Composed: 2020 (incomplete)
Duration: ≈ 8.5 minutes (first movement)
Instrumentation: Solo Piano
The Fourth Piano Sonata, a five-movement work, was written during the COVID-19 pandemic in early 2020 while I was working as a medical resident. The music reflects systemic strain, isolation, and exhaustion during this time.
The first movement is built from weighty chordal writing. The material unfolds gradually, with tension sustained over long spans. Contrapuntal writing and harmonic motion shape the structure. The movement ends with a quiet lyrical passage followed by a plagal cadence. The music slows and thins at the close, withdrawing rather than resolving triumphantly.
RMM | Richard M. Martirosian 