Repertoire › Nocturne, for violin and piano › What to play next
What to play after Nocturne, for violin and piano ?
John Cage · 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
Albumblatt and Romanze, for violin and piano, op. 87
Max Reger
55/100 +3 pts 5-10 weeks
close skills low risk to confirm
A short step up, staying in Intermediate (around grade 6 ABRSM/RCM). The skill that will carry the work: Voix chantante and Vibrato — the notes will be secure long before the musical line: work in whole phrases, singing the main voice.
Gentle
Lullaby, for violin and piano, op. 52, M58, "La berceuse d'Aïtacho Enia"
Karol Szymanowski
59/100 +7 pts 5-10 weeks
close skills low risk to confirm
A short step up, staying in Intermediate (around grade 6 ABRSM/RCM). The skill that will carry the work: Legato d'archet and Voix chantante — practise it slowly, separating left hand from bow: bow alone on open strings, then the fingering silently.
Gentle
Romance, for violin and piano in A major, op. 51
Karl Goldmark
55/100 +3 pts 5-10 weeks
close skills low risk to confirm
A short step up, staying in Intermediate (around grade 6 ABRSM/RCM). The skill that will carry the work: Voix chantante and Vibrato — the notes will be secure long before the musical line: work in whole phrases, singing the main voice.
Gentle
Romance in B flat major, for violin and piano, op. 28
Gabriel Fauré
55/100 +3 pts 5-10 weeks
close skills low risk to confirm
A short step up, staying in Intermediate (around grade 6 ABRSM/RCM). The skill that will carry the work: Vibrato and Legato d'archet — what matters is a steady sustained tone: bow speed, contact point and pressure even, before any thought of speed.
Gentle
Romance for Violin and Piano in C minor, op. 1
Edward Elgar
55/100 +3 pts 5-10 weeks
close skills low risk to confirm
A short step up, staying in Intermediate (around grade 6 ABRSM/RCM). The skill that will carry the work: Vibrato and Legato d'archet — what matters is a steady sustained tone: bow speed, contact point and pressure even, before any thought of speed.
Balanced step

A genuine step up, without a jolt.

Balanced
Romance for Violin and Orchestra no. 2 in F major, op. 50
Ludwig van Beethoven
62/100 +10 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: Voix chantante — the notes will be secure long before the musical line: work in whole phrases, singing the main voice.
Balanced
Romance in D major, for violin and piano, op. 23
Karol Szymanowski
64/100 +12 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: Ornements romantiques and Legato d'archet — ornaments must be secure before the piece goes up to tempo, otherwise they break the line instead of decorating it.
Balanced
Romance for Violin and Orchestra no. 1 in G major, op. 40
Ludwig van Beethoven
61/100 +9 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: Voix chantante — the notes will be secure long before the musical line: work in whole phrases, singing the main voice.
Balanced
Serenade, for violin and orchestra in A minor, op. 75
Max Bruch
60/100 +8 pts 12-24 weeks
new reflexes moderate risk to confirm
A real 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.
Ambitious challenge

A useful leap with guided practice.

Challenge
6 Humoresques for Violin and Orchestra, op. 87 and 89
Jean Sibelius
70/100 +18 pts 28-56 weeks
new reflexes 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 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.
Challenge
Three Preludes for Violin and Piano
George Gershwin
68/100 +16 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: Style moderne et contemporain and Vibrato — the notes are not enough: articulation and ornaments follow performance conventions best checked in an urtext edition.
Challenge
The Lark Ascending: Romance for Violin and Orchestra
Ralph Vaughan Williams
67/100 +15 pts 24-48 weeks
partial transfer moderate 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: Analyse harmonique 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
Rêverie et caprice, for violin and orchestra, H.88, op. 8
Hector Berlioz
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. 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.
Same level
Lullaby for Anne-Sophie, for violin and piano
Witold Lutoslawski
50/100 -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. The skill that will carry the work: Vibrato — what matters is a steady sustained tone: bow speed, contact point and pressure even, before any thought of speed.
Same level
Prelude no. 1, for violin and piano
Aaron Copland
50/100 -2 pts 3-4 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: Style moderne et contemporain and Voix chantante — the notes are not enough: articulation and ornaments follow performance conventions best checked in an urtext edition.
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.