André Rieu

André Léon Marie Nicolas Rieu (, ; born 1 October 1949) is a Dutch violinist and conductor best known as the founder of the waltz-playing Johann Strauss Orchestra.

Rieu and his orchestra tour worldwide, often playing in stadiums. He resides in his native Maastricht, where he also regularly performs at the Vrijthof.

Early life and family

The name Rieu is of French Huguenot origin, though both of Rieu's parents were Roman Catholic. André was born to Andries Antonie Rieu and is the third of six children.

Rieu's father was conductor of the Maastricht Symphony Orchestra. Showing early promise, André began studying violin at the age of five. From a very early age, he developed a fascination with orchestra, although he found his parents strict and moved away from his father's musical style in adulthood. He studied violin at the Conservatoire Royal in Liège and at the Conservatorium Maastricht, (1968–1973), studying under Jo Juda and Herman Krebbers.

From 1974 to 1977, he attended the Music Academy in Brussels, studying with André Gertler. He completed his training with the distinction "Premier Prix" from the Royal Conservatory of Brussels.

He married Marjorie Kochmann in 1975. She has been a language teacher and has written compositions. They have two sons, including Pierre, a producer who frequently works with the Johann Strauss Orchestra. He lives in a small castle in Maastricht, which he alleges was once inhabited by Charles de Batz Castlemore-d'Artagnan.

He speaks six languages: Dutch, English, German, French, Italian, and Spanish. His net worth was estimated at €25 million in 2016. His height is 6 ft ½ in (1.84 m).

Career

Johann Strauss Orchestra

Rieu created the Johann Strauss Orchestra in 1987 and began with 12 members, giving its first concert on 1 January 1988. As of 2020, he performs with between 50 and 60 musicians. Rieu plays a 1667 Stradivarius violin.

Rieu and his orchestra have appeared throughout Europe, North and South America, Japan, and Australia, and New Zealand. In 2008, Rieu's tour featured a full-size reproduction of Empress Sisi's Castle, the biggest stage to have gone on tour at that time.

For two weeks in 2013, one of the channels of the BSkyB group, Sky Arts 2 in the UK, was renamed as ''Sky Arts Rieu''. Between 30 March and 14 April 2013 Sky Arts Rieu broadcast Rieu concerts and documentaries 24 hours per day.

Rieu also composed music for the 2014 film '' Tuscan Wedding''.

Reception

Australia

Australia has one of Rieu's largest fanbases. Chris Boyd, a critic writing for Melbourne's ''Herald Sun'' newspaper, did not criticize his playing, but described Rieu's main stage function as "blarney and delegation".

Eamon Kelly wrote in ''The Australian'' newspaper: "It is disappointing to see professional journalists indulging in cheap, inaccurate stereotypes to dismiss criticism of Rieu." He also wrote: "Equally misguided are those who cursorily dismiss Rieu. Rieu's live and recorded performances have brought joy to millions of people. Few in his audiences are regular classical music attendees and it could be seen as promising that, via Rieu, they are listening to standards of the classical canon. The fact that Rieu's focus is on highly accessible, enjoyable repertoire is not an argument against his musical credentials."

By December 2008, Rieu had achieved his 100th platinum accreditation in Australia and by May 2011, Rieu had sold over $50 million worth of wholesale shipments of his CDs and DVDs in Australia and was the highest-selling music artist in the Australian market between 2006 and 2011.

United Kingdom

Tom Service, reviewing a film of one of Rieu's Maastricht concerts (the highest-grossing concert film in British history upon the article's publication in 2015) in The Guardian, described the performance as the "very acme of commodified classical music", saying that Rieu turned "unsuspecting masterpieces" into "saccharine fodder". Also in The Guardian, in an interview with Rieu, Alfred Hickling stated that Rieu's critics were "missing the point", comparing Rieu's showmanship and business acumen to that of Johann Strauss II.

United States

Nina Siegal, for the New York Times, described Rieu as a " maestro for the masses, if not the critics", comparing him to Liberace while noting that his fame in the US had not reached the levels it has in Europe, Australia, and Brazil. In an email interview with Siegal, Rieu remarked that he saw frequent criticism of his act as "schmaltzy" as a compliment: "I’m trying to create a ‘Gesamtkunstwerk’ where music, décor and costumes all add up to a magical evening."

Regarding a 2017 concert in the Moda Center, Dean Paton for the Christian Science Monitor said that Rieu's performance felt "more like a pop concert than a classical recital" and a "two-hour running gag punctuated by this waltz or that aria". Paton compared the accessibility and popularity of Rieu's work to Arthur Fiedler of the Boston Pops and Leonard Bernstein of the New York Philharmonic.

Honours

Selected discography

Albums

Videos

References

Further reading

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External links

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André Rieu
(official website)

André Rieu's Official Australian website

André Rieu
(C Music TV Biography)
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The Magic of Andre Rieu

André Rieu
official channel on YouTube

{{DEFAULTSORT:Rieu, Andre
1949 births
Living people
20th-century Dutch conductors (music)
20th-century classical violinists
20th-century Dutch male musicians
21st-century Dutch conductors (music)
21st-century Dutch classical violinists
21st-century Dutch male musicians
Chevaliers of the Ordre des Arts et des Lettres
Dutch people of French descent
Easy listening musicians
Knights of the Order of the Netherlands Lion
Maastricht Academy of Music alumni
Dutch male classical violinists
Dutch male conductors (music)
Musicians from Maastricht
Recipients of the Decoration of Honour for Services to the Republic of Austria