Repertoire › Sinfonia No.5 in E-flat major BWV 791 › What to play next
What to play after Sinfonia No.5 in E-flat major BWV 791 ?
Johann Sebastian Bach · difficulty 52/100

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
Sinfonia No.15 in B minor BWV 801
Johann Sebastian Bach
57/100 +5 pts 5-10 weeks
close skills low risk fair confidence
A short step up, staying in Intermediate (around grade 6 ABRSM/RCM). The skill that will carry the work: Style baroque and Indépendance des mains — the notes are not enough: articulation and ornaments follow performance conventions best checked in an urtext edition.
Gentle
Sinfonia No.9 in F minor BWV 795
Johann Sebastian Bach
55/100 +3 pts 5-10 weeks
close skills low risk fair confidence
A short step up, staying in Intermediate (around grade 6 ABRSM/RCM). The skill that will carry the work: Style baroque and Polyphonie à trois voix ou plus — the notes are not enough: articulation and ornaments follow performance conventions best checked in an urtext edition.
Gentle
Suite F major HWV 427
George Frideric Handel
59/100 +7 pts 5-10 weeks
new reflexes low risk to confirm
A short step up, staying in Intermediate (around grade 6 ABRSM/RCM). New compared with the previous piece: Demi-pédale and Polyphonie à trois voix ou plus — the pedal is set by ear, note by note: misjudged, it blurs the harmony instead of joining it.
Gentle
Fra Holbergs tid, for piano, op. 40, "Holberg Suite"
Edvard Grieg
55/100 +3 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: Ornements baroque 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
Fugue no. 3 en Do Dièse Majeur, BWV.872
Johann Sebastian Bach
64/100 +11 pts 12-24 weeks
close skills moderate risk to confirm
A real step up, staying in Intermediate (around grade 7 ABRSM/RCM). New compared with the previous piece: Analyse harmonique and Ornements baroque — understand the form and the harmony before memorising, or memory collapses the moment you play for someone.
Balanced
Suite g minor
Wilhelm Friedemann Bach
65/100 +13 pts 12-24 weeks
partial transfer moderate risk to confirm
A real step up, staying in Intermediate (around grade 7 ABRSM/RCM). The skill that will carry the work: Polyphonie à trois voix ou plus — practise it slowly and hands separately before any attempt at tempo: that is where tension builds up.
Balanced
Fugue in A major, BWV.949
Johann Sebastian Bach
65/100 +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: Analyse harmonique and Ornements baroque — understand the form and the harmony before memorising, or memory collapses the moment you play for someone.
Balanced
No.145 — Chromatic Invention (1)
Béla Bartók
66/100 +14 pts 12-24 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: Passages rapides and Doigté complexe — 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
Sinfonia for Piano in A
Gaetano Donizetti
70/100 +18 pts 28-56 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. The skill that will carry the work: Style baroque and Polyphonie à trois voix ou plus — the notes are not enough: articulation and ornaments follow performance conventions best checked in an urtext edition.
Challenge
Partita no. 1 in B flat major, BWV.825
Johann Sebastian Bach
70/100 +17 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: Ornements baroque and Connaissance des formes — ornaments must be secure before the piece goes up to tempo, otherwise they break the line instead of decorating it.
Challenge
Sinfonia 5 (ornamented) E flat major BWV 791a
Johann Sebastian Bach
49/100 -3 pts 16-32 weeks
new reflexes low risk to confirm
Next piece in the same collection, Intermediate (around grade 5 ABRSM/RCM): the order its editor chose, a progression already tested. New compared with the previous piece: Ornements baroque and Demi-pédale — ornaments must be secure before the piece goes up to tempo, otherwise they break the line instead of decorating it.
Same level

To widen the repertoire without raising the level.

Same level
Suite in A minor, BWV.818
Johann Sebastian Bach
52/100 same level 4-6 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: Ornements baroque and Connaissance des formes — ornaments must be secure before the piece goes up to tempo, otherwise they break the line instead of decorating it.
Same level
Suite E major HWV 430
George Frideric Handel
52/100 same level 4-6 weeks
new reflexes low risk to confirm
Equivalent demands, still Intermediate (around grade 6 ABRSM/RCM): what changes is the ground. The skill that will carry the work: Polyphonie à trois voix ou plus — practise it slowly and hands separately before any attempt at tempo: that is where tension builds up.
Same level
Fugue no. 12 en Fa Mineur, BWV.881
Johann Sebastian Bach
50/100 -2 pts 4-6 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: Analyse harmonique and Ornements baroque — 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.