Yanni

Yanni is the stage name of Yiannis Chrysomallis, a Greek new age keyboardist, pianist and composer from Kalamata, Greece, born in 1954. He is self-taught and begins playing without formal training, learning by ear rather than reading music. His work is usually grouped with new age and instrumental music, although he prefers the term “contemporary instrumental”.

Early life and first work

He moves to the United States as a teenager and studies at the University of Minnesota, where he also joins the Minneapolis-based rock group Chameleon. There he meets drummer Charlie Adams. After completing a degree in psychology, he turns to music full time and later relocates to California to pursue soundtrack work.

Yanni’s first solo album, Optimystique, is recorded in 1980 and receives wider release in 1984. Early albums including Keys to Imagination and Out of Silence establish the blend of electronic instrumental music, jazz and smooth pop that runs through his early catalogue.

Breakthrough and live releases

In 1987, he forms a small touring band that includes John Tesh and Charlie Adams. His profile rises sharply in the 1990s with Dare to Dream, his first Grammy-nominated album, which includes “Aria”, a piece based on The Flower Duet and linked to a British Airways commercial. In My Time, another Grammy-nominated album, follows in 1993.

His commercial breakthrough comes with Yanni Live at the Acropolis, filmed at the Herod Atticus Theater in Athens and issued in 1994 as his first live album. The performance uses a full orchestra conducted by Shahrdad Rohani alongside his core band. It is broadcast in many countries, becomes a major-selling music video, and includes “Acroyali/Standing in Motion”, a piece noted for its resemblance to Mozart’s K 448 in tempo, structure and harmonic features.

International performances and later projects

In 1997, Yanni becomes one of the few Western artists allowed to perform and record at the Taj Mahal in India, and later the same year he performs at the Forbidden City in China. These concerts lead to Tribute, released in 1997. Lighting designers Lee Rose and David “Gurn” Kaniski receive Emmy nominations connected with both Live at the Acropolis and Tribute.

After a two-year break, he releases If I Could Tell You in 2000, his first studio album in seven years. He tours in 2003 and 2004 with Ethnicity, presenting his “One World, One People” idea, and the tour is among the year’s largest by Billboard ranking. He follows with the Yanni Live! tour and Yanni Live! The Concert Event in 2006.

Recent releases

In 2008, working with producer Ric Wake, he presents Yanni Voices, which features vocalists performing his songs. A studio album with the same title follows, and Disney Pearl and Buena Vista Concerts are involved in its release and touring.

Use in media

Yanni’s music is used widely in television and sports broadcasts, including coverage of the Super Bowl, Wide World of Sports, the Tour de France, the World Figure Skating Championships, the Olympics and ABC News.