Claudio Macchi's Fantasia is a romantic-leaning modern work featuring expansive arpeggiated figures. It serves as a vehicle for expressive, dramatic rubato.
At Henle 5 this is a late-intermediate piece — technically substantial, with musical demands to match. The main demands: sweeping arpeggio figures that must stay smooth across positions; rubato that must breathe naturally without losing the pulse; and sharp dynamic and character contrasts held together in one arc.
The student must master the control of the wide-span arpeggios while maintaining an expressive pulse.
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.
Fantasia 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 Fantasia lasts about 5 minutes.
Fantasia 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, Capriccio flamenco by Claudio Macchi, El faro de la vittoria by Claudio Macchi — see the full similar-pieces list on this page.