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Feb 14, 2015
Feb 10, 2015
André Rieu Musician or Mountebank?
André
Rieu Musician or Mountebank?
Martin
Buzacott - He's a byword for kitsch, a shibboleth among the classical
cognoscenti, but André Rieu is also one of those rare
classical musician who can fill stadiums and reach an entirely new audience. Is
he just a musical showman, or are we underestimating him? From Australia, Martin
Buzacott explores the phenomenon that is André
Rieu.
Thanks to Ineke for sending this
Feb 8, 2015
André Rieu earns more than ever before
Castle Out of The
Scaffolding
André Rieu earns more than
ever before
Expensive restoration completed.
A few years ago André
Rieu avoided total bankruptcy, but now he is back fiddling in full swing. The
gains of the Maastricht Waltz King have increased to roughly six million a year.
That makes him one of the top earners in the Dutch showbiz. Nevertheless,
sacrifices had to also be made. A portion of those millions was used to renovate
his castle "Huis, de Torentjes" (House, the small Turrets) on a grand scale. Now
it looks more attractive than ever.
More now than ever before André Rieu is the
pride of the Netherlands in the music world. His agenda for 2015 is filled to
the top with performances in places like Mexico, Sweden, Denmark, Romania,
Poland, Hungary, the Czech Republic, Switzerland, France, and Germany and of
course he is not likely to forget the Vrijthof in Maastricht. Every year from
all over the world, half a million people visit Rieu’s concerts there. So his
concerts can be placed on the same level as those from big pop stars such as
Elton John, Barbara Streisand, and teenage idol Justin Bieber.
And financially André Rieu is better off
now. That was sorely needed, because six years ago he was on the brink of total
bankruptcy. He had to borrow 34million Euros to stay afloat, mortgaging
everything he owned in his business to the bank, including his very expensive
Stradivarius and his name. With the repayment of his million Euros debt, all is
well now, and since after he reorganized his company for the better, the
violinist earns more now than ever before. He recently published his earnings
for 2013, and that revealed a large profit of 5.7 million Euros. The year prior
to 2013 his profits were 5 million Euros and the year prior to that 3.3 million.
He has never earned more and to think this is all clear profit, even after
paying all the taxes. To achieve this, Rieu really had to cut costs. So in the
last few years he had to say good-bye to 21 employees, shrinking his workforce
in three years from 115 to 94.
Previously the star violinist had a hand in
doing the craziest things. For his performances in Europe an entourage of
thirteen fully filled freight trucks followed him of which three hauled only the
chandeliers and carpets. That was so as to create the proper ambiance in the
concert halls. During his tour through America, a bus laden with only fitness
equipment rode along. He also copied the Viennese castle "Schönbrunn. The
dragging along of all those items not directly related to his music, took huge
amounts of money, but that did not keep the violinist awake at night, because he
never did it for the money. Under pressure from the impending bankruptcy,
another critical look was taken at the spending pattern of the violinist and
choices had to be made. The Rieu caravan primarily travelled around the world on
borrowed money, and with the last one, he and his wife Marjorie financed that
one with all their private possessions. They were buried under a mortgage of
millions. He borrowed 2.5 million to build a new studio, and around his castle
"de Torentjes" in Maastricht he purchased numerous building so as to create his
own little neighborhood, including homes for his two sons.
Now that the last few years’ business has again been profitable, and Rieu is earning millions like water, money also became available for his greatest possession, his castle, for a drastic renovation. That is very necessary every few years since "Huis, de Torentjes" is almost 500 years old. It dates back to 1526. Up to the square tower on top of the roof, the castle was encased in scaffolding. A few years ago they discovered that part of the St. Peter’s mountain, where Rieu resides, was at one time part of the sandstone pits. During sewer works on André’s street, remnants of a tunnel and railway tracks, an underground sandstone wall, a gutter, building components and two fragments of a gravestone from 1734 were found.
In 2015 the castle again appears in a spick
and span condition, fully restored to its former glory. Since the castle is a monument, all the old details must be
maintained every hundred years or so, thereby not changing the outer
appearance. Of course this was taken into account with this large scale
renovation. It is expected that the millions will continue to flood into Rieu’s
company for the next several years. And then to think that in the beginning of
his career it took him years to land a record contract. The young André was
successful and performed mostly in the Netherlands, Belgium and Germany, but no
one wanted to release his music. "It took me seven years to land a record deal"
he once said. The first record boss with whom he had an appointment, asked him;
"What do you play? Waltzes? Then he made a sound as if he had to vomit. He
really did that" André told. But I kept going back to the record companies and
after seven years, someone finally listened. The last record boss saw something
good there, since in the meantime André Rieu has sold over thirty million
records and DVD’s worldwide.
Thanks to Ineke for the article and John’s
©translation
Feb 5, 2015
Highest Carnival Award for André Rieu
Highest Carnival Award for André
Rieu
Maastricht Feb. 5, 2015: A new - and at the same time a very high award from the Tempeleers - has been awarded to André Rieu on Thursday morning. 't Joonk Leech,( New or young Light) is what this jewel is called, and dates from an ancient tradition of the Momus Society, the forerunner of today's Maastricht carnival.
The comparison with the
Trichter, granted by the municipality of Maastricht to individuals or
institutions on social or cultural areas of particular value to the capital of
Limburg, can safely be made.
With son Pierre in
attendance, a contingent of Tempeleers, Garderizzjemint, Kachelpiepers (Stove
Pipes) and a battery of photographers and film crews, all watched as Prince
Odin hung the decoration around the neck of the most famous Maastricht Citizen ever.
Prior to that official moment, Tempeleer president Henk de Jong read André
Rieu's merits. A long list of special performances and moments.
Rieu, who together with the
Johann Strauss Orchestra, is ready to depart for Berlin, told the audience that
as a Mestreechter citizen he was very delighted with 't Joonk Leech award. He
once again emphysised the point that music brings people together. "You see that
during my concerts, but just as well as with carnival." He added: "You can very
easily compare one of our concerts with one of the basic principles of carnival.
During both events, there are no ranks or classes. Everyone is equal and
together everyone is enjoying the event"...
"It Joonk Leech" was the
highest distinction during the Momus reign. At that time the Momus members
maintained close ties with the Jesters Academy in Dülken, Germany, and the Momus Society incorporated
a variety of the Academy's symbols."
Thanks to John
for the Translation
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