Maksim Mrvica | |
|---|---|
| Born | (1975-05-03)3 May 1975 (age 50) |
| Origin | Šibenik, Croatia |
| Genres | Classical crossover,Classical |
| Occupation | Pianist |
| Instrument | Piano |
| Labels | Lisinski Studios /EMI Music |
Maksim Mrvica (pronounced[mâksimmr̩̂ʋitsa]; born 3 May 1975)[1] is a Croatianpianist. He playsclassical crossover music.[2]
Mrvica was born inŠibenik, Croatia. He took piano lessons at the age of nine.[2] Three years later he gave his first concert performance ofHaydn's Piano Concerto in C major. When the Croatian war of independence started in 1991, both Mrvica and his professor were determined that this would not disrupt his music studies. In spite of the war and surrounding turbulence, Mrvica entered in, and won, his first major competition inZagreb in 1993.[1]
Mrvica went on to study at theMusic Academy in Zagreb where he spent five years under ProfessorVladimir Krpan,[1] who himself was a pupil ofArturo Benedetti Michelangeli. He then spent a year at theFranz Liszt Academy of Music in Budapest[1][2] and during this year he won first prize at theNikolai Rubinstein International Piano Competition. In 2000, he moved to Paris to study withIgor Lazko and gained first prize in thePontoise Piano Competition in 2001.[citation needed]
Mrvica was spotted byTonči Huljić, who composed several tracks for the crossover string quartet,Bond, and introduced Mrvica to Britishimpresario Mel Bush.[1]EMI Classics was also interested in Mrvica and soon a new album was underway.[1] This album wasThe Piano Player, which gave a new spin to compositions byHandel andChopin. Since its release in 2003 it has been successful, in Asia, where it has achieved Gold status in Singapore, Malaysia, Indonesia and mainland China, Platinum in Taiwan and Croatia and Double Platinum in Hong Kong.[2] It was also in the number 1 slot in the HMV international pop chart in Hong Kong for twelve consecutive weeks.[citation needed]
Under Mel Bush's management, Mrvica's performances generally take place against a backdrop of special lighting, stage and video effects.[3]
Mrvica's piece "Exodus" was used as the floor music of Russian artistic gymnastAnna Pavlova in the2008 Beijing Olympics.
There is a Chinese lyrical version added to the non-lyrical song of Maksim Mrvica's "Claudine". This musical piece was sung and written by singerEdmond Leung from Hong Kong. According to Boxup.com, Edmond was so captivated by Maksim's performance of "Claudine" that he asked Maksim's permission to do a lyrical version in Cantonese. Soon after in 2004, their collaboration produced the bittersweet ballad called "信望愛" (sun3 mong6 ngoi3) ("Trust Hope Love").[4]
| Title | Album details | Peak chart positions | Sales | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| CRO (For.) [5] | JPN [6] | KOR [7] | UK [8] | |||
| Gestures |
| — | — | — | — | |
| The Piano Player |
| 39 | — | — | 76 |
|
| Variations Part I & II |
| 1 | — | — | — | |
| A New World |
| 3 | — | — | — | |
| Electrik |
| 22 | 50 | — | — | |
| Pure |
| — | — | — | — | |
| Pure II |
| — | — | — | — | |
| Greatest Maksim |
| — | — | 70 | — | |
| Appassionata |
| — | — | 23 | — |
|
| The Movies |
| — | — | 17 | — |
|
| Mezzo e Mezzo |
| — | — | 15 | — |
|
| Croatian Rhapsody |
| — | — | 22 | — |
|
| New Silk Road |
| — | — | 65 | — | |
| International | |
|---|---|
| National | |
| Artists | |
| People | |
| Other | |
