Born in Šibenik, a coastal city in Croatia, Maksim Mrvica first began playing piano at nine years old and performed in concert for the first time three years later. In 1991, war broke out in Croatia when Maksim was just a teenager. However, he was adamant to not let his tumultuous surroundings get in the way of his dreams of pursuing a career in music. Still enveloped in the chaos of war, Maksim won his first major piano competition in Zagreb in 1993.
Image supplied by Harmonie International
Maksim went on to study at the Music Academy in Zagreb and the Franz Liszt Academy of Music in Budapest, and later moved to Paris to study with Igor Lazko. During his time as a student, he won first prize in the Nikolai Rubinstein International Piano Competition and the Pontoise Piano Competition.
Today, Maksim is one of the world’s most popular ‘crossover’ pianists, having sold over four million copies of his albums across 57 countries. ‘Classical crossover’ refers to classical music that has become popularised or pop music that is performed in a classical manner or by classical musicians.
Taipei, 2016 | Image supplied by Harmonie International
While trained as a classical pianist, and still a classical musician at heart, Maksim is famous for experimenting with the fusion of classical and pop music, sometimes adding electronica beats and sounds to famous classical works. Maksim believes that this sort of experimentation is integral to the survival of classical music in the future.
“When I was a student at college, I was like a classical puritan. If someone told me back then ‘you’re going to do crossover’, I would say ‘you’re crazy, there’s no way’... I was very into classical music. And then I said ‘we need to find a way to introduce younger audiences to classical music because otherwise, one day, there won’t be anyone to continue classical music’.”
– Maksim Mrvica (DW Classical Music)
To the delight of his fans, Maksim will make his long-awaited return to Australia and New Zealand this September for his 2022 Oceania Tour! He will perform at Perth Concert Hall on Wednesday 7 September, 7:30pm. Find tickets and more information.
