Composed by the 'Grand Dame' of Brazilian popular music, this piece captures the refined parlor atmosphere of late 19th-century Brazil. It stands out for its melodic sweetness and structured form.
Develop a singing tone in the right hand while keeping the accompaniment light and rhythmic.
Comparable difficulty and character — good candidates for what to learn next.
Bijou is rated Henle level 3 of 9 — late beginner repertoire, roughly ABRSM grades 4–5. In the RCM system it corresponds to about level 4.
You should be comfortable at Henle level 3 — meaning you can already play level 2–3 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 Bijou lasts about 3 minutes.
Bijou 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 Angelitude by Chiquinha Gonzaga, Alegre-se viúva by Chiquinha Gonzaga, Biónne by Chiquinha Gonzaga — see the full similar-pieces list on this page.