JANICE VISITS
ANDRE RIEU IN BRISBANE

Incidentally there was huge excitement here as the Australian public has knocked Madonna off the number one spot in the charts with the sales of our very own CD - so much for the Aussie market! Andre's DVD's constituted 48% of all DVD sales in the country last month - he is huge here now. There are billboards everywhere, his photo is on the back of taxis, in bus shelters and he is always on the Ovation channel every weekend. It is an amazing phenomenon.

My husband and I waited for nearly 7 hours to enjoy a third row centre seat in Brisbane and the crowd of thousands went crazy when he finally arrived.

At the time his CD was playing Waltzing Matilda and we were all singing along so the photo of Andre in his sunglasses listening to us was his first glimpse of his Brisbane fans. We could see he loved it.

It was so nice to see Pierre as well and I thought the photo of him in front of the poster of his father was a good one. As for me with the poster - well they put that under the official one on the backdrop, which was nice. I did not make it but I thought it was worth sharing.

Mirusia was so beautiful and she just loved being back in her home city - you could tell. I was close enough to speak to them both and it was an absolute highlight.

Now we have to patiently wait to go to two concerts, the first in Melbourne on November 15th and the second in Sydney on the 29th November. It is a huge investment for us to fly to both cities from Brisbane but we didn't think twice about it.

I think the final stroke of excitement came on Friday evening when my husband and I were featured in a close up shot in the news as we listened to him playing 'I Still Call Australia Home' which was beautifully sung by Mirusia and which reduced us both to tears of sheer emotion.

To love André and his music so much and then to hear him play our iconic songs was simply too emotional for words. I cannot begin to imagine what it will be like when the whole orchestra is here in November and he plays these songs with them while Mirusia, Carla, Susanne and Carmen (or whomever he might bring) sing them with the Platin Tenors and the crowd of thousands joins in. It will be spell binding for us all.

I hope this gives you a little glimpse of the week that has just passed in such excitement for us all.

Fond regards to you and all the fans.

Janice

Once a jolly swagman camped by a billabong,
Under the shade of a coolibah-tree,
And he sang as he watched and waited till his billy boiled,
"Who'll come a-waltzing Matilda with me?

Waltzing Matilda, Waltzing Matilda,
Who'll come a-waltzing Matilda with me?"
And he sang as he watched and waited till his billy boiled,
"Who'll come a-waltzing Matilda with me?"

Down came a jumbuck to drink at the billabong:
Up jumped the swagman and grabbed him with glee.
And he sang as he stowed that jumbuck in his tucker-bag,
"You'll come a-waltzing Matilda with me.

Waltzing Matilda, Waltzing Matilda,
You'll come a-waltzing Matilda with me."
And he sang as he stowed that jumbuck in his tucker-bag,
"You'll come a-waltzing Matilda with me."

Up rode a squatter, mounted on his thoroughbred;
Down came the troopers, one, two, three:
"Who's that jolly jumbuck you've got in your tucker-bag?
You'll come a-waltzing Matilda with me!

Waltzing Matilda, Waltzing Matilda,
You'll come a-waltzing Matilda with me.
Who's that jolly jumbuck you've got in your tucker-bag?
You'll come a-waltzing Matilda with me!"

Up jumped the swagman and sprang into the billabong;
"You'll never catch me alive!" said he;
And his ghost may be heard as you pass by that billabong,
"You'll come a-waltzing Matilda with me!

Waltzing Matilda, Waltzing Matilda,
You'll come a-waltzing Matilda with me!"
And his ghost may be heard as you pass by that billabong,
"You'll come a-waltzing Matilda with me!"

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