1954-1972
“The Beginning - Greece”
In Kalamata, on the shores of the Mediterranean, Yanni was born in 1954 to Sotiri and Felitsa Chryssomallis. The second of three children, Yanni has an older brother and a younger sister. Sharing a deep-rooted love of music, the family spent much of their time playing and singing together.

Yanni's parents provided a typical Greek life for the young boy. He grew up fishing, swimming, and going to school like every other boy in his town, with one exception. Yanni was born to compose music. He began to play the piano at age six, but he refused formal piano lessons. As a child, Yanni heard music in his head and he simply wanted to hear it come out of the piano too, so he needed to learn how to play to make that happen. He felt a certain freedom with the keys that might have been crushed under the weight of structured learning.

Music was not Yanni's only talent. In 1969, at the age of 14, Yanni broke the Greek National swimming record for the men's 50-meter freestyle event. Although he could have pursued this skill, he chose to travel a different path; one which eventually led him to share his musical gift with the world.

His childhood in Greece and his love for his native country gave Yanni his inspiration to compose such songs as "Santorini," "Nostalgia," and "Acroyali."

1973-1976

“The Second Beginning - United States”
In 1972, with the encouragement of his parents, Yanni left his homeland to attend the University of Minnesota. Between his studies, he played in local rock and roll bands and began to develop his personal musical style using both piano and electronic keyboards to create new sounds.
Despite a new culture, a new climate, and a new language, Yanni graduated from the University of Minnesota in 1976 with a Bachelor of Arts degree in Psychology. After graduation, he decided to give music 100% of his effort for one year. He needed to better understand the driving artistic forces that had been such a large part of his childhood years. It was during this year that he chose to make music his vocation.

1984

“Rock and Roll - The Chameleon Days”
Yanni played keyboards for Chameleon, a rock and roll band that became well known in the Twin Cities of Minneapolis and St. Paul. Spurred by their success, Chameleon began to tour regionally - across Minnesota, Wisconsin, Chicago, Iowa, and the Dakotas. They also produced 2 albums independently during this time.

By now Yanni knew his future would be in music, and he used his experience with electronic keyboards to begin creating his own compositions. "Optimystique," his first solo album, was independently released in 1980.

1985-1990

“Yanni - On His Own”
Yanni single-mindedly continued to pursue his passion for creating music. He explored the worlds of electronic music, new sounds and instruments, and composition. This was a very productive and busy time for Yanni. He released 2 albums and worked on a third before moving to Hollywood, the film industry capital, where he recorded 4 film scores and released 3 more albums. He also re-released "Optimystique."

In 1990, the Dallas Symphony Orchestra accompanied Yanni in concert, adding a new dimension to his unique style and a prelude of things to come.


1993-1995

“Full Circle - Yanni Live at the Acropolis”
Yanni toured internationally for the first time, presenting his music live in some world famous venues such as the Toji Temple in Kyoto, Japan, Royal Albert Hall in London, and at the Acropolis in his homeland of Greece.

Yanni, Live at the Acropolis was filmed on September 23, 1993 at the 2000 year old Herod Atticus Theater in Athens and marked a triumphant return to his homeland. The concert was subsequently broadcast in the United States on PBS, where Yanni has since become one of the top all-time fundraisers, and around the world, where it was seen in 65 countries by half a billion viewers. The album has sold more than 7 million copies, while the video has sold 1 million copies, making it one of the best-selling videos of all time. Yanni has continued to provide a great deal of support for PBS and has also appeared on several PBS Pledge Specials such as A Decade of Excellence, which included segments from Yanni Live at the Acropolis, Yanni Live at Royal Albert Hall and Tribute videos.

1996-1998

“A Global Journey - Tribute World Tour”
Yanni pursued the biggest challenge of his career - to become the first western artist to perform at both the Taj Mahal in India and the Forbidden City in China. The special was seen by a collective television audience of some 250 million people. In conjunction with his performance Yanni donated the proceeds from the show to help preserve the Taj Mahal.

In tandem with the release of "Tribute," Yanni embarked on his record-breaking 9-month, 100+ city tour. Beginning in Mexico City, Yanni became the first foreign artist to sell out five consecutive shows at the Auditorio Nacionale. The momentum continued from there as Yanni moved on to play 10 consecutive sold out shows at Radio City Music Hall in New York; the first time this had happened since 1993. The "Tribute" tour was the top selling tour during the first half of 1998, and was ranked #2 for the entire year.

Yanni In Concert
His concerts are legendary. Yanni returns with a worldwide tour performing in over 60 concerts through the USA, Canada, Mexico, Argentina, Brazil, Chile, Puerto Rico and Panama over the past 10 months.

This is Yanni as you know him best, performing his instrumental hits from shows that have become famous around the world. Fans will witness Yanni and his world-class musicians as they take the stage to perform his greatest instrumental hits made famous in his shows from The Acropolis in Greece, The Taj Mahal in India, The Forbidden City in China and The Royal Albert Hall in England.

For the first time ever, the live show will also introduce music from Yanni's new album "Truth of Touch," which is the composers first album of original studio music in almost a decade.

Come hear the music that touches the world as Yanni performs another 140 concerts scheduled over the next year including Eastern Europe, Western Europe, South East Asia, South America, Central America and North America.