Vanessa-Mae
Nationality: Singapore
Years active: 1995-present
Type: Violinist
Record Sales: 10 million
Record Label: Sony BMG
Biggest Markets: UK, China, Taiwan
Website Links: Official Website
Having released her debut classical crossover album as early as 1995, Vanessa-Mae is one of the pioneers of the genre. She called her style "violin techno-acoustic fusion"; not the most catchy term, but it is quite accurate of her early career. A lot of her albums are driven by dance beats as she plays the violin, but she abandons this on her most recent solo album release, Choreography, in 2004 (yes, it was that long ago). Vanessa-Mae is emulated by most if not all string players in classical crossover, so it is of no surprise that Bond, Wild and Escala all sound like her. There has been plenty of opportunity for new string players to settle into the genre as Vanessa-Mae has been quiet since 2005, occasionally dipping her toes into a concert or two and appearing as a judge on the UK's reality show Popstar to Operastar, but not showing any signs of making a new album. Her style is essentially accessible and although much of it has techno influences, she does strip back to basics every now and again, making her a good place to start for any potential string lover.
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Diana Yukawa