2013 Variations on O Canada
Variations are an interesting musical structure that can be written over many months and returned to after long gaps. These variations started as simple composition exercises and gradually transformed into a larger work as I added more variations. I also gradually realised while composing, that one of the biggest musical influences in my life, my grandfather Quentin, was an inspiration for the whole piece in general. It is dedicated to him, and is comprised of the theme and six variations.
2013 Wedding-Fantasy
This piece was written as a wedding present for my older brother. It's in three sections, a simple and extroverted opening, followed by a dotted-rhythm dance (perhaps Schumannesque) in the minor, and a lyrical nocturne-like third section. The piece is finished off with a restatement of the opening theme, but tranquillo this time.
2014 Ya Sibiryachka
The dedicatee on this piece is my grandmother, Galina Andreyeva Laks. The piece is based on the Russian folk-song Kamarinskaya and traces a journey over the land, from cold Siberia to the great orthodox churches.
2014 Sonata in E-flat minor
My youngest brother was to get married in the summer of 2014 and I wrote the first movement of this piece for him and his now wife as a wedding present, which I also played during the ceremony. It was my first attempt at sonata form, and the amazing depth of sonata-form structure had convinced me that the piece was not yet complete. As a result, I've been composing the second and third movements since then. You can hear an excerpt below, taken from a live concert I gave recently.
