"Chances of Rieu Vrijthof concerts are very small"

 André Rieu is somber: 

"Chances of the Vrijthof concerts continuing are very small"

The chances of the Vrijthof concerts continuing next summer are "very small". According to André Rieu, the corona virus is too erratic and the vaccination campaign is far too slow. That is why he is now focusing on the Christmas concerts in the MECC. "We have booked ten days. We hope that this series can continue!"

No, he can't make it any more beautiful than it already is. And as much as he wants to, says André Rieu. The world-famous violinist and orchestra leader is still walking with his soul under his arm. He has not been around and performing with his Johann Strauss Orchestra for more than a year now. "And that's what I and all my musicians love to do," he says.

The fact that the twelve Vrijthof concerts last year could not take place was bad. That more than likely he will not be performing in his hometown this coming summer – where twenty concerts are planned -  he calls that a "downright disaster." "Not just for all  our fans, but also for us as musicians. And also mostly  for me as the owner of a big company with 120 people on the payroll. The government pays a part of the salaries and I am very happy with that, and let there be no misunderstanding about that! But the fact is that every month we have to add money to that, while there is no income."

He does not want to go into details about his company's financial situation. But the bank has already called, to which he added: "And that's normally not a good sign."

Is the moment closer that André Rieu will have to sell his very expensive Stradivarius?

Emotional

Rieu confesses he is also struggling emotionally. Sometimes the tears are closer to him than laughter. But he's trying to cling to the many positive messages he receives from his fans from around the world. "There are people who have emailed that they are going to set up "crowd-funding campaigns" for us. Other people e-mailed us that they want to buy my Stradivarius!" Rieu previously said in interviews that he would rather sell his 300-year-old violin - estimated value: several million Euros - than let his people go.

He also draws comfort from the fact that hardly anyone who bought a ticket for one of his many concerts in 2020, has asked for the money back. "And we are talking about 700,000 (!) Tickets. The fact that people choose to keep their tickets and wait is heartwarming to me."

Decision

The final decision on cancelling the Vrijthof concerts will likely be in May, Rieu said. "Or very strange things will have to happen. No matter how bad we want it, it is not going to happen. As long as the one and a half meter requirement remains in force, we can't do anything." And when will travel be possible again?" he wonders out loud. "More than half of our guests at the Vrijthof concerts come from abroad. And here at home, vaccination is far too slow. Marjorie and I still haven't had a call for the vaccination and we're already beyond 70..."

Christmas

We're just only in March, but in his head André Rieu is already in the fall(autumn). "I think we need to focus on that now. We have concerts planned in Israel (Tel Aviv) and they are already very far advanced with vaccinations. And also in Chile and Uruguay."

And then of course there are the Christmas concerts in the MECC in Maastricht. The first performances, in 2018, definitely tasted like more, Rieu says. "We have now reserved ten days at the MECC for this year. We can receive 12,000 visitors per show. We hope that that series can continue..."

 Thanks to Ineke and Rob for this article and John's translation