Repertoire › Fantasias, op. 116 › What to play next
What to play after Fantasias, op. 116 ?
Johannes Brahms · difficulty 66/100

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
Fantasia in G minor, D.9
Franz Schubert
71/100 +5 pts 7-14 weeks
close skills low risk to confirm
A short step up, staying in Advanced (around grade 7 ABRSM/RCM). New compared with the previous piece: Passages rapides — practise it slowly and hands separately before any attempt at tempo: that is where tension builds up.
Gentle
Fantasia: Cheherezada
Enrique Granados
70/100 +4 pts 7-14 weeks
close skills low risk to confirm
A short step up, staying in Advanced (around grade 7 ABRSM/RCM). The skill that will carry the work: Ornements romantiques — ornaments must be secure before the piece goes up to tempo, otherwise they break the line instead of decorating it.
Gentle
Variations on a Theme by Schumann, op. 9
Johannes Brahms
73/100 +7 pts 7-14 weeks
partial transfer 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 — understand the form and the harmony before memorising, or memory collapses the moment you play for someone.
Gentle
Klavierstücke, op. 118
Johannes Brahms
69/100 +3 pts 6-12 weeks
close skills low risk to confirm
A short step up, staying in Advanced (around grade 7 ABRSM/RCM). New compared with the previous piece: Contrôle du toucher — what matters is quality of attack and evenness of tone, not speed.
Gentle
Fantasy in G minor, op. 77
Ludwig van Beethoven
69/100 +3 pts 6-12 weeks
close skills low risk to confirm
A short step up, staying in Advanced (around grade 7 ABRSM/RCM). The skill that will carry the work: 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 step

A genuine step up, without a jolt.

Balanced
Fantasia for piano in C, D.605a, "Grazer Fantasie"
Franz Schubert
75/100 +9 pts 14-28 weeks
close skills moderate risk to confirm
A real step up, staying in Advanced (around grade 8 ABRSM/RCM). The skill that will carry the work: Ornements romantiques — ornaments must be secure before the piece goes up to tempo, otherwise they break the line instead of decorating it.
Balanced
Fantasy Pieces, op. 111
Robert Schumann
75/100 +9 pts 14-28 weeks
partial transfer moderate risk to confirm
A real step up, staying in Advanced (around grade 8 ABRSM/RCM). New compared with the previous piece: Analyse harmonique — understand the form and the harmony before memorising, or memory collapses the moment you play for someone.
Balanced
Piano Sonata no. 1 in C major, op. 1
Johannes Brahms
80/100 +14 pts 14-28 weeks
partial transfer moderate risk to confirm
A real step up, staying in Advanced (around grade 8 ABRSM/RCM). New compared with the previous piece: Connaissance des formes — 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
Polonaise-fantaisie in A flat major, op. 61
Frédéric Chopin
83/100 +16 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: Analyse harmonique and Rythmes pointés — understand the form and the harmony before memorising, or memory collapses the moment you play for someone.
Challenge
Piano Sonata no. 2 in F sharp minor, op. 2
Johannes Brahms
82/100 +16 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: Connaissance des formes and Passages rapides — understand the form and the harmony before memorising, or memory collapses the moment you play for someone.
Challenge
Variations on a Theme by Paganini, op. 35
Johannes Brahms
87/100 +21 pts 32-64 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: Connaissance des formes and Voix chantante — understand the form and the harmony before memorising, or memory collapses the moment you play for someone.
Same level

To widen the repertoire without raising the level.

Same level
Piano Sonata in E flat major, D.568, op. posth.122
Franz Schubert
67/100 +1 pts 4-7 weeks
partial transfer low risk to confirm
Equivalent demands, still Advanced (around grade 7 ABRSM/RCM): what changes is the ground. What changes is the skill in play: Analyse harmonique and Style classique — understand the form and the harmony before memorising, or memory collapses the moment you play for someone.
Same level
Rhapsodies, op. 79
Johannes Brahms
64/100 -2 pts 4-7 weeks
close skills low risk to confirm
Equivalent demands, right at the edge of Intermediate (around grade 7 ABRSM/RCM): different ground, same level. What changes is the skill in play: Contrôle du toucher — what matters is quality of attack and evenness of tone, not speed.
Same level
Klavierstücke, op. 76
Johannes Brahms
63/100 -3 pts 4-7 weeks
close skills low risk fair confidence
Next piece in the same collection, Intermediate (around grade 7 ABRSM/RCM): the order its editor chose, a progression already tested. What changes is the skill in play: Contrôle du toucher — what matters is quality of attack and evenness of tone, not speed.
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.