January 10, 2026 New Year's Concert Amsterdam, Ziggo Dome From: Maxazine, by Patricia Verploegh Chassé Photos: Patricia Verploegh Chassé / Maxazine / Ziggo Dome/ ARP Translation: Ineke André Rieu provides a cheerful classical celebration at the Ziggo Dome André Rieu's New Year's Concert is anything but a typical concert. It's a complete experience. The evening is somewhere between a classical performance, comedy, and a huge sing-along. The music is central, but almost as important are the humor, the decor, the costumes, and the interaction with the audience. In the hall, you see many beautiful suits and glittering dresses. You can tell that people have really dressed up for a night out. The orchestra also looked stunning, in sharp suits and flowing ball gowns. The whole thing was reminiscent of a scene from a Disney film. Familiar melodies, a chat here, a joke there, and moments for dancing: this familiar recipe immediately created a great atmosphere. Rieu is not only a violinist and orchestra leader, but also an entertainer. The soloists came from various countries. The story of Michel Tirabosco, the pan flute player from Switzerland, was particularly noteworthy. He comes from a musical family, but because he has short arms and no hands, learning to play an instrument wasn't easy. Ultimately, he chose the pan flute, which he plays impressively. The many ballroom dancers also made an impression. Rieu himself occasionally tried his hand at a dance, for example, a twist on the well-known "Tutti Frutti." There was also time for a more serious moment, such as a song in support of Ukraine. There was little time between the interval bell and the start of the second movement. As a result, the hall was still half empty when the orchestra reappeared. Rieu effortlessly resolved this. With a friendly chat and a few jokes, he kept the atmosphere lively. Outside it was cold with occasional snow showers, but inside, much more snow was falling. Not just a few flakes, but a very thick layer. So much so that the audience enthusiastically started real "snowball fights" with each other. Young and old joined in and were visibly enjoying themselves. The high level of entertainment won't appeal to every classical purist, but here the audience sang along enthusiastically and danced exuberantly. During the encore, the attention in the arena shifted to the many balloons coming down from the sky. It quickly became a sport to hit as many balloons onto the stage as possible. The Ziggo Dome was transformed into a joyful party one last time, a fitting end to a wonderful evening. Addition: André Rieu received an award for the first artist ever to perform 10 editions at Ziggo Dome in Amsterdam, Netherlands on January 9, 2026! Ziggo Dome first opened on June 24, 2012, and André Rieu performed on November 30, 2012. In 2014, André Rieu also returned in November. Since 2017, André performed his annual New Year's concert in January: 2018, 2019, 2020, 2023, 2024, 2025, and 2026!

From Anna Majchrzak’s Facebook: About last night....IT’S A WRAP!!! What an unforgettable start to the year! Last night we kicked off our very first concert of the year at the Amsterdam Ziggo Dome with André Rieu and the Johann Strauss Orchestra...and WOW! A sea of love, energy, and joy in the hall with amazing people! The atmosphere was absolutely electric and the connection with the audience was truly heart warming. What a spectacular way to ring in the new year! Endless thanks to all our wonderful fans, your passion, smiles, and applause mean the world to us!

Mascot Little André attended the concert. More about the making of the mascot, click HERE. The KOK-family snowed under in Antwerp.

January 12, 2026 From: Concertnews (Belgium) Translation: Ineke. Photos: screenshots Instagram New Year’s concert in the AFAS Dome in Antwerp. It's been 31 years since we bought André Rieu's single "Geen house maar Strauss" (No House, But Strauss). In 1995, the Maastricht conductor had his breakthrough in Belgium and the Netherlands. That same year, Strauss Party and The Second Waltz were also released as singles. But it was mainly the man's albums that reached new heights. Strauss & Co. scored silver in our charts in the spring of 1995 and stayed in the charts for an impressive 56 weeks, more than a year. The subsequent Wiener Melange, released in the fall, earned bronze. It's clear that André Rieu is also a musical phenomenon in Belgium, selling 40 million CDs and DVDs worldwide and reaching 30 number one positions in the charts. It's therefore only natural that he now has an annual appointment with our region and plays a New Year's Concert at the AFAS Dome in Antwerp, a concert that has become a tradition, we can safely say. André Rieu can call upon the largest private orchestra in the world, his 60-piece Johann Strauss Orchestra, with which he revived interest in waltz music worldwide. And he continues to do so in our country. A full AFAS Dome, which enjoyed Rieu's magnificent New Year's Concert from start to finish, was evidence of this. A striking aspect of this year's Night of the Proms summary was that we didn't hear a single classical piece on VRT 1 (Flemish broadcaster). The editing was limited to pop and dance arrangements. This demonstrates how classical music and waltzes seem to be being treated in a stepmotherly manner by popular media again. We did, however, appreciate the feminization of this year's New Year's Concert in Vienna, with more attention paid to female composers. That is still a point of work for André Rieu in a certain sense, even though he chooses his programme with his heart, because his tracklist consisted exclusively of material that male musicians have composed in recent years. Not that André Rieu isn't in favor of diversity. Quite the opposite. His orchestra alone consists of both men and women, but above all, no fewer than 17 nationalities. The audience also proved to be a wonderful mix of ages, genders, and nationalities. In the AFAS Dome, we saw, among others, Anna Reker, a Ukrainian singer, perform Nitsch Jaka, a first highlight during the New Year's concert. The audience gave her a standing ovation. Gabriel's oboe from "The Mission," performed by Swiss pan flute player Michel Tirabosco, was truly impressive. He has no hands, yet managed to learn to play the instrument as a child. His performance in the AFAS Dome demonstrated such strong musicality that the audience also gave him a standing ovation. Musical highlights abounded during André Rieu's performance. For example, we heard a masterful romantic version of "Il Silenzio" played by the trumpets in the first part. Rieu told us that his orchestra was born some 40 years ago in a freezing cold school. Back then, there were 12 musicians. One of them left the orchestra within five minutes because of the cold. Two musicians from back then are still with the orchestra and continue to tour with the world-famous conductor. They received extra attention. While the little André mascot failed to start a Mexican Wave before the performance, André Rieu himself effortlessly won over the audience. He thawed them out by unleashing delightful self-deprecating humor with The Platin Tenors, from Tasmania, Hungary, and Belgium, with whom he has been touring for 20 years, who either played with their tongues during a fast-paced version of Tiritomba or with their hats during “Da geh ich zu Maxim”. What made their performance, and by extension that of the entire evening, so infectious was that, in addition to a healthy dose of fun, there was also room for more sensitive work, with “The Impossible Dream” from Man of La Mancha for example. André Rieu went all out in terms of production. For example, some spectators in the central square experienced a snowstorm firsthand during "Schneewaltzer" (Snow Waltz) when a pile of white confetti first fluttered down on them and then simply dumped out at the end. The fans' reaction was simply hilarious. And the rest burst out laughing when André asked a woman if he could lend a hand. When colorful balloons came down during the Radetzky March, the fans unleashed their inner child, and we even saw a few playing with the confetti as if it were real snow. Wonderful! Another example of how comical André Rieu's concert was? He announced "G'schichten aus dem Wienerwald" (Stories from the Vienna Woods) as a piece in which the zither played a leading role. In reality, the musician barely has anything to do, which we also saw him portray by having a drink, taking selfies with the rest of the orchestra, filing his nails, wiping the sweat from his forehead, and finally, feigning sleep just before it was his turn again. Funny! And then there are the many delightful interludes from unexpected musicians during various numbers. A piccolo blowing too loudly, a pianist suddenly incorporating a Tchaikovsky piece, a musician with a drinking problem, a musician waving a bottle of champagne during the encores as if he'd won Formula 1—we see it all, and it effortlessly enhances that relaxed, festive, and cheerful atmosphere. The diverse audience, musicians, and soloists at André Rieu's concert in the AFAS Dome reflected the diverse program, featuring waltzes performed by The Magnificent Maastricht Dance Company (even dancing with the audience towards the end) to songs like “Lara's Theme” from Doctor Zhivago and Johann Strauss's “The Beautiful Blue Danube”, as well as rock 'n' roll pieces like Tutti Frutti, the Sirtaki, and the polonaise from Sweet Caroline. There was also a remarkable amount of room for musical songs. The first part featured songs like Man of La Mancha and My Fair Lady, while soloist Anna Majchrzak kicked off the second part with the beautiful song "On My Own" from Les Misérables. In that part, too, we heard American soprano Micaëla Oeste deliver a powerful rendition of "Casta Diva", the song that made Maria Callas immortal. André Rieu framed the song as a prayer in which a woman hopes her beloved returns alive from the front. It's a very relevant theme, as the orchestra leader knew, delivering an unmistakable message to the male world leaders: "You have to stop all these wars!" A serious appeal during a concert that best describes itself as a crazy party, which it certainly was in the encores

Tracklist: Part 1: Entry of the gladiators Blaze away Tiritomba Da geh ich zu Maxim The impossible dream G’schichten aus dem Wienerwald The third man Il Silenzio Nitsch Jaka My fair lady (I could have danced/Get me to the church on time/With a little bit of luck)

Tracklist: Part 2: On my own Lara’s Theme Leichte Kavalerie Gabriels oboe Schneewaltzer Olé Guapa Casta Diva An der Schönen Blauen Donau Ode an die Freude