The score indicates dotted quarter note = 46, presumably from the composer herself. This speed feels organic.  Encourage your student to work on creating tempo continuity, at slower speeds first if necessary.  Practicing with the metronome is advised, especially to gain confidence in quick hand shifts across the keyboard.

Overall impression

I find this an interesting choice for a contest list. The piece is quite minimalistic in texture and limited in technical demands, yet it has tremendous appeal for many young pianists. It is immediately accessible, atmospheric, and emotionally direct—qualities that may make it especially attractive to students who are less drawn to more traditional repertoire.

Tonal language and notation

Although the piece is notated without a key signature, its harmonic language is quite tonal. At times, however, the notation can feel somewhat counterintuitive—at least to a heavily trained eye.

Explore color and atmosphere

This piece is particularly well suited to exploring tone color, resonance, pedaling, and sound layering. Its repetitive patterns and slowly changing harmonies create an excellent opportunity to build an atmospheric sound world. Encourage students to experiment with subtle changes in touch, voicing, dynamics, and pedal rather than allowing repeated material to sound identical each time.

Think in larger rhythmic units

Counting the correct number of repetitions can become surprisingly challenging, especially for a student who tends to count note by note. Rather than relying exclusively on sixteenth-note counting, encourage the student to hear and organize the music in larger units or gestures. This can become a useful exercise in developing broader rhythmic awareness and listening for structure within repetitive material.

Double-note challenges

A few passages involving double notes introduce modest technical demands. These moments should be practiced carefully for evenness, balance, and freedom from tension. Because the surrounding texture is relatively accessible, these isolated difficulties can be addressed without overwhelming the student technically.

Accessibility and student appeal

This is certainly a far cry from something like Bach’s Italian Concerto in terms of compositional complexity, but that does not diminish its immediate appeal. I imagine many students will be genuinely delighted to play it, and that enthusiasm has real pedagogical value. For students who connect strongly with contemporary, cinematic, or minimalist sound worlds, this piece may be especially motivating.

A useful supplement rather than a complete diet

I would be inclined to assign this piece in addition to something else, rather than as a student’s sole major project. To borrow a nutritional analogy, this is a bit like cotton candy: delightful, immediately pleasing, and very easy to enjoy, but perhaps not the most substantial musical meal on the list. Paired with repertoire that offers greater contrapuntal, structural, or technical depth, however, it can be a very effective and enjoyable choice.