Andre Rieu is a Dutch violinist, conductor, and composer best known for creating the waltz-playing "Johann Strauss Orchestra". His father was conductor of the Maastricht Symphony Orchestra, spurring Rieu's love of music early in his life. He began studying violin at the tender age of five, and then went on to the Conservatoire Royal in Liège and the Conservatorium Maastricht to continue his apprenticeship with the instrument. From 1974 to 1977, he attended the Music Academy in Brussels, studying with André Gertler, winning the Premier Prix at the academy. Rieu decided to pursue the waltz form of symphony orchestra, forming the Maastricht Salon Orchestra and performing as a violinist with the Limburg Symphony Orchestra. In 1987, he created the very popular "Johann Strauss Orchestra." His melodramatic stage performances and rock-star demeanor has led to a revival of the waltz music category.
Rieu and his orchestra's performances have been broadcast in the United Kingdom and the United States on the PBS television network, such as the 2003 airing of "Andre Rieu Live in Dublin," and 2005's "André Rieu Live in Tuscany,” filmed in the Piazza Della Repubblica in the village of Cortona in Tuscany. Rieu is known for playing a 1667 Stradivarius violin. The famed conductor is currently touring Europe, so be sure to purchase your Andre Rieu Tickets to see him perform at your local Concert Venue.