This is a lesser-known Romantic character piece composed by Gløersen, characterized by simple, song-like melodies. It stands out for its Northern European introspective quality and modest technical demands.
The primary challenge is shaping the melodic phrases with subtle rubato.
Comparable difficulty and character — good candidates for what to learn next.
Ballade is rated Henle level 4 of 9 — intermediate repertoire, roughly ABRSM grades 5–6. In the RCM system it corresponds to about level 6.
You should be comfortable at Henle level 4 — meaning you can already play level 3–4 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 Ballade lasts about 4 minutes.
Ballade 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 'O sole mio by Eduardo Di Capua, Belle of the Ball by Leroy Anderson, Broadway Melody by Nacio Herb Brown — see the full similar-pieces list on this page.