Of Innocence Lost

Composed: 01/2026
Instruments: Violin + Piano
Duration: approx. 05:50

Of Innocence Lost was my first multi-instrument piece, and my first time writing for an instrument other than the piano. There were certainly some challenges along the way, primarily relating to the technical and physical limits of the violin. But, after over five months of composition, everything ended up coming together in the complete piece. And now, it’s finally done.

There’s a recurring theme of “innocence” that pops up throughout this piece, as you probably guessed from the title. In the beginning we’re teased with quick bouts of it–the entire first page is a long, lyrical line with soft, sweeping notes in the violin–but then we slowly begin to lose that innocence as it dissolves into dark chords and melancholy tones.

Yet the innocence comes back intermittently, breaking through the darkness in brief phrases and pieces. By the end of the piece, however, the melancholy has completely taken over, and the song ends in much the same way as it started–with short two- or three-note calls echoing in or out. This is Of Innocence Lost: a journey through an uncertain fog, punctuated by glimpses of sunshine and innocence, eventually ending in darkness and the same uncertainty that set it off to begin with.

Rondo in A Minor

Composed: 10/2025
Instruments: Piano four hands (duet)
Duration: approx. 03:00

I originally composed Rondo in A Minor so I could perform it with my grandma on an upcoming vacation. However, I soon realized that there was a whole lot more I could do with this piece after the initial performances, so I made some modifications and expanded the middle section of the piece. The complete version that you see on the right is one of the final versions, with the changes and additions I made in October 2025.

Rondo in A Minor happens to be the first piece I’ve composed for piano four hands. I ended up really taking advantage of the additional range offered by this setup, combining voices and layers that wouldn’t have been possible in a piano solo configuration. But I also ran into challenges, such as the two pianist’s hands running into each other and getting muddled in the same range. Only after several revisions and play-through sessions were we able to get to the version displayed on YouTube.

I actually went back through Rondo in A Minor recently and added some additional enhancements, such as a transposed opening section and some corrections to the note spellings throughout the piece. The updated version has not yet been performed and is only available in MIDI format. You can listen to that audio recording below, on SoundCloud.

(Tab currently in progress)

Pieces coming soon…

Waltz in A-Flat Major, Op. 69, No. 1

Date: Finished January 2026
Composer: Frederic Chopin
Duration: approx. 4:00

Although I learned this piece in 2025 for the IAPMT Grand International Autumn Competition that year, I ended up playing it at Carnegie Hall in New York in 2026 for the same organization, following a first-place win there. Thus far, it has been one of my most favorite pieces that I’ve played by Chopin. While not technically challenging in any way, I’ve found that it requires profound emotional sensitivity and expression in several parts.

Fantaisie-Impromptu in C-Sharp Minor, Op. 66

Date: November 2025
Composer: Frederic Chopin
Duration: approx. 5:00

This was one of the more technically-challenging pieces I played in 2025. One of Chopin’s most famous compositions, it features an agitated and energetic opening, and a beautiful slow section in D-flat Major. It was challenging to master the chromatic scales and runs scattered throughout the piece, but it was certainly a good learning experience and a technique-building piece.

Sonata in C Major, K. 309 – Allegro con spirito

Date: April 2025
Composer: W.A. Mozart
Duration: approx. 4:40

I learned this piece for the 2025 Texas A&M Yvonne Clements Piano Competition, choosing it over a Beethoven sonata of similar difficulty. Lively and bright throughout, it features many fast passages and tricky sixteenth notes that need to be treated carefully to avoid mistakes. But the piece also demands thorough articulations and voicing in several areas to add variation and interest.

Piano Concerto in D Major (Joseph Haydn)

Date: January-April 2025
Composer: Joseph Haydn
Duration: approx. 6:40

I started learning this piece in late 2024 and finished in early 2025, in order to perform it for a series of competitions. The video featured to the left is one of the last performances of this concerto in April 2025. This Haydn concerto was my first time collaborating with another pianist in a concerto format; I also took the opportunity to compose my own cadenza for the piece, which you can hear at the end of the video. Overall, I found this concerto to be an exciting and informative experience in musical collaboration.

Sonata in G major, Hob. XVI:27 – 3rd Movement

Date: November 2024
Composer: Joseph Haydn
Duration: approx. 2:40

I learned this piece, along with Scott Joplin’s The Entertainer (details below) for the 2024 MTNA Piano Competition. The third movement of this sonata is fast-paced (Presto) and contains a series of challenging, high-speed runs. In the video to the left, you can see this sonata and The Entertainer performed at the MTNA piano competition in November 2024.