Repertoire › Violoncello Sonata op. 119 › What to play next
What to play after Violoncello Sonata op. 119 ?
Felix Mendelssohn · difficulty 74/100

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
Cello Sonata, op. 40
Dmitri Shostakovich
79/100 +5 pts 7-14 weeks
new reflexes low risk to confirm
A short step up, staying in Advanced (around grade 8 ABRSM/RCM). New compared with the previous piece: Connaissance des formes and Style moderne et contemporain — understand the form and the harmony before memorising, or memory collapses the moment you play for someone.
Gentle
Cello Concerto no. 1 in C major, Hob.VIIb:1
Franz Joseph Haydn
78/100 +4 pts 7-14 weeks
new reflexes low risk to confirm
A short step up, staying in Advanced (around grade 8 ABRSM/RCM). New compared with the previous piece: Style classique and Connaissance des formes — the notes are not enough: articulation and ornaments follow performance conventions best checked in an urtext edition.
Gentle
Cello Sonata in D minor, L.135
Claude Debussy
78/100 +4 pts 7-14 weeks
new reflexes low risk to confirm
A short step up, staying in Advanced (around grade 8 ABRSM/RCM). New compared with the previous piece: Connaissance des formes and Vibrato (violoncelle) — understand the form and the harmony before memorising, or memory collapses the moment you play for someone.
Gentle
Cello Sonata in C major, op. 119
Sergei Prokofiev
77/100 +3 pts 7-14 weeks
new reflexes low risk to confirm
A short step up, staying in Advanced (around grade 8 ABRSM/RCM). New compared with the previous piece: Vibrato (violoncelle) and Connaissance des formes — what matters is a steady sustained tone: bow speed, contact point and pressure even, before any thought of speed.
Gentle
Cello Sonata in G minor, op. 65
Frédéric Chopin
77/100 +3 pts 7-14 weeks
new reflexes low risk to confirm
A short step up, staying in Advanced (around grade 8 ABRSM/RCM). New compared with the previous piece: Connaissance des formes and Vibrato (violoncelle) — 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
Cello Concerto no. 2 in D major, Hob.VII:2
Franz Joseph Haydn
85/100 +11 pts 16-32 weeks
new reflexes 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: Style classique and Connaissance des formes — the notes are not enough: articulation and ornaments follow performance conventions best checked in an urtext edition.
Balanced
Suites G major, d minor, a minor op. 131c
Max Reger
84/100 +10 pts 16-32 weeks
new reflexes 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: Polyphonie à deux voix and Style baroque — practise it slowly, separating left hand from bow: bow alone on open strings, then the fingering silently.
Balanced
Cello Sonata no. 2 in F major, op. 99
Johannes Brahms
82/100 +8 pts 16-32 weeks
new reflexes 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: Connaissance des formes and Vibrato (violoncelle) — understand the form and the harmony before memorising, or memory collapses the moment you play for someone.
Ambitious challenge

A useful leap with guided practice.

Challenge
Violoncello Sonata d minor
Claude Debussy
92/100 +18 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: Analyse harmonique and Polyphonie à trois voix ou plus — understand the form and the harmony before memorising, or memory collapses the moment you play for someone.
Challenge
Cello Concerto in B minor, op. 104
Antonín Dvořák
92/100 +18 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: Position du pouce and Vibrato (violoncelle) — practise it slowly, separating left hand from bow: bow alone on open strings, then the fingering silently.
Challenge
Suite D major BWV 1012
Eugene Ysaÿe
90/100 +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. New compared with the previous piece: Polyphonie à trois voix ou plus and Style baroque — 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
Cello Sonata no. 3 in A major, op. 69
Ludwig van Beethoven
73/100 -1 pts 5-8 weeks
new reflexes 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 Vibrato (violoncelle) — understand the form and the harmony before memorising, or memory collapses the moment you play for someone.
Same level
Cello Sonata no. 4 in C major, op. 102, no. 1
Ludwig van Beethoven
73/100 -1 pts 5-8 weeks
new reflexes 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 Vibrato (violoncelle) — understand the form and the harmony before memorising, or memory collapses the moment you play for someone.
Same level
Cello Concerto no. 1 in A minor, op. 33
Camille Saint-Saëns
76/100 +2 pts 5-8 weeks
new reflexes 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: Indépendance des mains — 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.