An Interview with Maksim Mrvica
Maksim Mrvica is coming to town.
It’s totally okay if you don’t know who this is — but trust me, tickets to see this dude will guarantee massive brownie points with your mum. He's a hunk of spunk pianist with tatts on every visible limb (and probably some not visible), cheekbones so sharp you could cut your palm right open if you went to stroke it, and eyelashes so long you could butterfly kiss all night — if you weren’t trying to uncover all those hidden tatts. Maksim is bringing his Il Divo-esque crossover performances to Australia for the first time in September.
What, you say? Well, let me give you a lesson in crossover music. These are classically trained musicians who, not satisfied with the traditional orchestral music scene for whatever reason, glam themselves up in various ways to get a larger and more mainstream audience. The violinist Vanessa Mae performed in full glamour mode in the early 2000’s, as did girl group-slash-string quartet Bond a few years ago. Closer to home, the Ten Tenors inspired all kinds of daydreams in the over 40 set with acapella choral works.
And now Maksim is doing it with the piano. His spoke to us about what he’s looking forward to about visiting Australia, his huge fan base in China, Korea and Malaysia and what you can expect from his live shows.
You imbue your playing with so much emotion. What are you thinking about while you play?
Maksim: I listen to the music that I produce on stage, in order to try to control and create the best performance. To be honest, sometimes I get so carried away in music on stage that I forget that I am even on stage.
Those tattoos on your forearms are incredibly striking, particularly given the focus on your hands while playing. What was the inspiration behind them?
Maksim: I have a lot of tattoos on my body. I have always liked tattoos. Mostly they are just of a decorative nature. Polynesian symbols mostly!
Your albums have reached number one spots, and your tours are incredibly popular throughout Hong Kong, Malaysia and Korea. What do you attribute your success to in these countries?
Maksim: My biggest success [was within] Asia generally, with China especially being my biggest market. As soon as I started to promote my music in these countries I immediately had success there. I guess people really accepted and liked my music.
Maksim: What are you most looking forward to about visiting Perth?
This is my first time coming to Australia and I am very much looking forward to it! I always enjoy visiting a country for the first time to meet my fans — especially when the country is so beautiful like yours!
This dude is not just his good looks and visually arresting live shows accompanied by dancers and light displays — he is actually supremely talented. His original compositions are nothing short of brilliant, and his takes on classics give new meaning.
So do your mum (and yourself!) a favour and get tickets to his show here.
