How hard is Écossaise in G Major, D. 145 to play?

Its passages grade from level 8 to 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 3–10 at level 9.

Is there an easy part of Écossaise in G Major, D. 145 for beginners?

Its easiest passage is level 8, so it suits a reader past the beginner stage. Start with bars 5–8 for both hands together, the level-8 passage in the reader at the top of this page; it is level 8 because a hand plays full chords and its chords go beyond simple triads.

What key and time signature is Écossaise in G Major, D. 145 in?

The engraving on this page is in 2/4 time.

Who composed Écossaise in G Major, D. 145?

Franz Schubert, Austrian romantic (1797–1828). D.

Can I practice Écossaise in G Major, D. 145 online for free?

Yes. The reader on this page plays any of the 2 graded passages from Écossaise in G Major, D. 145 in your browser, with an on-screen keyboard or a MIDI keyboard, and marks every note as you play. No signup.

What is an écossaise?

It is a lively dance in 2/4 whose name is French for Scottish, though the dance itself came from France. Schubert's écossaises are very short, often eight or sixteen bars, which makes them good reading practice.

How long does it take to learn a Schubert dance from this set?

Most are only a page or less, so a learner can often read one through in a first sitting. Polishing the leaps and the repeats takes a few more days.

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Écossaise in G Major, D. 145

Franz Schubert (1797–1828) · sheet music

Time 2/4
Levels 8–9
Passages 2

Your turn · both hands

Preparing your passage…

Franz Schubert, Austrian romantic (1797–1828). The reading release has 2 passages from this piece at levels 8–9; the reader above opens on the easiest, bars 5–8 for both hands together.

Practice the hard bars →

The hardest stretch is bars 3–10 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 Écossaise in G Major, D. 145.

Hands together · bars 5–8 level 8
The hardest bars · bars 3–10 level 9

How to play Écossaise in G Major, D. 145

Tempo:Play each dance at a steady dancing pace, not a recital showpiece pace. The ecossaises can be lively, but the beat should stay even so a dancer could follow it.
Right hand:The melodies are built from short, symmetrical phrases. Shape each phrase with a small lift at the end so two-measure and four-measure groupings are audible.
Left hand:The left hand supplies the dance bass and chords. Keep it lighter than the melody and let the bass note on the first beat land clearly without thumping.
Hands together:Where the left hand jumps between a low bass note and a chord, practice the jump alone with eyes on the music, then add the right-hand tune on top.
Rhythm:In the two-beat écossaises, count in two and feel each measure as one swing. In the three-beat dances, give the first beat a slight weight and keep the other two lighter.
Dynamics:Schubert often repeats a phrase; play the repeat softer or with a different color rather than a copy, as the music invites.
Practice:Each dance is only a few phrases long, so loop one until it is easy, then move on to the next one in a different key to build reading speed across key signatures.
Reading:Scan the key signature and look for added sharps or flats before you start; even the shortest of these dances can slip briefly into a new key.

Common mistakes

Rushing the running eighth notes of the écossaise because the dance feels quick. Fix: Set a pulse you can hold through the fastest run and keep both beats of every bar even.
Playing the repeated sections exactly the same each time. Fix: Vary the dynamic or the touch on the repeat so the phrase sounds new.
Letting the left-hand chords sound as loud as the tune. Fix: Practice the chords alone at a quiet level, then add the melody above them.

Structure: dance collection in three groups (waltzes, Ländler, écossaises)

The printed set groups its dances by type: waltzes first, then Ländler, then écossaises. Each dance is short and built from repeated strains, so the set reads like a book of miniatures. The waltzes begin and end in E major, and the Ländler start mostly in flat keys before turning to sharp keys.

Part 1 · Waltzes (E major (first and last waltz)): Twelve dances in triple meter. The first few are forthright and close to German dances; from the fifth on they turn smoother and more legato, with a brief turn toward E-flat minor along the way.
Part 2 · Ländler: Seventeen pastoral dances at a moderate pace, with high, bright figures and, in places, yodel-like turns.
Part 3 · Écossaises: Nine quick, playful dances, usually eight or sixteen bars long, with the occasional surprising modulation. This page's passages come from the fourth of them.

About Écossaise in G Major, D. 145

D. 145 gathers dances Schubert wrote over about six years: 12 waltzes, 17 Ländler and 9 écossaises. Most of the waltzes date from 1821 and most of the écossaises from 1815 to 1820, while the Ländler are hard to date.

Cappi and Diabelli published the set in Vienna in February 1823 as Op. 18, split into two volumes. In a letter that month Schubert protested the split, which suggests he meant the dances to be heard as one sequence.

Brahms later owned many of Schubert's manuscripts of the Ländler and thought highly of them. For a reader, the écossaises are the shortest of the lot, often just two repeated strains.

A version of the first écossaise in D. 145 also opens Schubert's separate set of écossaises, D. 299.
Schubert wrote to his publisher on February 23, 1823 to object to the dances being split across two volumes.
The ninth waltz began life as the trio of an earlier German dance, D. 135.
The eighth écossaise was originally written in G-sharp minor.

Why the first passage is level 8

That passage is level 8 rather than 7 because a hand plays full chords, its chords go beyond simple triads.

The passages here come from Écossaise No. 4, in 2/4 with one sharp. Expect running eighth notes in the right hand over chords on each beat in the left.

Questions about Écossaise in G Major, D. 145

How hard is Écossaise in G Major, D. 145 to play?: Its passages grade from level 8 to 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 3–10 at level 9.
Is there an easy part of Écossaise in G Major, D. 145 for beginners?: Its easiest passage is level 8, so it suits a reader past the beginner stage. Start with bars 5–8 for both hands together, the level-8 passage in the reader at the top of this page; it is level 8 because a hand plays full chords and its chords go beyond simple triads.
What key and time signature is Écossaise in G Major, D. 145 in?: The engraving on this page is in 2/4 time.
Who composed Écossaise in G Major, D. 145?: Franz Schubert, Austrian romantic (1797–1828). D.
Can I practice Écossaise in G Major, D. 145 online for free?: Yes. The reader on this page plays any of the 2 graded passages from Écossaise in G Major, D. 145 in your browser, with an on-screen keyboard or a MIDI keyboard, and marks every note as you play. No signup.
What is an écossaise?: It is a lively dance in 2/4 whose name is French for Scottish, though the dance itself came from France. Schubert's écossaises are very short, often eight or sixteen bars, which makes them good reading practice.
How long does it take to learn a Schubert dance from this set?: Most are only a page or less, so a learner can often read one through in a first sitting. Polishing the leaps and the repeats takes a few more days.

Every passage, easiest first

The reading release grades 2 distinct passages of this piece. Open any of them in the reader:

Level 8: bars 5–8 both hands
Level 9: bars 3–10 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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