AT A GLANCE

45M+ VIEWS · FEATURED IN THE SUPER MARIO BROS. MOVIE · PERFORMED IN 17 COUNTRIES · TWO BILLBOARD TOP 10 ALBUMS · 100K+ LIVE AUDIENCE

BIOGRAPHY

The first pianist to gain international recognition for playing video game music on the piano (Cleveland.com), Martin Leung is a pioneering concert artist who established video game music as serious concert repertoire during the pre-YouTube, Web 1.0 era. His 2004 solo piano Super Mario Medley, performed blindfolded, became a defining viral moment of the early internet, drawing an estimated 45 million views and fundamentally reshaping how audiences perceive interactive media scores.

As a featured soloist with the international touring series Video Games Live from 2005 to 2012, Leung performed for an estimated 100,000 people across 17 countries, on stages including the Hollywood Bowl, the Kennedy Center, Royal Festival Hall, and Tokyo International Forum. He is also a DMA-credentialed concert pianist whose classical career includes first-prize competition wins and a performance of Liszt's Piano Concerto No. 1 at the historic Leipzig Gewandhaus.

His 2004 medley is widely noted as the basis for the Kamek and Bowser piano duet scene in The Super Mario Bros. Movie (2023)—a parallel documented by third-party analysts and audible in side-by-side comparison. Leung continues to perform, record, and advocate for video game music as a bridge between popular and classical traditions.

SIGNATURE PERFORMANCE — SUPER MARIO MEDLEY (2004)

Leung's blindfolded solo piano Super Mario Medley became his career-defining work:

• Approximately 45 million total views across the Web 1.0 and YouTube eras.

• YouTube platform honors (2007): #1 Most Viewed (All Time), Music — Japan; #1 Top Rated and #1 Most Discussed (All Time) — Japan; plus top all-time rankings across Japan and Hong Kong.

• Basis for the Kamek and Bowser piano duet scene in The Super Mario Bros. Movie (2023).

• Featured on the Japanese television program Kamiwaza (2023).

• Spotlighted in YouTube's documentary Celebrating the Mario Community + 100 Billion Views (2023).

• Namesake of the French video game music contest "Qui Sera Le Futur Martin Leung?" (2009), in which 50+ entrants competed by public vote (25,000+ voters) for a performance slot at Video Games Live, Palais des Congrès, Paris.

• Performed Super Mario World "Air Platform" backstage at Tokyo International Forum (2009), applauded by composer Koji Kondo.

• Performed Super Mario music and delivered a congratulatory speech honoring Koji Kondo (Lifetime Achievement recipient) at the Game Audio Network Guild Awards (2007), in the presence of Kondo and Shigeru Miyamoto.

VIDEO GAMES LIVE — FEATURED SOLOIST (2005–2012)

Following the viral success of the Super Mario Medley, Leung was invited as featured soloist with the international Video Games Live touring series, created by Tommy Tallarico and Jack Wall. He performed for an estimated 100,000 people across 17 countries, presenting music from Super Mario, Final Fantasy, The Legend of Zelda, Castlevania, Chrono Cross, Monkey Island, Namco, Tetris, and more.

Selected marquee engagements:

• Hollywood Bowl, Los Angeles (2005, 2006) — the historic world-premiere launch of the global franchise

• The Kennedy Center, Washington, D.C. (2007)

• Royal Festival Hall, London (2007, 2008)

• Woolsey Hall, Yale University (2007) — featured on both piano and historic pipe organ

• Tokyo International Forum, Tokyo (2009)

• National Concert Hall, Dublin (2009)

• Beacon Theatre, New York City (2008, 2009)

• Pontchartrain Center, Louisiana (2010) — recorded as a Video Games Live special, later aired nationally on PBS

• BlizzCon, Anaheim (2007, 2008) — broadcast live on DIRECTV

• MasterCard Center, Beijing (2012); Dubai World Trade Center (2012) — the tour's historic Middle East debut

• and over 80 additional performances across North America, South America, and Europe (2005–2012)

CRITICAL PRAISE

“Martin Leung, a pianist who gained fame on YouTube, brought down the house with his signature blindfolded performance of the theme from Super Mario Brothers." — Seth Schiesel, The New York Times

“Pianist Martin Leung totally rocks the house." — Chris Kohler, Wired

“A flatteningly beautiful Chrono Cross performance from the now deservedly legendary Martin Leung." — David Houghton, Destructoid

“The first pianist to gain international recognition for playing video game music on the piano." — Cleveland.com

CLASSICAL BACKGROUND

Competition Highlights

• First Prize, Concerto Division — Los Angeles International Liszt Competition (2016)

• First Prize, USC Concerto Competition (2012)

• First Prize, Cleveland Institute of Music Concerto Competition (2007)

• First Prize, Los Angeles Philharmonic Bronisław Kaper Awards for Young Artists (2004)

Orchestral Appearances

• Liszt, Piano Concerto No. 1 — Leipzig Academic Orchestra and maestro Horst Förster, Leipzig Gewandhaus (2017)

• Liszt, Piano Concerto No. 1 — Saskatoon Symphony Orchestra and maestro Victor Sawa, TCU Place, Saskatchewan (2011)

Education

• DMA, USC Thornton School of Music (2015; student of Stewart Gordon)

• MM, Yale School of Music (2010; student of Claude Frank)

• BM, Cleveland Institute of Music / Case Western Reserve University (2008; student of Paul Schenly and Daniel Shapiro)

RECORDINGS

• Video Games Live: Volume One (EMI Classics, 2008) — Tetris Piano Opus No. 1 (track 6), Castlevania Rock (track 11). Slovak National Orchestra, Jack Wall conductor. Debuted at #10 on the Billboard Classical Crossover Albums chart.

• Video Games Live: Level 2 (Shout! Factory, 2010) — Mario Piano Solo Medley (track 6), Final Fantasy Solo Piano Medley (track 13), Castlevania Rock Overture (track 15). Louisiana Philharmonic Orchestra, Jack Wall conductor. Debuted at #8 on the Billboard Classical Crossover chart. DVD/Blu-ray includes solo piano performances and interview.

• Harmony of a Hunter: 101% Run (2012) — Seeking Light, themes from the Metroid franchise.

FILM & TELEVISION

• The Super Mario Bros. Movie (2023) — Leung's 2004 medley is widely noted as the basis for the Kamek and Bowser piano duet scene.

• Nightmare Alley (Searchlight Pictures, 2021) — a piano-and-clarinet recording by Leung and clarinetist Andrew Moses plays in a scene with Cate Blanchett and Bradley Cooper.

• Kamiwaza (Japanese television, 2023)

• The G-Hole (MTV Overdrive / MTV2, 2006)

SELECTED CONCERTS, RESIDENCIES & PRESENTATIONS

• Penny Arcade Expo (PAX) main-stage performances (2005–present)

• Artist-in-Residence, University of Michigan School of Music, Theatre & Dance (2019)

• RazerCon Opening Ceremony (2021)

• Poem of the Adventurer by Michael Glenn Williams — a work dedicated to Leung, premiered by him at Video Games Live, Microsoft Theater (2011); published in International Piano

• Presenter, Music Teachers National Association National Conference, Chicago (2026)

• Presenter, GameSoundCon (2019, 2020)

DIGITAL PRESENCE

• YouTube Partner — 103K subscribers; channel professionally managed (2014–2021) by Fullscreen, Inc.

• Twitch Partner — 15K followers; simultaneous online chess and piano, drawing engagement from leading grandmasters including Hikaru Nakamura, Ian Nepomniachtchi, and Alireza Firouzja.

IN THE PRESS

Featured in The New York Times, Los Angeles Times, National Public Radio, WQXR New York, Wired, Destructoid, Nintendo Power, Steinway & Sons, San Diego Union-Tribune, The Times (London), Deutsche Welle (Germany), Cleveland Plain Dealer, and outlets across Brazil, Colombia, Singapore, New Zealand, France, Poland, and Canada.

IN PRINT

• Hayes, Tom. Jump Point: How Network Culture is Revolutionizing Business. McGraw-Hill, 2008.

• Hoover, Tom. Soundtrack Nation: Interviews with Today's Top Professionals in Film, Videogame, and Television Scoring. Cengage, 2010.

• Thompson, Matthew. The Video Game Piano Phenomenon: Press Ab to Play. Foreword by Martin Leung. Intellect Publishing, forthcoming 2027.

MEDIA ASSETS

BOOKING & CONTACT

Email: Martin@VGPianist.com Website: VGPianist.com YouTube: youtube.com/@videogamepianist Instagram: instagram.com/videogamepianist Twitch: twitch.tv/videogamepianist

Technical/stage rider available on request.