Repertoire › Boléro, op. 19 › What to play next
What to play after Boléro, op. 19 ?
Frédéric Chopin · difficulty 69/100

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
Waltzes, op. 70
Frédéric Chopin
74/100 +5 pts 7-14 weeks
close skills low risk to confirm
A short step up, staying in Advanced (around grade 8 ABRSM/RCM). New compared with the previous piece: Contrôle du toucher — what matters is quality of attack and evenness of tone, not speed.
Gentle
Waltz from 'Faust', S.407, R.166
Franz Liszt
74/100 +5 pts 7-14 weeks
close skills low risk to confirm
A short step up, staying in Advanced (around grade 8 ABRSM/RCM). New compared with the previous piece: Indépendance des mains — practise it slowly and hands separately before any attempt at tempo: that is where tension builds up.
Gentle
Humoresque, op. 20
Robert Schumann
73/100 +4 pts 7-14 weeks
close skills low risk to confirm
A short step up, staying in Advanced (around grade 8 ABRSM/RCM). The skill that will carry the work: Caractère et style — the notes are not enough: articulation and ornaments follow performance conventions best checked in an urtext edition.
Gentle
Davidsbündlertänze, op. 6
Robert Schumann
73/100 +4 pts 7-14 weeks
close skills low risk to confirm
A short step up, staying in Advanced (around grade 8 ABRSM/RCM). The skill that will carry the work: Caractère et style — the notes are not enough: articulation and ornaments follow performance conventions best checked in an urtext edition.
Gentle
Polonaises, op. 71
Frédéric Chopin
72/100 +3 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: Passages rapides and Ornements romantiques — practise it slowly and hands separately before any attempt at tempo: that is where tension builds up.
Balanced step

A genuine step up, without a jolt.

Balanced
Soirées de Vienna, 9 Valses caprices d’après Schubert, S.427
Franz Liszt
81/100 +12 pts 16-32 weeks
close skills 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: Ornements romantiques — ornaments must be secure before the piece goes up to tempo, otherwise they break the line instead of decorating it.
Balanced
Waltz in E flat major, op. 18, "Grande valse brillante"
Frédéric Chopin
82/100 +13 pts 16-32 weeks
partial transfer 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: Indépendance des mains — practise it slowly and hands separately before any attempt at tempo: that is where tension builds up.
Balanced
Valse d'Adele, S.456
Franz Liszt
82/100 +13 pts 16-32 weeks
close skills 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: Contrôle du toucher — what matters is quality of attack and evenness of tone, not speed.
Balanced
Polonaise-fantaisie in A flat major, op. 61
Frédéric Chopin
83/100 +13 pts 16-32 weeks
partial transfer 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: Ornements romantiques and Analyse harmonique — ornaments must be secure before the piece goes up to tempo, otherwise they break the line instead of decorating it.
Ambitious challenge

A useful leap with guided practice.

Challenge
Variations on a Waltz by Diabelli, op. 120
Ludwig van Beethoven
88/100 +19 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 — understand the form and the harmony before memorising, or memory collapses the moment you play for someone.
Challenge
Mephisto Polka, S.217, R.39
Franz Liszt
90/100 +21 pts 36-72 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: Octaves and Rythmes pointés — practise it slowly and hands separately before any attempt at tempo: that is where tension builds up.
Challenge
Tarantelle in A flat major, op. 43
Frédéric Chopin
77/100 +8 pts 28-56 weeks
partial transfer moderate risk fair confidence
Next piece in the same collection, Advanced (around grade 8 ABRSM/RCM): the order its editor chose, a progression already tested. New compared with the previous piece: Staccato and Ornements romantiques — 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
Grande Polonaise in E flat major, J.59, op. 21
Carl Maria von Weber
67/100 -2 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: Rythmes pointés and Passages rapides — the pitfall is the pulse drifting as soon as the writing thickens: subdivide with the metronome.
Same level
Polonaise in G sharp minor, B.6
Frédéric Chopin
67/100 -2 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: Rythmes pointés and Passages rapides — the pitfall is the pulse drifting as soon as the writing thickens: subdivide with the metronome.
Same level
Polonaises, op. 26
Frédéric Chopin
67/100 -3 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: Passages rapides — practise it slowly and hands separately before any attempt at tempo: that is where tension builds up.
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.