Repertoire › Partita no. 4 in D major, BWV 828: III. Courante › What to play next
What to play after Partita no. 4 in D major, BWV 828: III. Courante ?
Johann Sebastian Bach · difficulty 65/100

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, for harpsichord in A, TWV. 32:14
Georg Philipp Telemann
70/100 +5 pts 7-14 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: Polyphonie à deux voix and Style baroque — practise it slowly and hands separately before any attempt at tempo: that is where tension builds up.
Gentle
Partita in F major, Hob.XVIIa:2
Franz Joseph Haydn
70/100 +5 pts 7-14 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: Style classique and Analyse harmonique — the notes are not enough: articulation and ornaments follow performance conventions best checked in an urtext edition.
Gentle
Partita no. 1 in B flat major, BWV.825
Johann Sebastian Bach
70/100 +5 pts 6-12 weeks
close skills low risk fair confidence
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: Staccato and Style baroque — practise it slowly and hands separately before any attempt at tempo: that is where tension builds up.
Gentle
Partita no. 3 in A minor, BWV.827
Johann Sebastian Bach
70/100 +6 pts 7-14 weeks
close skills low risk fair confidence
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: Balance mains and Style baroque — what matters is quality of attack and evenness of tone, not speed.
Gentle
Les Indes galantes, suite from the opéra-ballet for harpsichord
Jean-Philippe Rameau
68/100 +3 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: Analyse harmonique and Style baroque — understand the form and the harmony before memorising, or memory collapses the moment you play for someone.
Balanced step

A genuine step up, without a jolt.

Balanced
Partita no. 2 in C minor, BWV.826
Johann Sebastian Bach
76/100 +11 pts 14-28 weeks
close skills moderate risk fair confidence
A real step up: this piece moves you into Advanced (around grade 8 ABRSM/RCM). The skill that will carry the work: Style baroque and Ornements baroque — the notes are not enough: articulation and ornaments follow performance conventions best checked in an urtext edition.
Balanced
Chaconne in G major, HWV.435
George Frideric Handel
75/100 +10 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). New compared with the previous piece: Polyphonie à deux voix and Style baroque — practise it slowly and hands separately before any attempt at tempo: that is where tension builds up.
Balanced
Partita no. 4 in D major, BWV.828
Johann Sebastian Bach
75/100 +10 pts 14-28 weeks
close skills moderate risk fair confidence
A real step up: this piece moves you into Advanced (around grade 8 ABRSM/RCM). The skill that will carry the work: Style baroque and Ornements baroque — the notes are not enough: articulation and ornaments follow performance conventions best checked in an urtext edition.
Balanced
Chaconne, for two harpsichords,
Jean-Philippe Rameau
74/100 +9 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 skill that will carry the work: Style baroque and Ornements baroque — the notes are not enough: articulation and ornaments follow performance conventions best checked in an urtext edition.
Ambitious challenge

A useful leap with guided practice.

Challenge
Chromatic Fantasia and Fugue in D minor, BWV.903
Johann Sebastian Bach
80/100 +15 pts 32-64 weeks
partial transfer moderate 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: Croisements de mains and Analyse harmonique — practise it slowly and hands separately before any attempt at tempo: that is where tension builds up.
Challenge
Partita no. 6 in E minor, BWV.830
Johann Sebastian Bach
80/100 +15 pts 32-64 weeks
close skills moderate 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: Balance mains and Style baroque — what matters is quality of attack and evenness of tone, not speed.
Challenge
Ordre 14 in D minor or D
François Couperin
80/100 +15 pts 32-64 weeks
close skills moderate 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: Indépendance des mains and Demi-pédale — 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
Ordre 1 in G minor or G
François Couperin
65/100 same level 4-7 weeks
close skills low risk to confirm
Equivalent demands, right at the edge of Advanced (around grade 7 ABRSM/RCM): different ground, same level. What changes is the skill in play: Indépendance des mains and Style baroque — practise it slowly and hands separately before any attempt at tempo: that is where tension builds up.
Same level
Toccata and fugue in D minor, BWV.565
Johann Sebastian Bach
65/100 same level 4-7 weeks
partial transfer low risk to confirm
Equivalent demands, right at the edge of Advanced (around grade 7 ABRSM/RCM): different ground, same level. What changes is the skill in play: Staccato and Analyse harmonique — practise it slowly and hands separately before any attempt at tempo: that is where tension builds up.
Same level
Fugue no. 14 en Fa Dièse Mineur, BWV.883
Johann Sebastian Bach
67/100 +3 pts 4-7 weeks
partial transfer low risk to confirm
Equivalent demands, right at the edge of Advanced (around grade 7 ABRSM/RCM): different ground, same level. What changes is the skill in play: Analyse harmonique and Voix chantante — 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.