You might not know Max Richter's name, but you've probably heard his music.
He's one of the most streamed classical artists of all time, more popular than historical titans like Bach and Beethoven. On Spotify, he's currently ahead of pop icon Cher.
Richter's music has appeared in screen in hits like Bridgerton, Arrival and The Last Of Us.
He literally wrote an album to sleep to, and his music has backed countless videos on social media platforms.
Richter's first world tour has sold out in most concert halls across Australia, with some, like Brisbane, adding extra shows to meet the demand.
What is it about Max Richter's music that appeals to so many different audiences?
What kind of music does Max Richter write?
Richter's music is typically atmospheric and contemplative, blending styles including contemporary classical, post-minimalism and electronica.
"He focuses on crafting complex ideas, but delivering it in the most simple way," says Megan Burslem, ABC Classic's Breakfast presenter.
But Burslem says this doesn't mean Richter's music is simple.
"He's such an expert in presenting an emotion or a feeling."
Part of what makes Richter's music so unique is his ability to acknowledge the history of classical music traditions while engaging with how most of us experience music today, whether that's through screens, devices, streaming platforms, social media or in a concert hall.
Richter combines acoustic instruments like the piano, cello or violin with synthesisers and other electronics.
He often employs elements beyond the music in his albums, such as visual imagery, or the voices of prominent women throughout history.
Why does Max Richter's music resonate with audiences?
On Spotify, Richter has 4.1 million monthly listeners. His top song, Spring I, which will be familiar to Bridgerton fans, has racked up over 135 million streams on that streaming platform alone.
This makes him one of the most-streamed classical artists of all time, with a huge audience.
Burslem says that part of Richter's success is down to the fact he writes music about our lives today, for today's audiences.
"All of what Max Richter writes is informed by issues that affect us," Burslem says.
Richter has written music which touches on conflicts, wellbeing, politics, the environment and more.
The Blue Notebooks, released in 2004, is a protest album about the Iraq War, as well as a meditation on Richter's troubled childhood.
His "Recomposed" album, inspired by Antonio Vivaldi's famous work, The Four Seasons, is still being regularly performed by orchestras today.
Richter's most-streamed album is Sleep, an eight-hour lullaby, which he called "a manifesto for a slower pace of existence."
He's performed Sleep live to snoozing concert-goers all over the world.
What do you get from listening to Max Richter's music?
Burslem says part of the music's popularity is that we can listen to it in so many ways.
People can listen to Richter's music in the background while they're sleeping, working, or in situations that don't command their full attention.
But she says Richter's music is also incredibly complex, pulling you right in when you're ready to really listen and immerse yourself.
"It's almost like he moves you from one side of the room to the other," Burslem says. "Sometimes he does it through subtle chord changes, other times through a melody that is stretched out in a beautiful way that keeps you hanging on."
Why is Max Richter's music featured in so many different art forms?
Many of Richter's albums are conceived as collaborations, especially with his life partner Yulia Mahr, a visual artist and filmmaker. So there's a multi-media aspect to his music right from the start.
Richter has scored dedicated soundtracks to screen projects such as Waltz with Bashir, Mary Queen of Scots and the TV series Invasion.
But much of Richter's existing music also finds its way into other artist's consciousness.
Richter's music has been used in numerous films, TV series, documentaries, art projects and social media videos.
On The Nature Of Daylight, especially, is featured in numerous screen adaptations. It is played during one of the critical scenes in the first season of The Last Of Us. You can also hear it book-ending Denis Villeneuve's science fiction film Arrival.
Actress Elisabeth Moss chose On The Nature Of Daylight when she directed one of the episodes of the Handmaid's Tale, sparking a collaboration with Richter. Moss became the face of Richter's music video for the piece.
Adelaide-based photographer Trent Parke also found a way to collaborate with Richter after interacting with one of his soundtracks, Never Goodbye. Richter originally scored the music for Hostiles, a 2017 American Western drama.
"When I heard the soundtrack, I knew it was exactly what I had been looking for," Parke says.
Parke was working on an exhibition of his work called Monument when he first heard the track.
Compiling the exhibition was a huge task involving reviewing 28 years of his own work, a collection of more than 3,500 photos.
Parke used Never Goodbye to condense his photograph selections into a book, literally synchronising them to the notes of the music.
"The flow of the music reflected the flow of the sequence of photographs in the book," Parke says.
But for Parke, there's more to the soundtrack than just background music.
"Photographs are so silent," Parke says. "You experience the story purely in a visual form. But music brings in another dimension which can enrich the emotional journey."
Parke's publisher obtained permission from Richter to use Never Goodbye as part of his exhibition. In exchange, Parke gave Richter and Mahr photos from his time as artist in residence at Sydney Opera House, one of Richter's favourite venues.
"We met through our arts," Parke reflects. "I listened to Max's music, he and Yulia looked at my book, and I was able to bring the Opera House to them."
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