Chart-topping composer Max Richter has the BEST piece of advice for young composers

14 September 2017, 16:05

By Amy MacKenzie

Max Richter is known for his prolific and wide-ranging compositional output. If you're looking to follow in the composer's footsteps, he has one very important piece of advice for you...

Max Richter composes and records his own music, writes for stage, opera, ballet and both the big and small screen, produces and collaborates with other amazing artists in the classical world, as well as collaborating with performance, installation and media artists. 

Recently, five of Richter's albums appeared at the same time in the Classic FM Chart, plus his music is widely used in cinema, most recently in television drama Taboo featuring Tom Hardy. 

So it seems that the British-German composer knows what he's doing when it comes to creating a hit composition. 

We recently caught up with Max at the Gramophone Awards and he had some fantastic advice for any young composers starting in the Classical music industry today:

"The most important thing is not to be overwhelmed by the great big world out there. Really try to understand and cultivate the unique thing that you as an individual have. Everyone has things which no one else has got - we are unique creatures. I think that’s one of the wonderful things about creativity. For a young artist, concentrate on discovering the thing you’ve got that no one else has got."

If you're a composer looking for more top tips from industry experts, check out these gems of advice from Ennio Morricone, Grammy-winning composer Eric Whitacre, Classic FM's Composer in Residence Debbie Wiseman and our very own John Brunning