Here's the condensed version: A champion swimmer and self-taught pianist, he moved to the United States to become a psychologist, but decided to pursue music instead after obtaining a degree. The book coincides with a new studio CD, Ethnicity, and his first tour in five years. Yanni addresses his self-imposed retirement in a new autobiography, Yanni in Words (Miramax Books), in which he recounts his meteoric rise and the accompanying pressure that nearly killed him.
I went through a very painful period where I decided it was time to take time out for myself and be kind to Yanni.' 'The last tour we did in '98 was so long, it pretty much made me cross the line,' the Greek composer said recently from his home on Florida's east coast.
