[edit] Career
At University he performed the Gold And Silver Waltz by Franz Lehár. Encouraged by the audience reaction he decided to pursue the waltz form. Rieu formed the Maastricht Salon Orchestra and performed as a violinist with the Limburg Symphony Orchestra. In 1987, he created the Johann Strauss Orchestra and his own production company. Since then, his melodramatic stage performances and rock-star demeanor have for some been associated with a revival of the waltz music category. André Rieu plays a 1667 Stradivarius violin.[1]
In April 2009 (Australia) /June 2009 (UK), he made a cameo appearance as himself on "Ramsay Street" in the long-running Australian soap opera Neighbours.
[edit] Johann Strauss Orchestra
The Orchestra began in 1987 with 12 members but now performs with between 40 and 50 musicians. At the time the Orchestra first toured Europe, there emerged a renewed interest in waltz music. The revival began in the Netherlands and was ignited by their recording of the Second Waltz from Shostakovich's Jazz Suites. As a result, Rieu became known as the waltz King.
Rieu and his orchestra have performed throughout Europe, in North America, and Japan. Winning a number of awards including two World Music Awards, their recordings have gone gold and platinum in many countries, including 8-times Platinum in the Netherlands. In September 2007 Rieu performed in Australia for the first time solo, without his Orchestra at the Eastland shopping centre in the Melbourne suburb of Ringwood playing "My Way" and "Waltzing Matilda"—and the next day appeared at Sydney’s Arena Cove, Warringah Mall shopping complex with the same set. Rieu and orchestra returned to Australia in November as part of his world tour. Rieu and his orchestra played 3 concerts at Melbourne's Telstra Dome from 13-15 November and continued their tour throughout Perth, Sydney, Brisbane and Adelaide, through to December 2008. The concert theme is 'A Romantic Vienna Night' and the set comprises a replica of part of a Viennese castle, complete with 2 ice-skating rinks 2 Fountains, and a ballroom dance floor situated above and behind the Orchestra. Rieu's largest concert attendance to date in Australia was 38,000 on Saturday 15th November in Melbourne. The Perth concert did not feature the replica of the Viennese Palace as it was stated in the press because it would not fit into the front doors of Subiaco Oval.
He records both DVD and CD repertoire at his own recording studios in Maastricht in a wide range of classical music as well as popular and folk music plus music from well-known sound tracks and theatre musicals. His lively orchestral presentations, in tandem with incessant marketing, have attracted worldwide audiences to this subgenre of classical music.
Some of his orchestra's performances have been broadcast in the United Kingdom and the United States on the PBS television network[2] such as the 2003 airing of Andre Rieu Live in Dublin, filmed in Dublin, Ireland, and 2005’s André Rieu Live in Tuscany filmed in the Piazza Della Repubblica in the village of Cortona in Tuscany.
[edit] Criticism
The artistic director of the Australian Chamber Orchestra, Richard Tognetti, has called Rieu's music Schlagermusik, among other things.[3]
Eamon Kelly writing in The Australian newspaper, in an article that discusses the controversy that Rieu engenders, said: "He depicts his critics as members of a stuffy musical elite with narrow aesthetic tastes, yet regularly demeans in interviews music that is not to his taste and classical musicians who choose not to perform in his manner."[4]
[edit] Personal life
He is married to Marjorie, who works with him full-time as production manager, and has two sons, Marc and Pierre. He speaks (in order of fluency) Dutch (including his home/city dialect Maastrichtian), English, German, French, Italian and Spanish.[citation needed] Rieu has worked with his brother, Jean Philippe for several years, but Jean Philippe has now started his own production company
Please Don't Go
André Rieu Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Say, is it true that you have gone?
My whole world is full of darkness
Without you there is no sun
Oh my love, I feel so lonely
I'm yearning for your lovely eyes
All I have, is just the memory
All the time we were together
We always thought it was for ever
Once we lived in paradise
With roses red and silver skies
We used to laugh and dance and live
A life of happiness
And full of sweet caress
Oh darling
Please don't go
Because I need you
I cannot live when you have gone
My whole world is full of darkness
Never more will there be sun
All the time we were together
We always thought it was for ever
Oh my love, I feel so lonely
I'm yearning for your lovely eyes
All I have, is just the memory
Of your face so dear and wise
Please don't go
Because I need you
Oh please don't go
Because I need you
I need you, I need you, just you...
André Rieu's song "Please Don't Go" is a poignant ballad about lost love and the emptiness that follows. The song is about a person who has lost their partner and is struggling to come to terms with their departure. The first verse sets the tone for the rest of the song, with the singer asking why their love has left and expressing his sorrow at the loss. The chorus repeats the plea for the loved one to stay, as the singer cannot bear life without them. The verses then continue with memories of happier times, painting a picture of a past full of love and joy, but now overshadowed by loneliness and sadness.
The lyrics are straightforward but powerful, conveying the sense of loss and heartbreak that comes from a broken relationship. The simple melody and slow tempo match the mood of the lyrics perfectly, making it a moving and emotional piece of music. The song's universality lies in the fact that many people can relate to the feeling of loss, no matter the circumstances, reinforcing the importance of cherishing those we love while we have them.
Line by Line Meaning
Oh my love, why did you leave me?
The singer is bewildered and hurt by the fact that their beloved has left them.
Say, is it true that you have gone?
The singer is not yet willing to accept that their beloved has left and is seeking confirmation.
My whole world is full of darkness
The singer is struggling with intense sadness and describes their world as being void of light or joy.
Without you there is no sun
The artist draws a metaphor between the absence of their beloved and a world without sunlight, suggesting how essential their presence is to the artist's well-being.
Oh my love, I feel so lonely
The artist expresses their sense of isolation in their beloved's absence.
I'm yearning for your lovely eyes
The singer inwardly longs for their beloved's presence and is particularly nostalgic for certain features of their appearance.
All I have, is just the memory
Without their beloved present, the only thing the singer has to hold onto is memories of moments shared together.
Of your face so dear and wise
The artist reminds themselves of the beloved's expression and character, which they hold so fondly in their mind.
Once we lived in paradise
The artist remembers a past state of being prior to their separation, which they idealize as heavenly.
With roses red and silver skies
The artist imagines their former world with symbolism of beauty and romance.
We used to laugh and dance and live
The singer recalls the carefree and joyful moments shared with their beloved.
A life of happiness
The artist describes their past life with their beloved as one of pure joy and contentment.
And full of sweet caress
The singer emphasizes the physical and emotional intimacy they had shared.
Please don't go
The singer begs their beloved to stay.
Because I need you
The singer emphasizes how crucial their beloved's presence is to their survival.
I cannot live when you have gone
The artist communicates an extreme intensity of feeling, suggesting they are incapable of existing without their beloved.
Never more will there be sun
The artist repeats the earlier image of darkness post-beloved to add emphasis to the idea that the absence of their beloved is unbearable.
I need you, I need you, just you...
The singer culminates their emotional outpouring with an insistence and sense of dependency on their beloved.
Contributed by Jack J. Suggest a correction in the comments below.
Ivanlice Alves
A sua voz realça com um verdadeiro frescor para os nossos ouvidos és fantástica picorrucha!
Kallessa DF Brasil
Ewa Jaśkiewicz
Wspaniałe nagranie. Każdy utwór powoduje refleksje i zastanowienie nad słowami oraz tonacją muzyki. Ta pieśń jest bardzo smutna, sentymentalna pełna tęsknoty i miłości. Prawda wyznania osoby to bardzo przykre doświadczenie, ale przesłana jest nadzieja oraz wiara. Wszystkie uczucia spowodowane przez miłość, są godne uwagi oraz przemyśleń. Ewa Ewa Ewa
Alberto Covelli
Que hermosa epoca fue cuando estos tres angeles cantaban con el maestro!!!!. A mi criterio la mejor!. Gracias por tanta perfeccion!!
Canal do Liliko
Fantástico! 👏👏👏
Людмила Салтымакова
Божественно! Душа замирает... O, Andre! I love you!!! 👏👏👏❤💖💝❤💖💝
Aleksandra Yasmin
Beautiful voice an nice song.
СИБИРСКИЙ ОБОЗРЕВАТЕЛЬ
Thank you! It's so beautiful ❤
Beth Strickland
I love to listen to Suzan sing with Andrea's orchestra.
Thomas Dormer
A fine song .Suzans voice is perfect
Diane Shepherd Crossover Lyric Soprano
I know this is an old post but I so agree with you, she sounded like, and looked like, an angel. That said, this was my favourite line-up, but things and people don't stay forever.