This piece adapts a popular march theme of the time into an improvisational, showy format. It utilizes rapid, light-hearted ornamentation and technical flourishes.
At Henle 4 this is an intermediate piece that expects secure technique and real attention to phrasing. The main demands: fast passage work that stays light and even at tempo; precise articulation — the difference between crisp and blurred is the piece; and continuous sixteenth-note figuration that must ripple, not chatter.
Maintain clarity in the articulated passages to preserve the march-like character beneath the embellishments.
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.
Elegant impromptu on Pepita's march is rated Henle level 4 of 9 — intermediate repertoire, roughly ABRSM grades 5–6. In the RCM system it corresponds to about level 7.
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 Elegant impromptu on Pepita's march lasts about 4 minutes.
Elegant impromptu on Pepita's march 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 Elegant Impromptu by Theodore Oesten, Dinorah by Theodore Oesten, Der Kuss by Theodore Oesten — see the full similar-pieces list on this page.