Alec Rowley’s 'Picardy' is a poignant arrangement based on the well-known French carol melody. It is characterized by gentle, atmospheric harmonies and a deep, reflective lyrical flow.
The student must focus on seamless, legato pedaling to maintain the hymn-like atmosphere throughout the piece.
Comparable difficulty and character — good candidates for what to learn next.
'Picardy' is rated Henle level 3 of 9 — late beginner repertoire, roughly ABRSM grades 4–5. In the RCM system it corresponds to about level 4.
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 'Picardy' lasts about 2 minutes.
'Picardy' 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 As in a Rose Jar by Charles Wakefield Cadman, Berceuse by Władysław Żeleński, Für Elise by Ludwig van Beethoven — see the full similar-pieces list on this page.