How hard is Waltz in A Minor, D. 924 No. 9 (Grazer Walzer) to play?

Its passages grade from level 9 on Real Sight Reader's ten-level reading scale, so the full piece is intermediate to advanced reading. The hardest stretch is bars 1–4 at level 9.

Is there an easy part of Waltz in A Minor, D. 924 No. 9 (Grazer Walzer) for beginners?

Its easiest passage is level 9, so it suits a reader past the beginner stage. Start with bars 1–4 for both hands together, the level-9 passage in the reader at the top of this page; it is level 9 because it leaps a minor seventh plus an octave.

What key and time signature is Waltz in A Minor, D. 924 No. 9 (Grazer Walzer) in?

The engraving on this page is in 3/4 time.

Who composed Waltz in A Minor, D. 924 No. 9 (Grazer Walzer)?

Franz Schubert, Austrian romantic (1797–1828). Schubert's Grazer Walzer, D.

Can I practice Waltz in A Minor, D. 924 No. 9 (Grazer Walzer) online for free?

Yes. The reader on this page plays any of the one graded passage from Waltz in A Minor, D. 924 No. 9 (Grazer Walzer) in your browser, with an on-screen keyboard or a MIDI keyboard, and marks every note as you play. No signup.

Where did Schubert write the Graz waltzes?

They are thought to date from September 1827, when Schubert visited Graz as a guest of Frau Pachler. IMSLP puts a question mark on the date.

Which waltz from the set is on this page?

The passage comes from the ninth waltz, marked Moderato, which begins in A minor.

How long does the whole set take?

About nine and a half minutes for all twelve, according to the PTNA piano encyclopedia.

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Waltz in A Minor, D. 924 No. 9 (Grazer Walzer)

Franz Schubert (1797–1828) · sheet music

Time 3/4
Levels 9
Passages 1

Your turn · both hands

Preparing your passage…

Franz Schubert, Austrian romantic (1797–1828). The reading release has 1 passage from this piece at level 9; the reader above opens on the easiest, bars 1–4 for both hands together.

Practice the hard bars →

The hardest stretch is bars 1–4 at level 9.

Your practice path

Learn it the way teachers do: each hand on its own, then together, then the hard bars. Each step is a real graded passage of Waltz in A Minor, D. 924 No. 9 (Grazer Walzer).

Hands together · bars 1–4 level 9

How to play Waltz in A Minor, D. 924 No. 9 (Grazer Walzer)

Tempo:A waltz should feel in one, with a steady swing. Pick a tempo at which you can feel one beat per measure without rushing.
Right hand:Shape the tune as a vocal line. Schubert's melodies often lean on a long note, so give the long note a little more time.
Left hand:The left hand plays the bass on beat one and the chords on beats two and three. Practice the jump from bass to chord with a relaxed wrist and keep the chord light.
Hands together:Check that the second and third beats are quieter than the first. Play the left-hand pattern alone, then bring in the right-hand tune.
Rhythm:Resist stretching the beat. A little rubato is welcome at the end of a phrase, but the pulse should keep going.
Dynamics:When the dynamic changes, make the change at the moment the harmony changes, so the two move together.
Pedal:Use the pedal on the first beat of each measure and release it for the chords, so the bass note sings but the harmony stays clear.
Practice:Take each waltz one at a time, learning the left-hand pattern first. Once you can read the chords by shape, add the melody and shape the phrases.

Common mistakes

Playing the second and third beats as loudly as the first. Fix: Practice the left-hand pattern alone and aim for a bass note that is the loudest of the three.
Keeping the pedal down through harmonic changes. Fix: Change the pedal with each new bass note.
Letting the right-hand thirds and sixths sound lumpy, with the lower note poking out. Fix: Play the top note alone to learn the tune, then add the lower note more softly beneath it.

Structure: dance set (twelve waltzes, each in two strains)

The set strings twelve short waltzes together, each with its own tune and key, so that the changes of key and register from dance to dance give the set its variety. The ninth waltz, shown here, has two eight-bar strains, each repeated.

A · First strain (No. 9) (A minor): Begins in A minor with the tune in parallel thirds and sixths, then brightens to close in A major.
B · Second strain (No. 9) (C major): Moves to C major, climbs into a high register with a crescendo, and ends on a wide C major octave.

About Waltz in A Minor, D. 924 No. 9 (Grazer Walzer)

Schubert's Grazer Walzer, D. 924, are twelve waltzes for solo piano published by Haslinger in 1828 as Op. 91. They probably date from September 1827, when Schubert and his friend Jenger spent about two weeks in Graz as guests of Frau Pachler, who had also known Beethoven; a letter Schubert sent her from Vienna afterward suggests the stay was a happy one.

The set is a string of miniatures rather than a planned suite. One commentary hears in its frequent changes of register and key a composer improvising while friends dance. The Grazer Galopp, D. 925, is thought to come from the same time.

The engraving on this page is the ninth waltz, marked Moderato: two short repeated strains over a plain bass-and-chords accompaniment, which makes it good practice in shaping a melody in thirds and sixths above a steady waltz bass.

IMSLP gives the year 1827 with a question mark; the link to the Graz holiday is a likely inference rather than a documented fact.
The Grazer Galopp, D. 925, is believed to date from the same period.
Schubert's host in Graz, Frau Pachler, was also acquainted with Beethoven.
The ninth waltz starts in A minor and ends its first strain in A major, then spends its second strain in C major.

Why the first passage is level 9

That passage is level 9 rather than 8 because it leaps a minor seventh plus an octave.

The passage on this page is in 3/4 with no sharps or flats. Expect a bass note and two chords in the left hand each bar, with the tune in thirds and sixths above.

Questions about Waltz in A Minor, D. 924 No. 9 (Grazer Walzer)

How hard is Waltz in A Minor, D. 924 No. 9 (Grazer Walzer) to play?: Its passages grade from level 9 on Real Sight Reader's ten-level reading scale, so the full piece is intermediate to advanced reading. The hardest stretch is bars 1–4 at level 9.
Is there an easy part of Waltz in A Minor, D. 924 No. 9 (Grazer Walzer) for beginners?: Its easiest passage is level 9, so it suits a reader past the beginner stage. Start with bars 1–4 for both hands together, the level-9 passage in the reader at the top of this page; it is level 9 because it leaps a minor seventh plus an octave.
What key and time signature is Waltz in A Minor, D. 924 No. 9 (Grazer Walzer) in?: The engraving on this page is in 3/4 time.
Who composed Waltz in A Minor, D. 924 No. 9 (Grazer Walzer)?: Franz Schubert, Austrian romantic (1797–1828). Schubert's Grazer Walzer, D.
Can I practice Waltz in A Minor, D. 924 No. 9 (Grazer Walzer) online for free?: Yes. The reader on this page plays any of the one graded passage from Waltz in A Minor, D. 924 No. 9 (Grazer Walzer) in your browser, with an on-screen keyboard or a MIDI keyboard, and marks every note as you play. No signup.
Where did Schubert write the Graz waltzes?: They are thought to date from September 1827, when Schubert visited Graz as a guest of Frau Pachler. IMSLP puts a question mark on the date.
Which waltz from the set is on this page?: The passage comes from the ninth waltz, marked Moderato, which begins in A minor.
How long does the whole set take?: About nine and a half minutes for all twelve, according to the PTNA piano encyclopedia.

Every passage, easiest first

The reading release grades one passage of this piece. Open any of them in the reader:

Level 9: bars 1–4 both hands

More pieces to sight-read

Score: public-domain engraving from the corpus (pdmx), graded by the piano-reading-v2-20261023-identity-audit reading release.

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