Maksim Gabriel Knecht (born January 5th, 1984), known professionally as Maks Gabriel, is a Canadian-American music producer and songwriter. Between 1991 - 2002, he studied classical piano at the The McGill Conservatory of Music of McGill University in Montreal. In his final four years, he studied under renowned Russian piano virtuoso Marina Goglidze-Mdivani - a student of Emil Grigoryevich Gilels, who is widely regarded as one of the greatest pianists of the 20th century.
While in Canada, Maks worked closely with Ryan Kowarsky of the group RyanDan. They successfully wrote and produced hit songs for numerous Canadian artists including Belly, Massari, Mia Martina, Danny Fernandes and Tyler Medeiros. They also received a Juno nomination for Dance Recording of the year for his work on Mia Martina's album Devotion.
Maks's love of songwriting eventually led him to Nashville. In Nashville, Maks has been able to work outside of the pop genre with artists such as "The Voice" winner Cassadee Pope, rock supergroup members from 3 Doors Down, Megan Moroney, Radney Foster, Muscadine Bloodline, Svrcina, Honey County, Eric Paslay, CB30, Runaway June and many others.
Maks' love for producing and songwriting drew him closer to one of his passions - Writing for TV & Film.
He has had his songs placed on hit TV shows such as Yellowstone, CMT's Nashville, Roswell New Mexico, Legacies, True Blood, The Mindy Project, Containment and many more.