Background
Järvi is the younger son of Neeme Järvi, and the brother of conductor Paavo Järvi and flutist Maarika Järvi. He grew up in New York City.
Järvi is the younger son of Neeme Järvi, and the brother of conductor Paavo Järvi and flutist Maarika Järvi. He grew up in New York City.
Järvi studied piano with Nina Svetlanova at the Manhattan School of Music.
When Järvi was age 7, his family emigrated to the United States and settled in Rumson, New Jersey. He later went on to study conducting at the University of Michigan under Kenneth Kiesler. From 1998 to 2000, Järvi was Assistant Conductor to Esa-Pekka Salonen at the Los Angeles Philharmonic.
He and the composer Gene Pritsker co-founded the Absolute Ensemble, based in New York City, in 1993, with Järvi as its music director
Järvi was Chief Conductor and Music Director of the Norrlands Opera Symphony Orchestra of Umeå in Sweden from 2000 to 2004. From 2004 to 2009, Järvi was Chief Conductor and Music Director of the Tonkünstler Orchestra, Vienna.
In April 2011, Järvi was appointed the next chief conductor of the MDR Symphony Orchestra (MDR Sinfonieorchester) from the 2012-2013 season on, with an initial contract of 3 years. Järvi renewed his contract in 2015.
He has recorded Leonard Bernstein"s Mass with the Tonkünstler Orchestra and Absolute Ensemble.
While Järvi"s repertoire includes pieces from the Classic and Romantic periods, he is also a specialist for 20th-century composers and contemporary music, having commissioned works by Arvo Pärt, Heinz Karl Gruber, Erkki-Sven Tüür, Ezequiel Viñao, Peeter Vähi and Joe Zawinul, among others In 2014 Järvi and French record label Naïve Classique launched the "Kristjan Järvi Sound Project", an ongoing series featuring recordings from all of Järvi"s ensembles. Järvi"s philanthropic activities include founding the Estonian Orphanage Music Outreach foundation and the Absolute Academy in Bremen.