Burgmüller Op. 100 No. 2: L'arabesque: tempo and how to practice it

Burgmüller Op. 100 No. 2: L'arabesque is part of “25 Études faciles et progressives, Op. 100” by Friedrich Burgmüller (1806–1874). Main focus: fast sixteenth-note groups shared between the hands. In our transcription it is in A minor, in 2/4 time, and 33 bars long. Suggested tempos: start at ♩ = 76 to learn it, practice at ♩ = 120 and work up to the target of ♩ = 152. Difficulty 2/10 (beginner).

The pattern and its fingering

First bar of our transcription, note by note, with the fingering the app shows.

■ right hand (finger above) · ■ left hand (finger below)

What it trains

• Fast sixteenth-note groups shared between the hands.
• Contrast between slurred and detached notes.

How to practice it

1. Work on the sixteenth-note groups separately until they come out light and exact.
2. Picture the scene in the title before you play: the character decides the tempo and the touch.
3. Play the melody alone while singing it in your head; then add the accompaniment more softly.

Tempo ladder: ♩ = 76 → ♩ = 98 → ♩ = 120 → ♩ = 136 → ♩ = 152. Only move up a step once the take comes out clean; in the app, the progressive metronome does it for you.