BWV 267 is a majestic organ chorale prelude by J.S. Bach, setting the hymn "An Wasserflüssen Babylon." It is characterized by its rich contrapuntal texture and profound emotional depth, making it a cornerstone of the Baroque organ repertoire.
Achieving a seamless blend of contrapuntal lines while maintaining rhythmic drive is the primary technical challenge.
An Wasserflüssen Babylon (BWV 267) is rated Henle level 6 of 9 — advanced repertoire, roughly ABRSM grades 7–8. In the RCM system it corresponds to about level 9.
You should be comfortable at Henle level 6 — meaning you can already play level 5–6 pieces cleanly. Learning it one level early is possible as a stretch piece, but more than that usually leads to months of frustration.
A typical performance of An Wasserflüssen Babylon (BWV 267) lasts about 5 minutes.
An Wasserflüssen Babylon (BWV 267) is available as free public-domain sheet music on IMSLP — the score is linked directly from this page.