Armenian-American composer John Sarkissian was born to Armenian emigrants from Russia. Since very early childhood Sarkissian displayed a lot of interest towards the arts, in particular drawing, poetry and music. His parents, never considering an artistic future for their son, only encouraged his interest in drawing and painting, with the hope that it would lead to a career in architecture.

By the time he was 13, Sarkissian realized his true potential and practically forced his parents to provide him with music lessons. Initially, he studied piano, theory and harmony with private instructors. After high school Sarkissian spend some years in Italy furthering his studies in music. Later in the United States, John Sarkissian continued studying piano with Sheldon Steinberg, and at UCLA with the legendary pianist Johana Harris, widow of the American composer Roy Harris. At UCLA, he studied composition with Paul Reale, Ian Kraus and Russel Steinberg. At Boston's New England Conservatory he worked mainly with John Heiss, and after graduation, privately for some time with John Corigliano.

Sarkissian's music shows the influences of his varied background. His predilection for polytonality and strong, albeit irregular rhythms give his music its particular Eastern-European flavor.

John Sarkissian's music has been perfomed in the United States, Europe and the Middle East by such artists as Esther Budiardjo, Doriot Anthony Dwyer, Luis Leguia, Emanuel Feldman, Penelope Bitzas, Noune Karapetian, and Yeghishe Manucharian. His Piano Concerto no.1 was recently premiered by the pianist Armen Babakhanian and the National Chamber Orchestra of Armenia. Upcoming performances of this piece and other vocal and solo piano compositions are scheduled for next July in Iceland.

"Why? You are just not afraid to write down notes!" was John Heiss' response during a lesson to Sarkissian's question whether his music was too dense. His music does not allow for a passive performance. Under its rather regular looking surface, the music contains constant subtle surprises that keep the performers awake. His music often requires a solid technique from the performer, but it is always very idiomatically written for the instrument. Especially pianists and vocalists find Sarkissian's music quite satisfying to perform.