Burgmüller Op 100 - An Alternative Learning Pathway

Not all students are built for Piano Exams (such as the UK Boards that we follow here in India).

Some students just need more time to develop coordination and skills. Some need more pieces of similar Grade Level to deepen their abilities, and for some going above Grade 5 level itself is a challenge if they're doing only an exam based learning.

I find Friedrich Burgmüller's "25 Easy and Progressive Studies" (Op. 100) great resource to immerse students into for a good few years as they move from Late Elementary to Intermediate Level Playing.

This is a collection of 25 pieces for piano that are known for their pedagogical value. These Pieces are between the UK Grades 2-5 Level of Difficulty.

Here's a brief description of each piece from Op. 100, along with an approximation of the UK exam grade level and the skills developed through each piece:

1. Sincerity

- UK Exam Grade Level: Approximately Grade 2

- Skills Developed: 5-Finger melodies with Leaps and Cross Overs, Melody against Chords, Melody against Melody, Legato playing, and phrasing, Primary Chords with Secondary Dominants

2. Arabesque

- UK Exam Grade Level: Approximately Grade 2

- Skills Developed: Expressive phrasing, Quick Tempo Playing, Melody Shifts between Hands, Clean fingering to allow for speed and Phrasing, usage of registers, Melody is Legato while Accompaniment is Staccato

3. Pastoral

- UK Exam Grade Level: Approximately Grade 2-3

- Skills Developed: Playing in 6/8 time, balance between hands, and dynamics, 3 voices, usage of ornaments.

4. The Little Gathering

- UK Exam Grade Level: Approximately Grade 3

- Skills Developed: Melody in 3rds (legato and staccato), Melody in 6ths, balance between hands.

5. Innocence

- UK Exam Grade Level: Approximately Grade 3

- Skills Developed: Scales passages in Octaves, Legato and staccato contrast, hand independence, and dynamics.

6. Progress

- UK Exam Grade Level: Approximately Grade 3

- Skills Developed: Hands Together Scales passages that movie in both Similar and Contrasting Motion, Quick Tempo, Articulations Quickly alternate between Legato and Staccato, Up-Beat Accents and 2-Note Slurs starting on Upbeats.

7. The Limpid Stream

- UK Exam Grade Level: Approximately Grade 3-4

- Skills Developed: 4/4 Time with Triplets, Fluid hand movements, 3 Voices with Melody in the Middle Voice, Different arrangements of Triad Shapes, Clean and quick movement up and down the Keyboard.

8. The Graceful One

- UK Exam Grade Level: Approximately Grade 3

- Skills Developed: Demisemiquaver Turns in Each Hand, Even-ness and Control

9. The Chase

- UK Exam Grade Level: Approximately Grade 3

- Skills Developed: 2-Note Slurs in 3rds, Finger Substitutions on Repeated Staccato Notes, Managing Tempo with the Articulations

10. Tender Flower

- UK Exam Grade Level: Approximately Grade 3

- Skills Developed: Passages with 2-Note Slurs and 4-Note Slurs, Passages where the Melody is shared between hands, Small Counterpoint Phrases

11. The Young Shepherdess

- UK Exam Grade Level: Approximately Grade 3

- Skills Developed: 3-Note Slurs Hands Together that Leap and Shift, 2-Note Slurs in 3rds

12. Farewell

- UK Exam Grade Level: Approximately Grade 4

- Skills Developed: Melody against Quick Triplet Accompaniment that moves across the Registers (similar to 'The Limpid Stream'), also tests endurance due to the length

13. Consolation

- UK Exam Grade Level: Approximately Grade 4

- Skills Developed: Balancing 3 Voices where 2 Voices are in one hand and One Voice in the Other - this arrangement shifts between hands

14. Strian

- UK Exam Grade Level: Approximately Grade 4

- Skills Developed: Waltz Style, Melody has leaps that are larger than an Octave, Articulations change within the Phrase

15. Ballade

- UK Exam Grade Level: Approximately Grade 4

- Skills Developed: C-Minor Key, Quick Tempo, Intricate Melody in LH

16. Gentle Plaint

- UK Exam Grade Level: Approximately Grade 4

- Skills Developed: Rhythmic Patterns that shift between Hands, Quick Tempo

17. Chatter Box

- UK Exam Grade Level: Approximately Grade 4

- Skills Developed: Quick Playing in 3/8 Time with Melodic Shapes that Stretch and Cross Over

18. Discomfort

- UK Exam Grade Level: Approximately Grade 4

- Skills Developed: Every Phrase starts on a Semiquaver Rest, Managing Tempo of 132 with Even Playing

19. Ave Maria

- UK Exam Grade Level: Approximately Grade 4

- Skills Developed: Chordal Playing in A Major, 3 Voices with 2-Note Slurs in one of the Voices

20. Tarantella

- UK Exam Grade Level: Approximately Grade 4

- Skills Developed: Quick 6/8 in D minor that Modulates to 2/4 in D Major

21. Angel's Voices

- UK Exam Grade Level: Approximately Grade 4-5

- Skills Developed: Arpeggio Patterns that are Shared between Hands played at Quick Tempo with Changing Harmonies

22. Gondola Song

- UK Exam Grade Level: Approximately Grade 4-5

- Skills Developed: Maneuvering 6/8 Melody-Accompaniment in Ab Major Key

23. Returning Home

- UK Exam Grade Level: Approximately Grade 5

- Skills Developed: Chordal Playing in Eb Major Key at Quick Tempo

24. The Swallow

- UK Exam Grade Level: Approximately Grade 5

- Skills Developed: Similar to the piece Angel's Voices, with additional Melody Notes in each Hand

25. The Knight Errant

- UK Exam Grade Level: Approximately Grade 5

- Skills Developed: Long Piece with many sections of Different Technical challenges such as Chordal Leaps, Triplet Passages, Semiquaver Passages, Scale Runs, etc

CONCLUSION:

Working through all or some of these pieces offer an alternative pathway for students who are not taking the Exam Track, but still want to develop progressive Technical and Musical Skills.

These pieces by Burgmüller offer a progressive path for piano students to develop a wide range of technical and expressive skills, making them a valuable resource for pianists at various stages of their musical journey. The approximate UK exam grade levels mentioned are for reference and may vary depending on the specific grading system used by the exam board.