28 January 2013: Queen Beatrix of the Netherlands has announced she is abdicating in favour of her son, Prince Willem-Alexander. In a pre-recorded address broadcast on TV, she said she would formally stand down on 30 April. The queen, who is approaching her 75th birthday, said she had been thinking about this moment for several years and that now was "the moment to lay down my crown".
Chapeau Magazine, January 2013: At a certain moment a development comes along which currently is not really occupying your time, but does open up new avenues for you again. I am speaking about working together with international stars, who are beginning to find the way to our studios in Maastricht. In fact it started a year and a half ago with Anthony Hopkins, one of the world's best known actors, who had composed a waltz, and asked me if I wanted to arrange this waltz and play it together with the Johan Strauss Orchestra. That created a very special bond, and he even came to one of the Vrijthof concerts. I am still in contact with him. Recently, Jermaine Jackson, one of the famous Jackson brothers, was in the studio. Early this year he’ll come back and it looks like we might be doing some musical things together. Who knows there might be something for the Vrijthof. Years ago I had an idea to do something in the way of "André Rieu and Friends": who knows, that might still materialize.
Another famous person is Barry Gibb, the only remaining singer of the Australian band "The Bee Gees", has now also made contact with us. I have no idea what he has in mind, but it is interesting that these developments are now taking place. In December during our England tour I was spontaneously invited by Andrew Lloyd Weber. Nowadays I'm trying not to schedule appointments during the day while on tour, but this one I could hardly refuse. It was very nice and at one point we were both sitting together on the piano. In this manner we could work together on a special CD containing only numbers of these celebrities. Here is yet another idea. We are definitely not short on those. The recent tour through England, Scotland and Ireland gave in that aspect extra inspiration. In London alone we played for 25,000 people and in other cities every concert was sold out. The atmosphere was great. And to think that in fact we only started in Great Britain in 2005. This was only our second tour. Just as in France our Christmas DVD, recorded in Maastricht, was number 1 in England.
Again many other things arise from that. SKY TV also has big plans for us, including a possible serial. It is possible that this year one of their channels will be reserved for us for an entire month. That is quite something. The German ARD studio is also studying a possible TV series. That is something completely different than a concert. In a way, I am interested, but will keep my basic terms of time and energy intact and will not cross that line. I will no longer disregard my work out and leisure time schedule, not even for a nice TV series. To make music remains our primary purpose. And again this year we can do plenty of that. In the beginning of the year there are a number of concerts scheduled in Germany, and in March we’ll again tour in America. In April we’ll be onstage for the first time in Rio de Janeiro, and if it is going to be just like in Sao Paulo, we can pat ourselves on our backs. Further on ahead, we have again planned Japan in 2014. We have not been there for some years. So, as we continue to fly around the world globe, every trip has a return destination of Maastricht!!!
André Rieu
