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General Question
If indeed it was a piece for the ABRSM graded exams. I seem to remember it being a grade 7 piece many years ago in the 1990s but I can't be sure.
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I'm familiar with RCM (Royal Conservatory of Music), but I imagine it's roughly equivalent to ABRSM. I'd say Cavatina's difficulty will depend in large part on the particular transcription since this is not an original guitar piece. Some trans go with Emajor, but I've seen it in Dmajor (with drop D). Generally speaking, I'd peg it at RCM Grade 8+, so you're either right on or close with the ABRSM Grade 7 recollection. In any case, once you get to these higher grades, the job of evaluation a "level" of difficulty is as much subjective evaluation as it is definable technical criteria. As well, this entirely leaves out it's "interpretative" difficulty. Which is to suggest that a person playing Cavatina for his Grade 7 exam is likely to miss, exaggerate or botch the delicate nuances of Cavatina's demanding phrasing and dynamics. This is concert material in the concert player's hands.
Thank you. That's very interesting. I was referring to the John Williams arrangement so key of e major. I've heard it described as a Swan - graceful and elegant on the surface with alot of hard work going on beneath the surface. So I can understand how important the nuances and phrasing are.