Crocodile Tears L2 is a pedagogical character piece by Jones-Stubbs designed for early-intermediate students. It utilizes simple melodic lines to evoke a sense of feigned sorrow through minor-key leanings.
At Henle 2 this is a beginner-level piece, where steady coordination between the hands is the main hurdle. The main demands: precise articulation — the difference between crisp and blurred is the piece; a true singing tone, with the melody floating above the accompaniment; and a left hand with real melodic or rhythmic responsibility of its own.
Focus on maintaining a consistent pulse while managing the subtle dynamic shifts required for the 'weeping' effect.
Comparable difficulty and character — good candidates for what to learn next.
Where this piece's skills lead: slightly harder works making similar technical demands.
Crocodile Tears, L2 is rated Henle level 2 of 9 — beginner repertoire, roughly ABRSM grades 2–3. In the RCM system it corresponds to about level 2.
You should be comfortable at Henle level 2 — meaning you can already play level 1–2 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 Crocodile Tears, L2 lasts about 2.5 minutes.
Crocodile Tears, L2 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 Crocodile Tears Op.2 by Jones-Stubbs, 'Piano Suite' from 'A Folk Tale' by Jones-Stubbs, 'Who Knows?' by Ernest Roland Ball — see the full similar-pieces list on this page.