75 years of André Rieu (1949)
On July 11, 2024, PostNL issued the stamp sheet 'The Magic of André Rieu' to mark the birthday (75 years on October 1) of violinist and orchestra conductor André Rieu. The five personal stamps feature photographic portraits of André Rieu with his violin, while on the margin of the sheet he is depicted as a conductor in front of his orchestra. Did you also know that a prestige booklet about André Rieu was published in the past?
75 years of André Rieu (1949)
The 5 stamps in the *The Magic of André Rieu* issue feature 5 portrait photos of André Rieu with his violin. The photos are dated 1954, 1965, 2003, 2010, and 2024. All photos were taken straight from the front. In every photo, the bow rests on the violin strings. The background of the original photos has been replaced by festive confetti. A separate color layer is applied over the photos, featuring pastel shades of purple-pink, green, and blue, as well as the PMS colors gold and silver. In the bottom right corner of each stamp is André Rieu's name along with the year the photo was taken. A large photo of the Johann Strauss Orchestra, with André as conductor, is placed on the top margin of the sheet. The same colors and background confetti have been used for the sheet margin and the tabs. On the bottom edge of the liner is the following quote by André Rieu: “Three-four time, the rhythm of the waltz, has almost become the rhythm of my life”. This emphasizes how important the three-quarter time of the waltz has been and still is to him.
The stamp sheet 'The Magic of André Rieu' was designed by Anne Schaufeli and Huub de Lang of studio026 in Velp. The theme of the issue is no stranger to them. Both have played the piano, and both love classical music. “And we have a lot of respect for André Rieu,” says Schaufeli. “Especially for how he manages to captivate a large audience with his music. To do so, he travels the whole world with spectacular show concerts. With his music, he also reaches people who normally wouldn't easily warm to classical music. I find that impressive.” Source used: PostNL.nl
Prestige booklet André Rieu (2009)
The 21st personal prestige booklet was published in July 2009 and centered on André Rieu. The booklet was published by TNT Post in collaboration with André Rieu and consists of three sheets, each containing three stamps. Furthermore, there are five interleaves that highlight the life of the Limburg violinist and conductor.
Rieu was born in Maastricht. He grew up in a musical family. His father, André Rieu Sr., was the conductor of the Limburg Symphony Orchestra. His father had him play the violin from the age of five. After graduating from the Stedelijk Lyceum in Maastricht, he attended the conservatories of Liège and Maastricht from 1968 to 1973, where he studied with Herman Krebbers, among others. From 1974 to 1977, he completed his studies at the Brussels Music Academy, where he won the “Premier Prix”. There, he developed a fondness for salon music, especially the waltz.
In 1978, he became a second violinist in the Limburg Symphony Orchestra. Additionally, he was the artistic director of the salon orchestra “I Glissandi,” which gained fame under the name Maastricht Salon Orchestra. In 1987, he expanded his ensemble from five to thirteen musicians and changed the name to the Johann Strauß Orchestra, which subsequently focused on the waltz. In the same year, the production company André Rieu Productions was founded. A year later, Rieu gave fifteen New Year's concerts with his orchestra in the Netherlands, Belgium, Luxembourg, and Germany.
The major breakthrough came in 1994: the Second Waltz from the Suite for Variety Orchestra by Dmitri Shostakovich became an unexpected hit success (30 weeks in the Mega Top 50). Since then, Rieu has toured the world with his orchestra, which had grown to approximately 60 musicians, presenting spectacles featuring classical music, salon music, operetta, soundtracks, and pop music. Following in the footsteps of Strauss Jr., he leads the orchestra while playing the violin, as a Stehgeiger. In addition to touring concerts, Rieu produces specials with various pop greats, which are broadcast on television and are available on DVD and online. His ensembles consist of soloists and singers.
Rieu has been a Knight of the Order of the Netherlands Lion since 2002. On March 5, 2009, Rieu was knighted in the French Order of Arts and Letters for promoting and popularizing classical music throughout the world, particularly in France.
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