Laura Netzel was a significant female composer whose late Romantic works are deeply lyrical. This ballad explores expressive, song-like melodies set against a rich, complex accompaniment.
Focus on singing the melodic line through the intricate piano accompaniment.
Comparable difficulty and character — good candidates for what to learn next.
Ballad (Op.19) is rated Henle level 5 of 9 — late intermediate repertoire, roughly ABRSM grades 6–7. In the RCM system it corresponds to about level 7.
You should be comfortable at Henle level 5 — meaning you can already play level 4–5 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 Ballad (Op.19) lasts about 6 minutes.
Ballad (Op.19) is available as free public-domain sheet music on IMSLP — the score is linked directly from this page.
Pieces at a comparable difficulty and character include Berceuse by Laura Netzel, Berceuse by Laura Netzel, Ballad by Laura Netzel — see the full similar-pieces list on this page.