Yanni World Tour Comes To U.S

The beautiful instrumental melodies of internationally renowned composer Yanni have gained him over 40 platinum and gold albums throughout the world. Now he has set to cross even more borders than before with over 20 countries, including the U.S and Canada.

I got the chance to talk with Yanni not too long before he takes on the Philadelphia Mann Center in Philadelphia on August 23rd.

Thanks for talking with me, Yanni. Now, you have already started your U.S part of your tour. So tell us how the International side of the tour went.

Oh, it was amazing. It was miraculous. There's too many experiences for me to describe to you. We went to so many different countries and so many different cities in each country. We went everywhere from India to Sri Lanka and we ended up in London. All the cities that you saw represent the World Cup, we played in. We played in Argentina, Chile, and went to Poland and Czech Republic. Some cities included Moscow, St. Petersburg, and I could keep going with the list of the amazing places we visited. It's been an amazing time to travel.

So since you've performed all over the world, is there one venue that really stands out as a possible favorite performance?

There are many favorites and it's definite in the moment too. The Metropolis was my very first, big, successful song set. Then the Taj Mahal shows up, and then the Forbidden City. In the moment they become your favorite. There's no single moment in life where one really stands out.

That's awesome that you are able to say you performed at so many iconic places that you can not only look back and say you got to visit there but you can say you got to stand on that stage and performed in front of or in the venue.

Absolutely. You're right. I can tell you that the saying about how before you die your life passes before you eyes and for me some of these places will definitely be in that highlight reel. They're in my memory forever.

I can definitely imagine why. Now, you do have the Philadelphia Mann Center show coming up on August 23rd. So talk to us a little bit about what a Yanni show is like on this tour.

First of all, it's a lot of fun. It's very dynamic. It starts very strong, and I will take you through a journey of what you would consider life stuff. There are gentle moments that I will take you down with single moments of just a violin and then I can take you all the way up to a place that is intense and the music is louder and grungier than a rock and roll band. I did this because this is the way life is. We all have those ups and downs, and it keeps it interesting and my music keeps the audience interested. I don't want to lose them at all. So I've made sure this particular concert is the best I've ever done.

I love the dynamics that you just described because that is what draws people to music so much. It's not just something where they can entertain themselves and listen to, but it really is something where they attach themselves to the emotion whether it's the lyrics or even the instrumental music. There's so much emotion in music in general.

Thank you. That is amazing. My music is based on emotion. That's it. When I write songs, I begin with the emotion and that's all I do. I describe emotion using sound, melody, and rhythm. For me, it's unnecessary to use words. It's a lot of fun too because we just got done playing in China and ten other different cities and they all get it. They know exactly what you are talking about.

You're right. It's a language that transcends across the globe. You don't have to worry about any type of language barrier as you are performing your music.

Exactly. I didn't know that was going to be the case when we started, and when I started doing music as a kid. I didn't even know if anybody in America would understand what I was doing. Now it's 30 years later and I understand. I realized that when you are speaking about emotions that it's common all over the world. A Chinese grandfather feels the same thing towards his grandson as an American grandfather. The same goes for the Russians, the Brazilians, the British, and it continues around the world. I have been able to see this and I have felt it. It's not like I watch TV and read the newspapers and watch the news and see how they are biased one way or the other. I get to go to the country, and find out what it's really like. It's absolutely beautiful, clean, and a gorgeous country. We played in a Middle Eastern country and were one of the first ones we played. We were invited by the minister of culture who is a female and she is the only female minister in the Middle East. We went and had no idea what to expect. If you don't go to new places and experience them then you will never know. I came back from one country that people in America though was in Europe and it was actually in Africa. It's amazing and touches my heart. The way everyone responds to us and takes us in is amazing. They treat us with so much respect, and roll the red carpet out, and it gives me hope for the world.

Yanni, that's amazing that your fans are able to be so attached to your music that you're not only inspired by the music you write but by seeing your fans react to that music. That picture you describe is just beautiful. Thank you so much for coming on the program. For more information about this tour, you can head over to www.yanni.com. Thanks again Yanni.