A modern, minimalist-leaning work by Claudio Macchi depicting the rapid change of traffic signals. The piece uses staccato patterns to evoke a sense of urgency and precision.
At Henle 3 this is a late-beginner piece — comfortable hands-together playing is assumed, and musical shaping starts to matter. The main demands: precise articulation — the difference between crisp and blurred is the piece; fine finger independence within the hand; and fast passage work that stays light and even at tempo.
Accuracy of rhythm and sharp, clean articulation are essential for the piece's success.
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.
El semaforo is rated Henle level 3 of 9 — late beginner repertoire, roughly ABRSM grades 4–5. In the RCM system it corresponds to about level 3.
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 El semaforo lasts about 2 minutes.
El semaforo 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 El torrente de la Rosandra by Claudio Macchi, Deseo by Claudio Macchi, Cancíon de cuna by Claudio Macchi — see the full similar-pieces list on this page.