How hard is Impromptu in F Minor, D. 935 No. 1 (Op. 142 No. 1) to play?

Its passages grade from level 8 to level 10 on Real Sight Reader's ten-level reading scale, so the full piece is intermediate to advanced reading. The hardest stretch is bars 31–34 at level 10.

Is there an easy part of Impromptu in F Minor, D. 935 No. 1 (Op. 142 No. 1) for beginners?

Its easiest passage is level 8, so it suits a reader past the beginner stage. Start with bars 21–24 for both hands together, the level-8 passage in the reader at the top of this page; it is level 8 because it carries accidentals outside the key and its chords go beyond simple triads.

What key and time signature is Impromptu in F Minor, D. 935 No. 1 (Op. 142 No. 1) in?

Impromptu in F Minor, D. 935 No. 1 (Op. 142 No. 1) is in F minor, 4 flats. The engraving on this page is in 4/4 time.

Who composed Impromptu in F Minor, D. 935 No. 1 (Op. 142 No. 1)?

Franz Schubert, Austrian romantic (1797–1828). Schubert wrote the four Impromptus of D.

Can I practice Impromptu in F Minor, D. 935 No. 1 (Op. 142 No. 1) online for free?

Yes. The reader on this page plays any of the 7 graded passages from Impromptu in F Minor, D. 935 No. 1 (Op. 142 No. 1) in your browser, with an on-screen keyboard or a MIDI keyboard, and marks every note as you play. No signup.

Is Schubert's Impromptu in F minor part of a sonata?

Schumann suspected the four Impromptus of D. 935 were really a sonata, and some writers have agreed, but others, such as Charles Fisk, point to important differences from Schubert's real multi-movement works. The first Impromptu itself follows a sonata-like plan.

Why is it called Op. 142 if it was written in 1827?

Schubert's D. 935 Impromptus were not published until 1839, after his death, and were issued as the posthumous Op. 142.

How long is the Schubert F minor Impromptu?

A performance takes about ten minutes, according to the PTNA Piano Music Encyclopedia; the whole set of four lasts around 35 minutes.

← All pieces

Impromptu in F Minor, D. 935 No. 1 (Op. 142 No. 1)

Franz Schubert (1797–1828) · sheet music

Key F minor
Time 4/4
Levels 8–10
Passages 7

Your turn · both hands

Preparing your passage…

Franz Schubert, Austrian romantic (1797–1828). The reading release has 7 passages from this piece at levels 8–10; the reader above opens on the easiest, bars 21–24 for both hands together.

Practice the hard bars →

The hardest stretch is bars 31–34 at level 10.

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 Impromptu in F Minor, D. 935 No. 1 (Op. 142 No. 1).

Hands together · bars 21–24 level 8
The hardest bars · bars 31–34 level 10

How to play Impromptu in F Minor, D. 935 No. 1 (Op. 142 No. 1)

Tempo:Allegro moderato means moderately fast, so give the sixteenth-note figures room to sound clearly. Rushing turns the stately opening into a scramble.
Right hand:Sing the top line of the opening with weight and warmth, and make the sixteenth notes in the quiet sections even and fluid. They belong to the melody, so shape them in groups.
Left hand:The left hand has the bass and a rising and falling accompaniment. Keep the broken-chord figures steady and soft, and bring out the bass when it has a melodic line.
Hands together:Think of the opening as a conversation between treble and bass. Let one voice speak while the other supports, and avoid playing both at the same volume.
Pedal:Pedal to connect harmonies, but clear it at every change so the arpeggiated accompaniment does not turn to mush. Use a lighter touch in the quiet second section.
Dynamics:Shape the contrast between the majestic first theme and the misty second section. A real soft dynamic in the quiet music makes the return of the opening more powerful.
Reading:The key signature has four flats, and the page's passage includes chromatic notes. Name each accidental before you play it, and read ledger lines in groups by interval, not by note name.
Practice:Practice the sixteenth-note figures as block chords first, so you know the harmony, then play them as a broken pattern. Learn one section at a time and join them only when each is secure.

Common mistakes

Playing the opening too fast, turning the stately theme into a rush. Fix: Set the metronome at a tempo where the sixteenth notes sound relaxed and clear.
Letting the middle-register accompaniment grow louder than the melody. Fix: Practice the accompaniment alone very softly, then add the melody at a clear but gentle volume.
Smudging the harmonies with continuous pedal. Fix: Change the pedal on each harmony change and listen for clean breaks.
Missing chromatic notes in the quiet sections by reading by pattern and not by note. Fix: Mark the chromatic notes in your copy and play them slowly, naming each one.

Structure: freely adapted sonata form

The piece follows the plan of a sonata exposition, with a first theme in F minor and a second theme in the relative major, A-flat major. After a contrasting middle section, the opening returns with the second theme now in F major, and the piece ends in F minor with a short coda. Schubert softens the contrast between the themes, since the second theme is built on the earlier sixteenth-note motive.

A · First theme (F minor): A majestic statement in F minor, with a dialogue between treble and bass over an arpeggiated accompaniment in the middle register. What to read here is a firm, dignified line over steady arpeggios.
B · Quiet second section (F minor): A softer passage, still in F minor, built on misty sixteenth-note figures. Keep them even and quiet so the line beneath can be heard.
C · Second theme (A-flat major): After the music has already turned toward A-flat major, a calm new theme appears there, quietly growing out of the earlier sixteenth-note motive.
D · Middle section (A-flat minor, then A-flat major): A new theme begins in A-flat minor, and a pivot on an E major chord brings the music back to A-flat major.
E · Return and coda (F major, ending in F minor): The opening returns with the second theme in F major, then the middle section comes back in F minor. A brief coda recalls the opening motive and closes the piece.

About Impromptu in F Minor, D. 935 No. 1 (Op. 142 No. 1)

Schubert wrote the four Impromptus of D. 935 in 1827, the year before his death; the autograph is dated December 1827. He offered them to the publisher Schott in February 1828, but Schott turned them down that October as too difficult to sell, and they stayed in manuscript until Anton Diabelli published them in Vienna in 1839.

Schubert had numbered the set 5 to 8, so he may have meant it as a continuation of the Op. 90 Impromptus. The publisher added a dedication to Franz Liszt, and the set was issued as Op. posth. 142.

Reviewing the set in 1838, Robert Schumann praised the first, second and fourth pieces as one more beautiful memory of Schubert, and he suspected the four were really a sonata under another name. Scholars still debate that idea.

Schott rejected the set in 1828, judging it too difficult to sell in France.
Schubert originally numbered the D. 935 Impromptus 5 to 8, as if continuing the earlier D. 899 set.
Franz Liszt received the dedication from the publisher, not from Schubert.
Schumann believed Schubert may have called these pieces impromptus, rather than sonata movements, to make them easier to sell.

Why the first passage is level 8

That passage is level 8 rather than 7 because it carries accidentals outside the key, its chords go beyond simple triads.

The passages on this page have a key signature with four flats, many chromatic spellings and ledger lines above the staff. Read chords by shape and treat each chromatic note as a half step from its neighbor.

Questions about Impromptu in F Minor, D. 935 No. 1 (Op. 142 No. 1)

How hard is Impromptu in F Minor, D. 935 No. 1 (Op. 142 No. 1) to play?: Its passages grade from level 8 to level 10 on Real Sight Reader's ten-level reading scale, so the full piece is intermediate to advanced reading. The hardest stretch is bars 31–34 at level 10.
Is there an easy part of Impromptu in F Minor, D. 935 No. 1 (Op. 142 No. 1) for beginners?: Its easiest passage is level 8, so it suits a reader past the beginner stage. Start with bars 21–24 for both hands together, the level-8 passage in the reader at the top of this page; it is level 8 because it carries accidentals outside the key and its chords go beyond simple triads.
What key and time signature is Impromptu in F Minor, D. 935 No. 1 (Op. 142 No. 1) in?: Impromptu in F Minor, D. 935 No. 1 (Op. 142 No. 1) is in F minor, 4 flats. The engraving on this page is in 4/4 time.
Who composed Impromptu in F Minor, D. 935 No. 1 (Op. 142 No. 1)?: Franz Schubert, Austrian romantic (1797–1828). Schubert wrote the four Impromptus of D.
Can I practice Impromptu in F Minor, D. 935 No. 1 (Op. 142 No. 1) online for free?: Yes. The reader on this page plays any of the 7 graded passages from Impromptu in F Minor, D. 935 No. 1 (Op. 142 No. 1) in your browser, with an on-screen keyboard or a MIDI keyboard, and marks every note as you play. No signup.
Is Schubert's Impromptu in F minor part of a sonata?: Schumann suspected the four Impromptus of D. 935 were really a sonata, and some writers have agreed, but others, such as Charles Fisk, point to important differences from Schubert's real multi-movement works. The first Impromptu itself follows a sonata-like plan.
Why is it called Op. 142 if it was written in 1827?: Schubert's D. 935 Impromptus were not published until 1839, after his death, and were issued as the posthumous Op. 142.
How long is the Schubert F minor Impromptu?: A performance takes about ten minutes, according to the PTNA Piano Music Encyclopedia; the whole set of four lasts around 35 minutes.

Every passage, easiest first

The reading release grades 7 distinct passages of this piece. Open any of them in the reader:

Level 8: bars 21–24 both hands
Level 9: bars 13–16 both hands · bars 16–23 both hands · bars 17–20 both hands · bars 17–24 both hands · bars 41–44 both hands
Level 10: bars 31–34 both hands

More pieces to sight-read

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

Keep training on your phone Practice with your own pieces — free on the App Store