Andre Rieu - Acceptable popular face of classical music?

i think hes toooooo happy......

His cleavage is nothing to write home about. Too bad those girls with the electronic violins seem to have gone quiet...

Bond? 

ATB from George

I don't like Rieu's music, but I don't mean to denigrate those who do. And for the people who do like listening to him, denigrate means 'put down'.

But Rieu isn't considered 'country' music...

In answer to the question: "no"!   

Hey well done!

- What kind of music do you usually have here?

- Oh, we got both kinds: country AND western

Under no circumstances.

I suppose that it all depends on what you mean my the popular acceptable face of classical music. He is very popular and spends a massive amount of time on the road playing live concerts - this can only be a good thing. Hopefully listening to AR provides an introduction to the classical repertoire and then listeners can branch out an explore the wider world of classical music. 

"the English don't like music but they love the noise it makes..."

Surely he is not English!

ATB from George

I believe he is Swiss - the reference was to his audience

Andre Rieu is Dutch from a place called Maastricht. He creates classical music "with a smile", meaning he tries in his performance to introduce classical music to the "comman men"; very popular in The Netherlands, Germany and Sout Africa. I have seen one of its concerts and it is very enjoyable together with 15.000 (!!) other folks. I appreciate other forum members do not like his music, but he is worth a listening !! ... not the origonal classic sound ....

To each their own, but judging from the music posts on this forum, classical and any other kind, I would think Rieu is more likely to turn you away from serious classical music than turn you onto it. The stuff he plays, extremely light weight waltzes, polkas and other new year's concert type music, is more similar to German Schlager than Beethoven.

That said, even though I do not like his music at all, I do respect him for employing a huge staff and orchestra and flirting with bankruptcy all the way.

EJ

I remember an interview with him on ABC classic FM.  You could tell that the announcer ( a cello player) was not impressed, it was a chore to interview the guy.

He was asked what music he listened to at home.  The answer " I don't "

He is in no way an introduction to serious classical music.  He has no passion for the music, only for performance, or if he does have passion for music he hides it.  

Try listening to keys to music on Saturday morning Australian time ( abc classic online, it may even be available on delayed stream), or even Emma Ayres on ABC Breakfast, that would be evening for you You Kayers.  These program's are a far far better introduction to classical.

i guess the real problem is "popular".  It's like a popular wine, beer, food.  It's the dumbed down for mass consumption by people that are only partially interested, and will only ever be partially interested.

to revive the genre you would be better off working to get 10 percent passionately interested instead of 30 or 40 percent somewhat interested.  although there may be argue element that we need both, I say it's better to start at the passionate end so other people are interested in what all the fuss is about. 

i can do without hooked on classics, but then again I don't like mainstream anything much and I already have over 30 classic albums, including a few Naxos best of albums.

I wish that we could stop calling it 'classical' music.

The music we're referring to was composed and written down by skilled, gifted, sometimes blessed by genius, men. They choose form, length, instrumentation, structure, expressive means. Their works have been given to a public, to a culture, to history. They are what they are.

All of the works chosen by Rieu have long since have been accepted by the world for what they are, they sound, for what they ask intelligence, feelings, active participation or for how much they allow passive enjoyment.

What's the meaning of re-writing them?

Do 'people' need simplifications of works that everyone can understand?

I have seen videos by Rieu: he frightens me. His audiences frighten me. They demonstrate that the need for simplification, for customization, for manipulation on thousands of people's part is growing and growing.

I think that Rieu answers a feeling of superiority, perhaps unexpressed, certainly manifested, by millions, and their thirst for personalization. And I think that Rieu is not a cultural phenomenon, but a political one.

The uselessness of his concerts, plus the enthusiasm they arise, tell something of which we will be conscious in a while.

So are you saying Rieu is the Bose of orchestral music.  Or is that kestrel music, given that the or has been extracted.

imagine Rieu played on a Wave clock radio or one of their dreadful HTIB.  

It's a pity that he is DUTCH....he should be German or like Borat from.......

But a serious note. I think he has a function in opening up some music to people which might be attracted to listening to the real thing when they have heard his interpretation. And then they ....can explore further. That's at leats what I would like to believe.....

And the key factor to me is that a musician should connect to peoples emotions and that's what he does....it's needless to say that he doesn't connect to my emotions of course :-)