Yanni still bounces very well. And - from the 42nd row of Memorial Auditorium at least - he doesn't look a day older than on his PBS specials from two decades ago that helped skyrocket him to musical renown.
On his first visit to Chattanooga, Yanni and his amazing orchestra delighted an audience that did not come close to capacity but which still poured out the love.
In the middle of a daunting North American tour, Yanni brought his calvacade of buses and trucks here before heading on to Virginia and points north, including a sweep across Canada.
He showed a strong rapport with the audience, answering the questions they fired at him and shaking some of their hands at the front of the stage near the end.
The 58-year-old Greek-born composer and performer whirled between three different keyboards and pointed to different ones of his highly skilled 14-piece backup for their own moment in the sun. Some of the most intriguing interludes were when different ones went solo - from harpist Victor Espinola to Yoel Del Sol on percussion and Dana Treboe on trombone. They are from throughout the world - Cuba, Armenia, Paraguay.
As always, the biggest applause went to the drummer. Charlie Adams, who has been with Yanni since they performed together in a rock band during Yanni's college days in Minnesota, helped his cause with the crowd by donning a Big Orange outfit.
On a recent excursion to China, longtime keyboardist Ming Freeman visited and performed in his hometown. And during that trip, Yanni was honored with the designation of his own Panda, which he promptly named for a Greek isle.
It's hard to replace violinist Karen Briggs (who once soloed at the Bessie Smith Hall), but smiling Mary Simpson did her best.
He played the tribute song written for his mother, which is always a favorite.
And he philosophized on love and unity of mankind, telling the story again of the astronauts who looked down on earth and saw no lines between countries.
The show featured some talented vocalists near the end, including Lauren Jelencovich on the "Nightingale" song that was a hit from the Forbidden City PBS video of the early 1990s.
The final number was another Forbidden City piece that brought the Yanni fans to their feet clapping and dancing.
Yanni came back for three encore numbers.
"You don't want to go home?" he smiled.
And they didn't.