Piano

Piano Works

Sonatas

I began writing my first, four movement Piano Sonata No.1, in 1986 as a student at the Birmingham School of Music (now Royal Birmingham Conservatoire). It was this Sonata that John Ogdon was later to perform, and that led to my dedicating my first piano concerto to him -
Piano Concerto No. 1 'in memoriam John Ogdon'.

My second, four movement Sonata No.2 (Spirits of Our Age II), was inspired by the painting 'Christ Carrying the Cross' - by Hieronimus Bosch. Various characters within the painting are musically described in the piece. The sonata introduces the percussive effect of striking the piano beneath the keyboard with the sustain pedal held to create a 'sonic boom'.

Sonata No.3 is in four movements and is based on the play between major/minor tonalities.

Sonata No.4 at eleven minutes long, is the shortest of the sonatas to date. It is in one through-composed movement and nods the head to Liszt, Prokofiev and Ravel.

Sonata No.5 is in three movements and has 'jazzy' elements in the first, even though jazz is not a particular interest of mine (see - Now That's What I Call Jazz!). It also makes use of arpeggiated chords.

Sonata No.6 begins in a martial fashion with cluster chords played using both forearms. The second and third movements are somewhat shorter.

Sonata No.7 is a much lighter work than that makes use of repeated ostinati. In three movements.

Sonata No.8 (Enceladus) in three movements, is so subtitled as there are many internal stresses and strains just like Saturn's moon after which it is named.

Sonata No.9 is in four movements and begins with a very strong first subject based on the interval of the tritone. The sonata ends with variations on the hymn known as Old Hundredth.