Departure is a modern character piece defined by its introspective and emotionally resonant harmonic language. It employs contemporary spacing to create a sense of vast, atmospheric depth.
At Henle 5 this is a late-intermediate piece — technically substantial, with musical demands to match. The main demands: a true singing tone, with the melody floating above the accompaniment; rubato that must breathe naturally without losing the pulse; and chord voicing — bringing out one note inside a handful of others.
Ensure the voicing of the inner lines remains distinct beneath the overarching melodic arc.
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.
Departure (Op.345) 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 Departure (Op.345) lasts about 4 minutes.
Departure (Op.345) 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 Departure by George Hatzimichelakis, Departure for piano by George Hatzimichelakis, Departurem by George Hatzimichelakis — see the full similar-pieces list on this page.