Johann Friedrich Kelz's 'Fantaisie facile' is an accessible, didactic work designed for students developing foundational technical skills. It lacks the virtuosic excess of contemporary concert fantasies, focusing instead on structural clarity.
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; Alberti-bass accompaniment kept quiet and even under the melody; and a true singing tone, with the melody floating above the accompaniment.
Beyond that, expect fine finger independence within the hand.
Maintain consistent articulation throughout the simple scalar passages.
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.
Fantaisie facile (Op.27) is rated Henle level 2 of 9 — beginner repertoire, roughly ABRSM grades 2–3. In the RCM system it corresponds to about level 3.
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 Fantaisie facile (Op.27) lasts about 3 minutes.
Fantaisie facile (Op.27) 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 Piano Sonata No. 16 in C major by Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart, Alegretto by Franz Schubert, Alla Turca by Anton Diabelli — see the full similar-pieces list on this page.