This modern ragtime piece incorporates percussive melodic ideas to depict a mechanical clock tower. Its musical style is characterized by syncopated rhythms and a driving, relentless pulse.
At Henle 4 this is an intermediate piece that expects secure technique and real attention to phrasing. The main demands: a left hand with real melodic or rhythmic responsibility of its own; Alberti-bass accompaniment kept quiet and even under the melody; and precise articulation — the difference between crisp and blurred is the piece.
Beyond that, expect fast passage work that stays light and even at tempo.
Maintaining the strict, mechanical timing of the ragtime stride is essential for the piece's effectiveness.
Comparable difficulty and character — good candidates for what to learn next.
A level or two down with the same spirit — ideal if this piece is still out of reach.
Where this piece's skills lead: slightly harder works making similar technical demands.
Lesser-known works by the same hand, at a comparable level.
Clock Tower Rag is rated Henle level 4 of 9 — intermediate repertoire, roughly ABRSM grades 5–6. In the RCM system it corresponds to about level 4.
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 Clock Tower Rag lasts about 3 minutes.
Clock Tower Rag 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 Cockroach Rag by Cameron Lee Simpson, 24th Street Rag by Cameron Lee Simpson, Cinema Rag by Cameron Lee Simpson — see the full similar-pieces list on this page.