Yanni

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For other uses, see Yannis (disambiguation).
Yanni

Yanni (born Yiannis Hrysomallis (pronounced Chrysomallis), (Greek: Γιάννης Χρυσομάλλης, classical transcription Giannis Chrysomallis), on November 14, 1954 in Kalamata, Greece) is a self-taught pianist, keyboardist, and composer. After receiving a B.A. in psychology, he would instead seek a life in music though he had no formal training and could not read a note.

He earned Grammy nominations for his 1992 album, Dare to Dream, and the 1993 follow-up, In My Time. His breakthrough success came with the 1994 release of Yanni Live at the Acropolis, deemed to be the second best-selling music video of all time.[1] Yanni has since performed live in concert before in excess of two million people in more than 20 countries around the world. He has accumulated more than 35 platinum and gold albums globally, with sales totaling over 20 million copies.[1] Yanni is considered to be one of the top fundraisers of all time for public television. His compositions have been included in all Olympic Games television broadcasts since 1988, and his music has been used extensively in television and televised sporting events. His music is frequently described as "new age", though he prefers the term "contemporary instrumental".[2] The regents of the University of Minnesota conferred upon Yanni the honorary degree of Doctor of Humane Letters. He attended the University of Minnesota where he successfully obtained B.A. in psychology and an honorary Ph.D in music.

Biography

Early life

Yanni is a self-taught pianist who began his musical career by giving recitals for family members though he had no formal training and could not read a note. He was also a competitive swimmer in Greece and set a national record in the 50-meter freestyle competition. At the age of 18 he attended the University of Minnesota. While a student there, Yanni joined an up-and-coming local group called Chameleon where he met drummer Charlie Adams.[2] Chameleon earned some modest commercial success touring throughout the Midwest, particularly in the states of Minnesota, Iowa, Wisconsin, Illinois and South Dakota. After receiving a B.A. in psychology, he sought a life in music. He moved to California in pursuit of movie soundtrack work. In 1987 he put together a small band which included John Tesh and Charlie Adams, and began touring to promote his earliest instrumental albums, Keys to Imagination, Out of Silence, and Chameleon Days.

1990s

Dare to Dream was released in 1992. It was Yanni’s first Grammy-nominated album and featured "Aria", a song based on The Flower Duet and popularized by an award-winning British Airways commercial. A second Grammy-nominated album, In My Time, was released in 1993. His music has been used extensively in television and televised sporting events, including the Super Bowl, Wide World of Sports, U.S. Open, Tour de France, World Figure Skating Championships, The Olympics, and ABC News.[3]

Yanni's breakthrough commercial success came with the release of his album and video, Yanni Live at the Acropolis, filmed on September 23, 1993 at the 2,000-year-old Herod Atticus Theater in Athens, Greece,[4] and released in 1994. This was Yanni’s first live album and utilized a full orchestra under the supervision of the Iranian conductor, Shahrdad Rohani, in addition to his core band. Subsequently, the concert was broadcast in the US on PBS and quickly became one of their most popular programs ever, having been seen in 65 countries by half a billion people.[5] It has almost continuously remained on the charts since its release and is the second best-selling music video of all time, selling more than 7 million copies worldwide,[1] A composition from this album, "Acroyali/Standing in Motion", was determined to have the "Mozart Effect," by the Journal of the Royal Society of Medicine because it is similar to Mozart's K 448 in tempo, structure, melodic and harmonic consonance and predictability.[6][7] He has appeared on several major PBS Pledge TV Specials such as A Decade Of Excellence, including segments from Live at the Acropolis, Tribute, and Live at Royal Albert Hall, London.

In March 1997, Yanni became one of the few Western artists permitted to perform and record at the Taj Mahal in India. Later that year he performed at the Forbidden City in China. From these two events he created his next live album and video, Tribute, which was released in 1997. Armen Anassian, Conductor, concedes that he had some doubts about the artist's plans to perform at India's Taj Mahal and China's Forbidden City for Tribute: "To be honest, a few years ago when he was talking about it, the idea was so amazing. I myself was very skeptical, understandably so. But the truth is, it happened. We did it."[8] Anassian describes Yanni as "very optimistic" and has observed that "nothing really fazes him."[8] That outlook carries over naturally to his music. "I don't think it's a goal, per se. He's very honest with his own feelings. His music really comes from the heart. He writes music with ease, the music comes out with relative ease. The feel-good portion of the music is a by-product. It coincides with what the people love to hear."[8] Lighting Designers Lee Rose and David "Gurn" Kaniski received an Emmy nomination for "Outstanding Individual Achievement in Lighting Direction (Electronic) for a Drama Series, Variety Series, Miniseries or a Special" for both Live at the Acropolis and Tribute .

2000s

In 2000, after a two-year sabbatical, Yanni released his first studio album in seven years: If I Could Tell You.

Yanni also toured in 2003–2004 with the debut of the Ethnicity album extending his "One World, One People" philosophy. This album sparked what would become the 4th largest concert tour of the year ranked by Billboard Magazine.

On May 6, 2004, the regents of the University of Minnesota conferred upon Yanni the honorary degree of Doctor of Humane Letters.

He kicked off his 2004–2005 "Yanni Live!" tour at Mandalay Bay in Las Vegas, Nevada, and his next live album and video, Yanni Live! The Concert Event was released in 2006.

On March 6, 2006, Yanni was arrested after a fight with his girlfriend, Silvia Barthes. On March 31, 2006, the domestic abuse charges against Yanni were dropped.[9]

In 2008, in collaboration with producer Ric Wake, Yanni showcased vocal artists singing his songs on Yanni Voices.[10] On March 24, 2009, Disney Pearl Imprint released Yanni Voices, the artist's first studio album in six years, and its Buena Vista Concerts division produces the tour that began in April 2009.[11]

Autobiography

File:Yannibook.jpg

Yanni's autobiography, Yanni in Words, co-authored by David Rensin, was released in February 2003. It is a memoir which includes information about his early childhood in Greece, his college years in Minnesota, his success as an international music artist with his exploration into the creative process by which he composes, and his nine-year relationship with actress Linda Evans. The book coincided with the release of his 13th album Ethnicity and was a New York Times best seller.

Discography

Acroyali/Standing in Motion
This composition from the album Yanni Live at the Acropolis was determined to have the "Mozart Effect", by the Journal of the Royal Society of Medicine because it was similar to Mozart's K 448 in tempo, structure, melodic and harmonic consonance and predictability.[6][7]
Problems playing this file? See media help.
"Santorini"
from the album Yanni Live at the Acropolis
"Tribute"
from the album Tribute
"Nostalgia"
from the album Yanni Live at the Acropolis
Problems playing these files? See media help.

Studio albums

Live albums/videography

Soundtracks

Compilations

Other credits

Concert tours

References

  1. ^ a b c "Yanni Career Highlights" (PDF). yanni.com. Retrieved 2006-12-21.[non-primary source needed]
  2. ^ a b Yanni (2002). Yanni in Words. Miramax Books. ISBN 1-4013-5194-8. {{cite book}}: |access-date= requires |url= (help); Unknown parameter |coauthors= ignored (|author= suggested) (help)
  3. ^ "Charlie Adams Official bio". charlieadams.org. Retrieved 2007-08-17.
  4. ^ Yanni Live at the Acropolis (Media notes). Private Music. 1994. {{cite AV media notes}}: |format= requires |url= (help); Cite has empty unknown parameter: |publisherid= (help); Unknown parameter |bandname= ignored (help)
  5. ^ "Windham Hill". Retrieved 2007-01-01.
  6. ^ a b "The Mozart Effect". epilepsy.org. Retrieved 2007-08-07.
  7. ^ a b Yanni (2002). Yanni in Words. Miramax Books. p. 67. ISBN 1-4013-5194-8. {{cite book}}: |access-date= requires |url= (help); Unknown parameter |coauthors= ignored (|author= suggested) (help)
  8. ^ a b c "Interview with Armen Anassian from the [[Toledo Blade]]". serve.com. 1998-02-01. Retrieved 2007-11-14. {{cite web}}: URL–wikilink conflict (help)
  9. ^ "Domestic Abuse Charges Against Yanni Dropped".
  10. ^ "Yanni Voices (yanni.com)".
  11. ^ Cohen, Jonathan (2008-11-14). "Yanni Brings 'Voices' To Disney". Billboard (magazine). Retrieved 2008-11-16. {{cite news}}: Text "Billboard Magazine]] (billboard.com)" ignored (help)

External links

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