Andre Rieu, Masterpieces.

This is the CD that matter!

I first saw Andre Rieu Live at Maastricth on one of the Astro special channels during the 2009 New Years program. It was an excellent introduction to the violinist's gifted musical performance, not to mention, very entertaining too. The concert ends with the whole of Andre's hometown folks dancing in carnival like party ambiance! Andre's ability to connect with his audiences and me, the television viewer is great. You can't help but to like him, and his music.

If you missed the Astro telecast, you can get the DVD of the Maastricht concert in either packaging design, also available from the www mentioned below.

I promptly went on to purchase this CD at the http://www.amazon.com/ site, along with a few other items. I've being hooked on this CD ever since.

Andre is Dutch, but has many a gift for all Strauss melodies and Waltzes. His rather light handed playing style makes the music of Strauss come alive, free from a certain heaviness of sound structure that plague so many of other Straus interpretations. My favorite march track, Redetsky's March, has a certain flow to it, played during track 1, tittled Strauss Party, which is a quick medley of the composer's most popular music. Track 2, aptly named Second Waltz, is also makes an enduring listen.

The CD's sound quality is pretty good, but not quite up to the standards set by some of the best DG or Decca recordings. An example is the Sophie Anne Mutter's interpretation of Carmen-Fantasie, recorded in 4D Stereo(Whatever that means?) by DG. Also from my own personal point of view, the track 11, Meditation taken from Thais, by Jules Massenet, Andre's lighter touch on the violin seems to have also taken out some of the emotional sadness, so felt by Sophie Anne Mutter's interpretation of the same tune. But well, that's just me and my beef!

I love the pretty Sophie Anne Mutter! and her Carmen Fantasie performance, including the filler, Meditation from Thais, by Jules Massenet. The recording is first rate too!

Overall, I'd consider this to be an easy, like able first step entry in to the classical genre, or for those whom seems to have heard em' all, a refreshingly light hearted take in to an otherwise serious music genre.