The creator of brilliant symphony shows André Rieu, thanks to his work, has earned an unspoken high title - "King of the Waltz". Since the end of the 19th century, when this title was awarded to Johann Strauss, no one in the world has been given such an honorary title. Virtuoso and excellent conductor Ryo repeated the great composer a hundred years later.
With his submission, traditional classical concerts have turned into the most interesting performances, which gather the most demanding connoisseurs and connoisseurs of art. His collective "Johann Strauss Orchestra" is now known all over the world.
Biography
Andre Leon Rieu was born in the Netherlands in 1949. His small homeland is the city of Maastricht. The large Rieux family moved to the Netherlands from France, Andre's father was the conductor of the orchestra. Children from an early age absorbed love for music, it sounded in the house all the time. Andre showed the most interest in musical pursuits: at the age of five he took up a violin and never parted with it.
The future conductor studied at an ordinary school, and at home he constantly improved as a violinist. André realized early on that he wanted to be a conductor like his father, so he decided to get the best education possible.
The first stage of his studies was the Belgian Conservatory, then he studied in his hometown and at the Brussels Conservatory. His strictest teacher and judge was the outstanding Belgian musician Andre Gertler - he did not tolerate the slightest flaw in the future musician's playing.
Ryo later recalled that his studies seemed to him a vicious circle that would never open: his every day consisted of study and practice, of practice and study. However, as you know, good works give good results. Subsequent events confirmed the veracity of this saying.
Carier start
At first, his father took the future musician under his wing: Andre played the second violin in his orchestra. At the same time, he created his own orchestra, in which at first there were only a few people. The orchestra has been created for almost ten years. The musicians first performed in nursing homes - they performed Viennese waltzes, which made the elderly very happy. And then they began to tour throughout Europe, where they were greeted with gratitude.
In 1987 André Rieu became the conductor of the Johann Strauss Orchestra, which consisted of twelve musicians. Since then, a new era has begun in the musician's life: he began to introduce elements of the show into the concerts of the orchestra. Critics immediately attacked him, accusing the conductor of turning classics into show business. To this Ryo replied that he did not change the melodies, but simply added visual elements to the performance. For example, the stage during Ryo's concert had lavish decorations, and the girls from the orchestra played in beautiful ball gowns.
Gradually, everyone got used to the new style of performing classical music, and the concerts of the Johann Strauss Orchestra became more and more popular.
Ryo also decided to increase the number of musicians in the orchestra and began looking for talent around the world. Now performers from Asia, Europe and South Africa play with the maestro. When the orchestra began to expand, Andre was joined by his brother Jean-Philippe, and a little later - his son Pierre.
The orchestra has gathered creative and extraordinary people, and the most creative of them is the conductor Ryo himself. He comes up with all the new tricks to draw the attention of more people to good music. For example, in 2007, his orchestra undertook the Romantic Viennese Night world tour, during which the scenery was made in the form of Schönbrunn Castle. The orchestra played here next to two ice rinks, two fountains and a ballroom dance stage. It was grandiose, unforgettable and very beautiful.
The first serious tour of the Johann Strauss Orchestra took place in 2001 - the musicians went to Japan. The tour was successful, albeit difficult due to the flight and change of climatic zones.
The orchestra's popularity gradually grew, and thousands of spectators came to the concerts. In this sense, Ryo even has a kind of record: at a concert in Melbourne, more than thirty-eight thousand people came to listen to his team.
André Rieu tries to include in the orchestra's repertoire not only classical works, but also folk songs, thereby referring to the origins of the culture of different peoples. And once he had an amazing premiere: the orchestra performed the waltz of the famous actor Anthony Hopkins "And Life Goes On", which he wrote many years ago. Rye found him and arranged a pleasant surprise for the artist. The Hopkins family listened to the waltz with noticeable excitement.
Adre Rieu admitted in an interview that he would like to play with Bruce Springsteen. In the meantime, in his creative portfolio there are versions of the tunes of Andrew Lloyd Webber, Michael Jackson, the ABBA group.
The Johann Strauss Orchestra has recorded albums of compositions: Merry Christmas (1992), Strauss and Company (1994). They became bestsellers, and the album "Strauss and Company" was awarded 7 platinum discs. Now the orchestra releases several albums a year, and the number of discs sold is in the tens of millions.
Personal life
Back in 1962, Andre met the charming Marjorie, and in 1975 they were married. The wife became a muse for the maestro, an inspiration and a strong rear. When the conductor was looking for a manager for the orchestra, she helped him: she worked as an agent, manager, producer. And Andre realized that it was she who should be in this place. Therefore, they still work together.
In 1978, the Rieux couple had a son, Mark, and in 1981, Pierre. Now Ande and Marjorie are already raising grandchildren.
