Quotes by Andre Rieu

About Andre Rieu:

André Léon Marie Nicolas Rieu is a Dutch violinist and conductor best known for creating the waltz-playing Johann Strauss Orchestra. Together they have turned classical and waltz music into a worldwide concert touring act, as successful as some of the biggest global pop and rock music acts. For his work, Rieu has been awarded such honours as the Order of the Dutch Lion by the Netherlands, the Knight of the Ordre des Arts et des Lettres by France, and the Honorary Medal by his native Province of Limburg.
A B C D E F G H I J K L M N O P Q R S T U V W X Y Z

It is my personality alone that has brought back the waltz and made it a global craze.

Andre Rieu

It is a real piece of art if you can make a waltz sound like it is the easiest piece of music to play, because it's really not.

Andre Rieu

I was the black sheep of the family, and my mother never really understood me.

Andre Rieu

I believe that music in itself heals and that everything is about the power of the mind. I thought if you are happy, you don't get ill. Your health is in your head. When you are satisfied with your work, you don't get ill.

Andre Rieu

I am travelling half the year around the world, every year, so coming home is one of the most beautiful things.

Andre Rieu

When I'm not on tour, I love to have a long breakfast at home in my garden.

Andre Rieu

The waltz is a very important part of my life. It's a very important way for me to express my positiveness, bringing humor to the world.

Andre Rieu

I have 120 people in my payroll without any government giving me any money. We live off the tickets and the records I sell. That is very unusual.

Andre Rieu

The waltz can be sad and at the same time uplifting. You have to see life from both sides, and the waltz encapsulates that. If you're in my audience you give yourself to me and the waltz will grab you.

Andre Rieu

I was a fat child and loved cake, perhaps because it was the only sweet thing in my life.

Andre Rieu

Now, I've changed my life to make sure I work only on what I love.

Andre Rieu

We should make decisions in life with our hearts, not our brains, not only in music but in daily life.

Andre Rieu

When my twin grandchildren, Linda and Lyeke, were born two years ago, it changed me. I felt it was the essence of what life is about, and I cried all day. When my son Pierre, their father, was born I didn't cry like that.

Andre Rieu

I love reading but I never last very long because I fall asleep right away.

Andre Rieu

People don't come to my concerts because they know the program. They come because they love the atmosphere and because they know that when I offer them a program it will be a night they never forget.

Andre Rieu

I admire Johann Strauss a lot. I believe he was a genius of his time.

Andre Rieu

Critics or musicians who attack me are jealous of my success and the fact that I make people feel so happy.

Andre Rieu

The classical music world is so snobbish.

Andre Rieu

Where would I be without Johann Strauss's beautiful 'Blue Danube?' Without this piece of music I wouldn't be the man I am today. It's a tune that brings out the emotion in everyone and makes them want to waltz.

Andre Rieu

Mozart composed his music not for the elite, but for everybody.

Andre Rieu

Author Bio

  • NameAndre Rieu
  • DescriptionDutch conductor
  • BornOctober 1, 1949
  • CountryNetherlands
  • ProfessionConductor; Composer
  • AwardsChevalier Des Arts Et Des Lettres?; Grand Star Of The Decoration For Services To The Republic Of Austria; Charlemagne Medal For European Media