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Rocking the classics

SINGAPORE — There are classical music concerts and then there are classical music concerts by Andre Rieu and the Johann Strauss Orchestra (JSO). While the former tend to be seen as elitist or staid affairs, with the orchestra performing its set and the audience showing their appreciation via hearty applause, Dutch violinist and conductor Rieu said that needn’t always be the case.

SINGAPORE — There are classical music concerts and then there are classical music concerts by Andre Rieu and the Johann Strauss Orchestra (JSO). While the former tend to be seen as elitist or staid affairs, with the orchestra performing its set and the audience showing their appreciation via hearty applause, Dutch violinist and conductor Rieu said that needn’t always be the case.

“How can this beautiful music be elitist? And at the time when it was composed, the 18th, 19th century — it wasn’t elitist at all. People had fun, they ate, they talked, they danced — they had a great time,” he said.

“And I really wish more classical orchestras would start to communicate with the audience during their concerts. I talk to the people, I want to interact with them and I am very curious how this will be in Singapore.”

Rieu and the JSO, which he started in 1987, will be performing on April 16 at the Singapore Indoor Stadium, and Rieu promised it will be “colourful, fun and lively”. “It will make you laugh, weep and dance in the aisles. It will be like the shows you’ve seen online, but the repertoire will be different. Every year we travel the world with a new repertoire — with music I choose with my heart. I have invited great international singers to come to Singapore with me. And of course you will hear the most beautiful waltzes from Vienna, music from films and operas.”

Of course, there are detractors who scoff at Rieu’s style, accusing him of employing “emotionalism and theatrical flourishes”, saying that it “cheapens the classical music experience”. “It makes me sad because I think many critics with that opinion have never actually seen one of our concerts live,” he said. “Do ‘emotionalism and theatrical flourishes’ really cheapen classical music? The opposite would be no emotions and a boring scenery. Is that really what they want?”

He has a point. And considering that his concert tour with the JSO last year was ranked No 20 in Billboard’s Top 25 tours of 2013 — beating Lady Gaga, Bruno Mars and Iron Maiden — he probably is onto something.

“It’s wonderful that our concerts with classical music reach so many people around the world. I am very proud that we make their lives better,” he said. “I am not a particular fan of comparison, but today, statistics are everything, aren’t they? I would not change my way of making music just to please anyone, though. I think this is what makes us successful: We are 100 per cent authentic. And Billboard seems to have proven us right.”

All this didn’t come easily though. “We’ve worked very hard for this, believe me,” Rieu said. “I have 120 people on my monthly payroll and I don’t get funding from the government. We play around 100 concerts per year, every year.”

And Rieu isn’t afraid of hard work. The 64-year-old still practises three hours a day, but he said it’s also necessary to have full dedication to the craft in order to get any measure of success.

“The most important thing is to follow your heart. I trust my intuition. I was a member of my father’s orchestra in the Netherlands. But I felt that playing in an orchestra was not for me. I wanted the freedom to choose my own repertoire,” he said, before adding: “And here’s another piece of advice: Find a wife or a husband who will support you, no matter what! Because in the beginning, it is never going to be easy.”

What Rieu would like is for the concert experience here to be a memorable one. “I really hope that our audience will always remember the nights they’ve spent with us. And when they do, I hope the memory will make them smile.”

Andre Rieu performs on April 16, 8pm at the Singapore Indoor Stadium. Tickets from Sports Hub Tix (http://www.sportshub.com.sg/sportshubtix)

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