In the Corona crisis, Germany is "as always very organized," says André Rieu and also finds words of praise for Angela Merkel.
At 71, star violinist André Rieu belongs to the risk group. However, he is not afraid of a corona infection. "I am careful and stick to the rules," the Dutchman explains in an interview with the news agency spot on news. As a five-time grandpa, however, it is of course very difficult for him to have limited contact with his family.
"During the first lockdown in spring, we only waved to each other from a distance. My younger son Pierre lives with his family right next door. That was terrible," remembers Rieu. "One of the worst things about the lockdown was the fact that I wasn't allowed to hug my grandchildren. Of course, we saw each other again in between – we adhere to the applicable rules."
"We are all in the same boat. We are neighbors"
The EU countries handle the corona rules differently. But what do the Dutch do better than the Germans? "I don't think one country acts better than the other. We are all in the same boat. We are neighbors," explains Rieu. Nevertheless, he finds words of praise, especially for the German Chancellor.
"We Dutch thought it was great when Angela Merkel emphasized in the spring that she did not want to close the border with the Netherlands when everyone else was closing." Germany seems to him "as always very organized. You have found a lot of intensive care beds and a good mix of prohibitions and things that are allowed. I think the Germans are perhaps more disciplined than we Dutch when it comes to their behavior."
He bakes a cake every day
He has never experienced a situation like the current one. "I usually do around 100 concerts a year all over the world." He has not given a single concert since March. And how does he spend all that free time now? "I've always enjoyed cooking and discovered baking for myself during the pandemic. Since then, I've been baking a big cake for the whole street every day." With his wife Marjorie he also produced a new album, "Fröhliche Winterzeit", which was released on November 13th. A concert film is also being planned.
He also receives many interview and TV requests from all over the world. "A lot of TV stations are having a hard time producing now, and we have a lot of happy concert material. I hope this can cheer people up. I get a lot of letters from older fans that the pandemic has hit them very hard. Many are all alone or are getting hardly any visitors for fear of being infected. We mustn't forget them. "