Concerto Tier List
This is my current list of tiered concerto repertoire based on technicality (which explains why concerti like the Beethoven are lower than others). Please, feel free to go ahead and add any other recommendations or switch tiered categories!
Student Concerto:
-Accolay A Minor
-Bach D Minor, Double
-Bach A Minor
-De Beriot D Major
-Haydn C Major
-Kabalevsky C Major
-Rieding B Minor
-Seitz Student Concerti Series, 1-8
-Viotti #22 in A Minor
-Vivaldi A Minor
-Vivaldi Four Seasons (Spring, Summer)
First Tier Concerto Repertoire:
-Mozart G Major, D Major, and A Major
-Bach E Major
-Mendelssohn D Minor
-Rode #7
-Vivaldi Four Seasons (Autumn, Winter)
Second Tier Concerto Repertoire:
-Bruch G Minor
-Lalo Symphonie Espagnole
-Mendelssohn E Minor
-Barber Concerto
-Saint-Saëns B Minor
-Glass Concerto- 1st and 2nd Movements
Third Tier Concerto Repertoire:
-Wieniawski D Minor
-Tchaikovsky D Major
-Sibelius D Minor
-Prokofiev D Major, G Major
-Shostakovich A Minor, C# Minor
-Paganini D Major, B Minor, E Major, D Minor, A Minor, E Minor (haven't listened to these quite in-depth yet, so please do separate these into different sections)
-Glazunov A Minor
-Elgar B Minor
-Walton Concerto
-Beethoven D Major
-Glass Concerto- 3rd Movement
-Dvorak A Minor
-Vieuxtemps #3-#5
Fourth Tier Concerto Repertoire:
-Berg Concerto
-Brahms D Major
-Stravinsky Concerto
-Wieniawski F# Minor
-Bartok #1 and #2
-Britten D Minor
-Joachim #2
-Penderecki #1 and #2
“Yikes!” Tier:
-Ligeti Concerto
-Schoenberg Concerto
Replies (8)
The OP appears to be an enthusiastic high school student.
http://music.indiana.edu/precollege/year-round/strings/repertoire.shtml
Scroll to the bottom to see Ms. Delay's list. Oldie but a goodie.
I would include Haydn G Major in the "student" list but I think the Haydn C Major is probably around the same difficulty level as Bach E Major. Also there is one more Haydn and two more Mozart concertos. And I would put Vieuxtemps No. 4 in the next lower category. And please include the Spohr concertos in your next go-around.
It seems to me both Wieniawski concertos are overrated in terms of difficulty. D minor and F# minor belong to Second and Third Tiers, respectively. Also, which pieces are you playing (or have played)?
Bartok 1 is significantly easier than Bartok 2.
This list is just kind of a mess. :-)
I don't know that the Rieding B Minor is remotely harder than any of what's above it...
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April 4, 2017 at 02:13 PM · That is a very strange list. How many of those have you actually played? I'm guessing for sure you haven't played the Beethoven, if you are underestimating its difficulty by so much.