November 18, 2017: German TV channel ZDF. In January 2018 André Rieu will tour Germany. Markus Lanz invited André Rieu to be one of his guests in his talk show. Watch the video below. Translation by Ineke, assisted by John.

WDR: Kölner Treff, talk show by Bettina Böttinger, from the city of Köln (Cologne), Germany. German TV channel WDR, November 19, 2017.

To promote his tour through Germany in January 2018, André Rieu appeared in several German talk shows. His outfits reflect his bright and colorful nature: flaming red and sunny yellow, combined with black, which looks great.

André proudly wears the small version of his Royal Award of Distinction. In 2002 André was awarded by Queen Beatrix of the Netherlands, with the Distinction of Knight in the Order of the Dutch Lion. This is a very special award for people who have accomplished exceptional achievements for the society. Click HERE to go to Sonja’s dormant translations website to read more about how André received this award in 2002.

DVD: Rieu Royale - André Rieu: Coronation Concert Live in Amsterdam is available in André’s webshop: http://webshop.andrerieu.com/en/webshop/dvds/page/2 "The most beautiful day of my musical career and the crowning glory of my work!” This is how André Rieu himself describes the concert he gave in Amsterdam with his Johann Strauss Orchestra to close the festivities around a historic event: the investiture of King Willem Alexander and Queen Máxima. In front of an audience of tens of thousands of cheering people, he gave a Coronation Concert on the 30th of April 2013 on the Museum Square in Amsterdam. For anyone who was not able to get to Amsterdam on that day, the live recording of this festive concert offers you the chance of feeling you were there. A unique concert, naturally with the Coronation Waltz that André Rieu wrote especially for the occasion, fabulous images of the new King and Queen, the formal investiture, the lovely young princesses, an emotional musical thank-you to the abdicating Queen Beatrix and an ecstatic audience who by the end no longer knew whether they were singing for the new King or for the King of the Waltz… It was one great big Orange party! As well as the Coronation Concert of over 90 minutes, the DVD includes an interview with André Rieu in which he explains how he came to receive the honour of this invitation and how he looked forward to this very special day. You can see the preparations for the concert and feel yourself at André’s side as the tension rises in the run-up to the coronation concert. Finally you can see pictures of André meeting King Willem Alexander and Queen Máxima at the Royal Palace. This is a unique DVD that you really cannot miss! If you like to experience this festive day through the eyes of Ruud and Ineke, please click HERE or find more pages on our website under previous items and April 2013.

November 29, 2017. Gisela Steinhauer interviews Waltz King André Rieu in his Maastricht castle. German WDR 5 RADIO Interview: Tisch Gespräch (Table Conversation)

As you might know, André often says the same things. That’s why Ineke decided to make a summery of this German radio interview (a total of 55 minutes!) in her own words. By the way: Gisela Steinhauer is a top interviewer!! About André’s castle “De Torentjes” (the Turrets): The castle was built in the 15th century from soft Limburg sandstone. The kitchen is the oldest part, dating back to 1452. At that time the castle was owned by a nobleman, who was a musician too. Maastricht was occupied by the French and the story goes that the 4th musketeer of King Louis XIV, named d’Artagnan, ate his last breakfast in André’s kitchen before he died on the walls of Maastricht. In the living room, besides the fireplace, Gisela sees a book about d’Artagnan. And two oil paintings hanging on the wall. A friend painted André’s portrait and gave it to him as a gift. But André did not like to be on the wall without his wife. So he asked the friend to also make a painting of Marjorie. André gave him a photo, which he had taken himself during one of the family holidays, in Italy. Marjorie looks relaxed and gazes happily into the air. Every year they go a few days to Rome with the children and grandchildren. They don’t like vacations laying down in the sun on the beach. They are very impatient and actually are always working all the time. Work?? They don’t consider it to be work. When André was 5, he was sent to piano lessons in what is now his castle. The teacher lived in one of the turrets. The castle was dark and moist, and the child did not like the teacher and the atmosphere. André thinks he has always been allergic to not-so-nice people and gloomy atmospheres. Life is wonderful when there is harmony. Just like making music together and a happy audience in the hall. The feel of a good atmosphere is not only created by music, also by the decor, the show and the people. The orangery: Gisela looks out of the window and sees a lovely “greenhouse” with wrought iron curls. André explains that it is not a greenhouse. They have a greenhouse to grow plants for the garden, but that is downstairs. This is a handmade “Orangery” with tropical plants, birds, fish and butterflies. About his childhood: André was born in Maastricht. House of birth: Plenkershoven (click HERE). They lived there with 9 persons. His parents, his grandmother, and 6 children. Grandmother reached the age of 102 and his mother is 96 by now. Until last year she still drove her own car. She caused an accident, fortunately no fatalities, so she does not drive anymore. André thinks it is irresponsible to drive at that age. André had a nice childhood. Violin at 5, then flute, piano, oboe, recorder. Only the violin remained. He was fascinated by the teacher’s way of playing a vibrato on the violin. Three weeks later he could also play a good vibrato and the teacher was amazed. She called his parents to tell that this was very special for a so young child. André played outside a lot and was often building charts with his brother Robert. He still loves to build. Except for doing the electricity himself, he can build a house. If he had not become a musician, he would have been an architect. As a child they had fish, birds, dogs. He still has two aviaries and a fish pond with Koi and other fish. He felt he was brought up by parents who were very strict and loveless. He suffered from that. Marjorie had a similar strict upbringing. Puberty: As they both had strict parents, they were not allowed to experience puberty. In André’s opinion is that you then suppress your children’s feelings. That’s why later on they, André and Marjorie, needed a few years of therapy. When Marjorie came into his life, he opened up and his talents started to bloom. Earlier nobody believed in him. Young children need people to encourage and support them. Marjorie said that he played beautifully. His parents had never said so. He met Marjorie for the first time when he was 11 and she 13. She was his sister’s classmate and was celebrating a “Sinterklaas” party at the Rieu’s. Later on they met again during his conservatory study in Brussels. Now they have been married for 42 years. They work together. While he is touring, she runs the business at home. Marjorie loves to swim. She joins water aerobics in Maastricht. André hates to swim. They don’t have a swimming pool at home. André has a personal trainer to work-out with him three times a week. Power training and cardio. Violin study in Brussels, Belgium: To finance his study André accepted a job as a model for Jeans and Stimorol. He was proud having obtained that job and had already 12 offers. Then Marjorie came into his life. She asked about his earnings. Nothing. Later on they heard from other people that they would not pay the students unless they accepted a nude photo shoot later on. So he quit. After his study he accepted a job in his father’s Symphonic Orchestra. He played one year under the conducting of his father. In earlier days a conductor was a job for the entire life and his father had been conducting for 30 years in Maastricht. The last years were terrible. The orchestra members hated him and André was there amongst them. That was not nice. Father: André’s father passed away in 1992, due to a “locked-in syndrome”. It lasted 6 months. He was fully conscious but could not move, only the eyes. It was very hard. At that time André had already left the parental home. In the last years of his life, his father had turned into a religious fanatic. André could not talk to him in a normal way. Everything was about religion and God. Very unreal. Any kind of fanaticism is horrible, as you can experience that nowadays. He rejected André’s ambitions for the future. In the meantime André was no longer a practicing Catholic, so his father did not like to have him near his deathbed. It was not possible to reconcile with him, also because of his stubbornness. That was hard. André continued creating his own life. He had been married, started a family and kept on playing the music he loves, first with the Salon Orchestra and later on with the Johann Strauss Orchestra. Read more about his father’s illness, click HERE. Religion and names: Born and baptized as André Léon Marie Nicolas. André after his father. Léon was an uncle. Marie, Nicholas: no relatives. In a Roman Catholic family it was a custom to have many first names. Their sons Marc and Pierre only have one name. In earlier days everything in Limburg was Catholic. André’s first love at Kindergarten was Sister Clara Magdalena. She was so sweet that he liked to take her hand at the schoolyard. André and his brother Robert joined a church choir. They loved the Christmas concerts best. Nice memories of eating bread at home after the Night Mass. These are better memories for children than the nonsense of: “God sees all; you’re going to hell”. He knows persons who suffered a lot because of this nonsense. The social contacts in the church are very positive and the music is impressive. André loves to add church music to his Christmas concerts. JSO members: A close family which also includes 13 couples, married, with children. André often allows the young mothers to take the baby on tour, together with grandmama as a nanny. The next baby will be from harpist Vera Kool. She will join our Australia tour with her mother and the baby. Near the studios in Maastricht there is a Kindergarten for the orchestra members’ children when father and/or mother is rehearsing. Facing the audience: In contrast to most conductors André prefers to conduct facing the audience. He thinks it feels better to have eye-contact with the audience. His mother disapproved and told him several times not to do that. But he followed his intuition and he still thinks that it is part of his success to be open to the audience. They see who he is, what he does, how he feels. Amore: His latest album (Dec. 2017). André wanted to name this new album: “Parlez vous d’Amour”. (French for: “Speak to me about love”). The record company thought that the name was too difficult for the people and reduced it to “Amore”. Natasha’s Waltz is André’s favorite and the cover photo was made in his backyard. The end.

Carmen Monarcha, soprano and Vera Kool, harp player.