Repertoire › Romance, for violin and orchestra in A minor, op. 42 › What to play next
What to play after Romance, for violin and orchestra in A minor, op. 42 ?
Max Bruch · difficulty 57/100

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
Romance for Violin and Orchestra no. 2 in F major, op. 50
Ludwig van Beethoven
62/100 +5 pts 6-12 weeks
close skills low risk to confirm
A short step up, staying in Intermediate (around grade 7 ABRSM/RCM). The skill that will carry the work: Voix chantante — the notes will be secure long before the musical line: work in whole phrases, singing the main voice.
Gentle
Romance for Violin and Orchestra no. 1 in G major, op. 40
Ludwig van Beethoven
61/100 +4 pts 6-12 weeks
close skills low risk to confirm
A short step up, staying in Intermediate (around grade 7 ABRSM/RCM). The skill that will carry the work: Voix chantante — the notes will be secure long before the musical line: work in whole phrases, singing the main voice.
Gentle
Souvenir d'un lieu cher, for violin and piano, op. 42
Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky
64/100 +7 pts 6-12 weeks
close skills low risk to confirm
A short step up, staying in Intermediate (around grade 7 ABRSM/RCM). New compared with the previous piece: Vibrato and Ornements romantiques — what matters is a steady sustained tone: bow speed, contact point and pressure even, before any thought of speed.
Gentle
Serenade, for violin and orchestra in A minor, op. 75
Max Bruch
60/100 +3 pts 6-12 weeks
close skills low risk to confirm
A short step up, staying in Intermediate (around grade 6 ABRSM/RCM). 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.
Gentle
Adagio appassionato, for violin and orchestra in C sharp minor, op. 57
Max Bruch
60/100 +3 pts 6-12 weeks
close skills low risk to confirm
A short step up, staying in Intermediate (around grade 6 ABRSM/RCM). New compared with the previous piece: Caractère et style — the notes are not enough: articulation and ornaments follow performance conventions best checked in an urtext edition.
Balanced step

A genuine step up, without a jolt.

Balanced
The Lark Ascending: Romance for Violin and Orchestra
Ralph Vaughan Williams
67/100 +10 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 Voix chantante — understand the form and the harmony before memorising, or memory collapses the moment you play for someone.
Balanced
Violin Concerto no. 1 in A minor, op. 20
Camille Saint-Saëns
70/100 +13 pts 14-28 weeks
close skills moderate risk to confirm
A real step up: this piece moves you into Advanced (around grade 7 ABRSM/RCM). The demand here is musical rather than mechanical: Tempo rubato — the pitfall is the pulse drifting as soon as the writing thickens: subdivide with the metronome.
Balanced
Chant d'Hiver in B minor, for violin and orchestra, op. 15
Eugene Ysaÿe
65/100 +8 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). The demand here is musical rather than mechanical: Nuances — the notes will be secure long before the musical line: work in whole phrases, singing the main voice.
Balanced
Violin Concerto in A major, op. 101
Max Reger
65/100 +8 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). The demand here is musical rather than mechanical: Nuances — the notes will be secure long before the musical line: work in whole phrases, singing the main voice.
Ambitious challenge

A useful leap with guided practice.

Challenge
Nocturne et Tarentelle, for violin and piano, op. 28
Karol Szymanowski
77/100 +20 pts 28-56 weeks
partial transfer high risk to confirm
An ambitious leap into Advanced (around grade 8 ABRSM/RCM) — only worth starting if the practice time is really there. New compared with the previous piece: Legato d'archet and Vibrato — practise it slowly, separating left hand from bow: bow alone on open strings, then the fingering silently.
Challenge
Konzertstück, for violin and orchestra in F sharp minor, op. 84
Max Bruch
72/100 +15 pts 28-56 weeks
close skills moderate risk to confirm
An ambitious leap into Advanced (around grade 8 ABRSM/RCM) — only worth starting if the practice time is really there. 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.
Same level

To widen the repertoire without raising the level.

Same level
Swedish Dances, 15 pieces in 2 books for violin and piano, op. 63
Max Bruch
58/100 +1 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: Coups d'archet composés — practise it slowly, separating left hand from bow: bow alone on open strings, then the fingering silently.
Same level
Lullaby, for violin and piano, op. 52, M58, "La berceuse d'Aïtacho Enia"
Karol Szymanowski
59/100 +2 pts 4-6 weeks
close skills 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: Legato d'archet and Vibrato — practise it slowly, separating left hand from bow: bow alone on open strings, then the fingering silently.
Same level
Serenade, for violin and orchestra in A minor, op. 75
Max Bruch
60/100 +3 pts 4-7 weeks
close skills 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: 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.