ALL THE RIGHT NOTES

The violinist and conductor André Rieu tells us how he impressed Queen Elizabeth and reveals the secret of his 50-year marriage

-  NICKY MORRIS

André Rieu may be a world-renowned musician - the violinist and conductor has sold more than 40 million albums, with his concerts outselling Bruce Springsteen and Coldplay but the 76-year-old Dutch performer says he would be "lying in a gutter with a bottle of whiskey" if it weren't for his wife, Marjorie.

"She came into my life and believed in me," he says, speaking exclusively to HELLO! from his home - a castle in Maastricht, in the Netherlands.

"I knew immediately that she was the one, and that I wanted to be with her for my whole life," he says of his wife of 50 years, who has been involved in his career from the beginning.

André, who performs all over the world with the Johann Strauss Orchestra, the world's largest privately owned and funded orchestra, has just released a new album.

Here, he reveals the secret of his happy marriage to Marjorie, whom he met when he was just 11 years old and with whom he has two sons, Marc, 47, and Pierre, 44. He also shares his memories of the late Queen Elizabeth II, whom he describes as “very kind”, his hopes of performing for the current monarch and his plan to live until he’s 140...