Written for a festival setting, this piece utilizes rich, orchestral-style chord voicings throughout the keyboard. It is distinctive for its bold fanfare calls contrasted with more lyrical, flowing middle sections.
At Henle 5 this is a late-intermediate piece — technically substantial, with musical demands to match. The main demands: wide stretches that reward larger hands and clever redistribution; big chords that need weight without harshness; 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.
Focus on vertical alignment of chords to maintain the 'fanfare' resonance.
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.
Fanfarria para un festival Op.23 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 Fanfarria para un festival Op.23 lasts about 5 minutes.
Fanfarria para un festival Op.23 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 "Con grazia y salero" Op.17 by José Ramón Hernández Bellido, Amanecer de un Viernes Santo Op. 49 by José Ramón Hernández Bellido, El espectro rojo Op.48 by José Ramón Hernández Bellido — see the full similar-pieces list on this page.