[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
The rose
André Rieu Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Left blooming alone.
All her lovely companions
Are faded and gone.
No flow'r of her kindred,
No rosebud is nigh,
To reflect back her blushes
Or give sigh for sigh.
I'll not leave thee thou lone one
To pine on the stem,
Since the lovely are sleeping
Go sleep thou with them;
Thus kindly I scatter
Thy leaves o'er the bed,
Where thy mates of the garden
Lie scentless and dead.
So soon may I follow
When friendships decay,
And from loves' shining circle
The gems drop away!
When true hearts lie withered
And fond ones are flown
Oh! Who would inhabit
This bleak world alone?
André Rieu's song "The Last Rose" is a romantic ballad that tells the tale of a lone rose blooming among all her companions who have wilted and faded away, and how she longs for someone to share her beauty and fragrance with. The lyrics are melancholic in tone and evoke a sense of longing and solitude that is often associated with unrequited love or loss of a loved one. The first verse talks about how the last rose of summer is left alone, with no companions to share her beauty with. The second verse talks about how the singer wants to take the rose and put it to rest with its dead companions. The final verse is about how the singer wishes not to be alone and wants to follow his companions when they have passed away.
The song "The Last Rose" has been a popular tune for centuries, with various interpretations by different artists. The song is often used in funeral processions or other somber occasions. Despite its melancholic tone, the song is a reminder to cherish life and the people we have around us while we are still alive.
Line by Line Meaning
'Tis the last rose of summer,
This is the final rose of the summer season, signaling the end of its life cycle
Left blooming alone.
It stands alone, the last flower remaining, now that all of its companions have wilted away
All her lovely companions
The other flowers that bloomed alongside her
Are faded and gone.
Have now faded away and died
No flow'r of her kindred,
There is no other flower like her
No rosebud is nigh,
There is no nearby rosebud to keep her company
To reflect back her blushes
There is no one nearby to mimic the color of her petals
Or give sigh for sigh.
There is no one nearby to share her sorrows or joys
I'll not leave thee thou lone one
I will not abandon you, the last rose left standing
To pine on the stem,
To suffer all alone while you are still rooted there
Since the lovely are sleeping
Since the other beautiful flowers have already died
Go sleep thou with them;
You should join them in eternal rest
Thus kindly I scatter
I will gently scatter
Thy leaves o'er the bed,
Your leaves over the space where the other flowers have died
Where thy mates of the garden
Where the other flowers from the garden
Lie scentless and dead.
Now rest, without any fragrance left
So soon may I follow
I hope that I will not be far behind
When friendships decay,
When my relationships start to deteriorate
And from loves' shining circle
When I lose loved ones from my inner circle
The gems drop away!
When I lose those that I hold dearest to me
When true hearts lie withered
When genuine people start to wither and fade away
And fond ones are flown
And those that I cherish have left
Oh! Who would inhabit
Who would choose to occupy
This bleak world alone?
This lifeless and empty world without the companionship of others?
Lyrics © Universal Music Publishing Group
Written by: ANDRE LEON M. N. RIEU, FRIEDRICH VON FLOTOW, JO HUIJTS
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
@cleobatista1748
Some say love, it is a river
That drowns the tender reed
Some say love, it is a razor
That leaves your soul to bleed
Some say love, it is a hunger
An endless aching need
I say love, it is a flower
And you it's only seed
It's the heart afraid of breaking
That never learns to dance
It's the dream afraid of waking
That never takes the chance
It's the one who won't be taken
Who cannot seem to give
And the sould afraid of dyin'
That never learns to live
When the night has been too lonely
And the road has been to long
And you think that love is only
For the lucky and the strong
Just remember in the winter
Far beneath the bitter snows
Lies the seed that with the sun's love
In the spring becomes the rose
@balloon689
Mum was so excited to be going to an Andre Rieu concert. It got cancelled due to covid and sadly she died before it had been rescheduled. We played The Rose and The Second Waltz at her funeral.
@estelleromanova3171
❤️
@Rosesarered557
How sad for her Sorry for your loss.
@jacekchrabanski604
❤
@gillianwebster4553
I have chosen this piece for my dad for his funeral in 2 days time. Just a few weeks ago he watched an Andre Rieu concert at the cinema and loved it. His last cinema visit. Two weeks ago he left this earth of his own choice. This is a fitting tribute to my wonderful dad.
@Crystalquartz964
Sorry for your loss @Gillian Webster. I am having this for my Mum's funeral, she died 2 weeks ago age 95
@miariacristinastea3908
Si Roberto ti aspetto con amore grazie
@jfst4353
Hope you have wonderful memories
@corneliaarendsen1358
I am so sorry for your loss.❤❤❤
@miariacristinastea3908
Forse no sei stato tu