André Rieu plays UAE’s biggest classical concert
Dutch violinist and conductor André Rieu’s debut performance in Abu Dhabi has broken the record for the biggest-selling classical concert in the UAE.
Presented by pan-regional concert promoter MAC Global in association with Abu Dhabi Culture, the 9 March show pulled 12,000 people to the Etihad Arena, Yas Island.
Originally planned for 10,000 guests, organisers released an additional 2,000 tickets in response to public demand.
“We are thrilled to have witnessed history being made with the largest classical concert ever held in the UAE”
“Bringing André Rieu to Abu Dhabi has been a tremendous honour and the overwhelming response reaffirms our commitment to delivering unforgettable entertainment experiences,” says Rob McIntosh, CEO of MAC Global. “We are thrilled to have witnessed history being made with the largest classical concert ever held in the UAE.”
Part of Sony Music Entertainment, MAC Global was set up in 2014 by McIntosh and Daniel Goldberg and has staged a wide range of gigs in the Middle East from Michael Bublé to Tiësto.
The company’s upcoming presentations include Tom Grennan at The Agenda, Dubai on 24 May and Take That at Etihad Arena, Abu Dhabi on 25 October.
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Dutch concert revenue up 25% in 2019
New figures have shown that over 2.9 million people attended large concerts (over 3,000-cap.) in the Netherlands in 2019, a 16 % rise from the year before, with Amsterdam’s Ziggo Dome recording the highest footfall of any venue in the country.
The findings, presented by research agency Response and the Association of Events Makers (VVEM) at Eurosonic Noorderslag last week, show revenue generated by live music events equalled €165 million in 2019, a 25% rise from the year before.
According to the VVEM, the revenue increase is due in part to a 7% growth in the number of large concerts in the Netherlands last year, “regular price increases” and a rise in the tax levied on live event tickets from 6% to 9%. Ticket prices rose on average by 7% in 2019, to €56.60.
The 17,000-capacity Ziggo Dome in Amsterdam was the most-visited concert venue, welcoming over one million fans in 2019
The 17,000-capacity Ziggo Dome in Amsterdam – the city that took 75% of the national large concert market share – was the most-visited concert venue, welcoming over one million fans in 2019. Afas Live (6,000-cap.) offered 80 live events over the year, the highest number of any venue, and reported the second highest number of visitors at 412,000.
Mojo Concerts, which celebrated its 50th year in 2018, remained the “most important” concert promoter according to the report, with Amsterdam-based Friendly Fire recording the most growth.
Dutch singer Marco Borsato sold the most tickets of any artist, attracting 240,000 fans, with André Rieu’s concerts at the Vrijthof in Maastricht and Guus Meeuwis’ shows in Eindhoven also proving popular with 150,000 and 135,000 tickets apiece.
Photo: Shirley de Jong/Wikimedia Commons (CC BY-SA 3.0)
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Everyone wants a piece of André
The celebrity violinist has once again made cinematic music event history, as André Rieu New Year’s Concert from Sydney grossed over US$4.6 million worldwide, achieving unprecedented growth in music event cinema.
The so-called King of Waltz enjoyed the biggest opening weekend recorded for a concert in the box office. Broadcast in cinemas worldwide, the concert grossed $4.6 million over the weekend, including $2.3 million in the UK alone.
Piece of Magic Entertainment (POM), a company co-founded by Rieu in July 2017, produced and distributed the concert. The show beat competition from other event cinema titles released in the last year, such as Coldplay – A Head Full of Dreams and Muse Drones World Tour, which grossed $3.5 million and $2.5 million respectively.
With the addition of several encore screenings, it is expected that André Rieu’s New Year Concert will surpass $5 million in global takings.
“Once again the figures prove André’s enduring success”
Rieu’s fiercest competition is himself. In 2016, his Maastricht show became the highest-grossing music concert of all time in the UK box office, taking £1.4 million. Rieu went on the beat this record two years on the trot. His 2018 release, Amore – My Tribute to Love, grossed £1.66 million in box offices in the UK and Republic of Ireland.
Since POM took over the distribution of Rieu’s cinema events in 2017, the artist has enjoyed rapid growth in established markets such as the UK (24%), as well as internationally, growing by 308% in Spain, 120% in Germany, 39% in Canada, and 23% in the Netherlands.
“Once again the figures prove André’s enduring success,” says POM co-founder and CEO Caspar Nadaud.
“We are especially proud of opening new markets and establishing steady growth across the world. Our aim is to continue this growth with André in cinemas.”
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André Rieu’s Amore makes cinematic history
Classical superstar André Rieu has once again broken records with the 2018 edition of his Maastricht concerts, taking £1.66 million at cinema box offices in the UK and Republic of Ireland and becoming the all-time most successful concert screened in cinemas.
The Dutch violinist, known as the King of Waltz, grossed a then-record £1.45m with his 2017 Maastricht concerts, held annually in his hometown in the south-eastern Netherlands.
Cinemagoers attended showings held at more than 500 locations across the British Isles on the weekend of 28 and 29 July, grossing £1,608,000, according to comScore figures, with selected encores the following weekend pushing the figure to £1,667, 790.
On its opening weekend, Amore – My Tribute to Love reached no5 in the UK box-office chart, behind summer blockbusters including Mission Impossible: Fallout, Mamma Mia 2: Here We Go Again and Incredibles 2.
For the second year, the concerts were produced and distributed by Piece of Magic Entertainment, a company co-founded by Rieu himself in July 2017.
“We are extremely proud that in Piece of Magic’s second year we broke the record for the biggest music concert in cinemas of all time”
Caspar Nadaud, the company’s CEO, comments: “We are extremely proud that in Piece of Magic’s second year we broke the record for the biggest music concert in cinemas of all time. We are looking forward to continuing to build audiences for André and to diversify the genre with new strands of content.”
“André Rieu continues to resonate and demonstrate true affinity amongst a loyal and growing audience for event cinema content. Each year, his performances exceed the last in terms of box-office takings,” Grainne Peat, managing director of the Event Cinema Association, adds.
“As an association we are seeking how we can better harness the excitement of this category to appeal to and attract a wider audience profile.”
Upcoming Piece of Magic Entertainment events include several esports events, including the League of Legends European summer finals live from Madrid (9 September) and League of Legends world championship final live from Seoul Korea (November), and Rieu’s new year’s concert in Sydney (5–6 January 2019).
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André Rieu breaks own record with £1.5m concerts
Dutch violinist André Rieu has made concert history with two concerts in Maastricht, grossing almost £1.5m by streaming them into 586 cinemas in the UK and Republic of Ireland.
The total gross from the weekend – £1,447,086 – is a new UK box-office record, breaking the previous record, also held by Rieu, of £1,408,251, generated by his 2016 Maastricht shows.
Both the 22 and 23 July live shows and the broadcast, dubbed Andre Rieu’s 2017 Maastricht Concert, were produced by Piece of Magic Entertainment (POM), a production and distribution company founded earlier this month by Rieu (pictured), his son Pierre and Caspar Nadaud.
The concerts will also screened at a further 700 cinemas in countries across Europe – including the Netherlands, Belgium, Denmark, Spain and Poland – and Israel, with a second wave of screenings planned for France, Germany, Mexico, Argentina and Brazil later this year, bringing the overall total to more than 1,500 cinemas.
“We are very proud that POM managed to increase both box office and amount of cinemas across Europe considerably from last year”
CEO Nadaud comments: “We are very proud that POM managed to increase both box office and amount of cinemas across Europe considerably from last year. This is a great sign that exhibitors have strong trust and belief in our marketing and bespoke campaign strategies, especially introducing local hosts for all key territories.
“We are looking forward continuing building the André in Cinema brand and to use our experience and know how to work with other artists and organisations in the near future.”
André Rieu’s 2016 tour was the 52nd highest-grossing of the year, earning US$32.1m.
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