one that moves you into Great repertoire (diploma level, beyond grade 8). New compared with the previous piece: Connaissance des formes and Intonation — understand the form and the harmony before memorising, or memory collapses the moment you play for someone.
Gentle
Violin Sonata no. 1 in E minor, op. 29, KiV 234
Ferruccio Busoni
80/100 +3 pts 8-16 weeks
close skills low risk to confirm
A short step up — but it is the one that moves you into Great repertoire (diploma level, beyond grade 8). New compared with the previous piece: Analyse harmonique and Positions hautes — understand the form and the harmony before memorising, or memory collapses the moment you play for someone.
Gentle
Sonata for violin and piano
Camille Saint-Saëns
80/100 +3 pts 8-16 weeks
close skills low risk to confirm
A short step up — but it is the one that moves you into Great repertoire (diploma level, beyond grade 8). New compared with the previous piece: Analyse harmonique and Legato d'archet — understand the form and the harmony before memorising, or memory collapses the moment you play for someone.
Gentle
Fantasia in C for Violin and Piano, D.934, op. posth.159, "Sei mir gegrüsst!"
Franz Schubert
84/100 +7 pts 8-16 weeks
close skills low risk to confirm
A short step up — but it is the one that moves you into Great repertoire (diploma level, beyond grade 8). New compared with the previous piece: Ornements romantiques and Connaissance des formes — ornaments must be secure before the piece goes up to tempo, otherwise they break the line instead of decorating it.
Balanced step

A genuine step up, without a jolt.

Balanced
Violin Concerto in D major, op. 35
Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky
89/100 +12 pts 16-32 weeks
partial transfer moderate risk to confirm
A real step up: this piece moves you into Great repertoire (diploma level, beyond grade 8). New compared with the previous piece: Indépendance des mains — practise it slowly, separating left hand from bow: bow alone on open strings, then the fingering silently.
Balanced
Tzigane: Rhapsodie de concert, for violin and piano
Maurice Ravel
89/100 +12 pts 16-32 weeks
partial transfer moderate risk to confirm
A real step up: this piece moves you into Great repertoire (diploma level, beyond grade 8). New compared with the previous piece: Octaves and Rythme d'archet complexe — practise it slowly, separating left hand from bow: bow alone on open strings, then the fingering silently.
Balanced
Violin Concerto no. 6 in E minor, op. post.
Niccolò Paganini
89/100 +12 pts 16-32 weeks
partial transfer moderate risk to confirm
A real step up: this piece moves you into Great repertoire (diploma level, beyond grade 8). 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
Violin Concerto in B minor, op. 61
Edward Elgar
85/100 +8 pts 16-32 weeks
partial transfer moderate risk to confirm
A real step up: this piece moves you into Great repertoire (diploma level, beyond grade 8). The skill that will carry the work: 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
Variations on Paganini's 'Caprice no. 24', for solo violin
Eugene Ysaÿe
96/100 +19 pts 36-72 weeks
new reflexes 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: Coups d'archet composés and Connaissance des formes — practise it slowly, separating left hand from bow: bow alone on open strings, then the fingering silently.
Challenge
Violin Concerto in D major, op. 77
Johannes Brahms
93/100 +16 pts 36-72 weeks
new reflexes 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.
Same level

To widen the repertoire without raising the level.

Same level
Violin Sonata in D minor, op. 9
Karol Szymanowski
77/100 same level 5-8 weeks
partial transfer low risk to confirm
Equivalent demands, still Advanced (around grade 8 ABRSM/RCM): what changes is the ground. What changes is the skill in play: Connaissance des formes and Intonation — understand the form and the harmony before memorising, or memory collapses the moment you play for someone.
Same level
Violin Sonata in D minor, op. 9: III. Finale. Allegro molto, quasi presto
Karol Szymanowski
75/100 -2 pts 5-8 weeks
partial transfer low risk to confirm
Equivalent demands, still Advanced (around grade 8 ABRSM/RCM): what changes is the ground. What changes is the skill in play: Connaissance des formes and Intonation — understand the form and the harmony before memorising, or memory collapses the moment you play for someone.
Same level
Violin Sonata no. 2 in E minor, op. 108
Gabriel Fauré
74/100 -3 pts 5-8 weeks
close skills low risk to confirm
Equivalent demands, still Advanced (around grade 8 ABRSM/RCM): what changes is the ground. What changes is the skill in play: Connaissance des formes and Positions hautes — 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.