By: Ernesto Altamirano
According to Classic FM, the biggest international classical artist is André Rieu, with nearly 2.3 million album sales. Rieu also has more albums in Classic FM’s ultimate chart than any other artist – 11 in total – and his albums were the biggest sellers released in six out of the past nine years.
A Dutch violinist, conductor and showman, Rieu has sold more than 40 million albums worldwide. Crowned the “King of Waltz” by the media, Rieu believes that everyone can enjoy classical music. Following in the footsteps of Johann Strauss himself, he encourages his audiences to get out of their seats and waltz in the aisles. Together with his 50-pieces Johann Strauss Orchestra, he tours on five continents. Every year, more than 700,00 fans attend an André Rieu concert, establishing him as one of the top ten touring acts in the world.
André Rieu lives in a castle in Maastricht where the real D’Artagnan was said to have had his last breakfast before he died in battle serving Louis XIV. It’s a castle that André Rieu as a child used to visit to take piano lessons, but he dreamed of living in the castle, renovating it, making it light, filled with golden chandeliers and beautiful paintings. Encouraged by his father, a symphony conductor, Rieu began violin lessons at the age of five. Rieu’s training eventually brought him to the Royal Conservatory of Brussels where he was awarded the Premier Prix. In 1987, he formed the Johann Strauss Orchestra.
And it’s with great pleasure that I share my exclusive interview with André Rieu:
EA: Dear André Rieu, since I’m from Mexico City, I felt very honored when I heard you perform some songs from my country, I wanted to ask you, how did you choose those specific songs? (For instance “Cielito Lindo” and “Bésame Mucho”)
AR: Perhaps you know that I have an international orchestra, my members come from all over the world. Whenever I visit a special country, I take some advice from orchestra members who were born or raised there. Our soprano Laura Engel comes from Chile, so she knows a lot of Latino songs. She also translated during the concerts in Mexico, that was so lovely!
EA: Which are some other of your favorite Mexican songs that you still haven’t performed yet, but would like to play?
AR: There is one love song I really want to record and play once there is the chance for it. It’s called “Hijo de la luna“, a melody that – every time I hear it – touches my heart.
EA: My website, “Latino Edge”, has as a mission to inspire young people to pursue their dreams. I read that at one point you thought about opening a pizzeria, but instead chose to follow your dreams. What advice would you give to my audience so they can feel encouraged to not give up when they are following their passions, specially when they involve the arts?
AR: Walt Disney once said: “If you can dream it, you can do it!” I completely agree with him. Once you have a dream, go for it, never give up because that ought to be your goal in life. Work hard and try to keep on believing in yourself and your own strengths – don’t try to listen too much to the critics, most of the time they are jealous of what you are achieving! Never has one erected a statue for a critic, the Finnish composer Jean Sibelius already said in his life!
André Rieu and His Johann Strauss Orchestra will be performing tomorrow, October 24th, at the SAP Center in San Jose. Visit his official site for more information: https://www.andrerieu.com
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