A MAESTRO WITHOUT BORDERS: HOW ANDRE RIEU CREATED THE

CLASSICAL MUSIC MARKET FOR THE MASSES

QUESTIONS:
1. Is the classical music industry attractive? If you were head of an orchestra set on beating
the competition, what strategic options could you have? What would be the likely
results?

2. How do you feel about attending a classical musical concert based on what you have
seen in the first video and / or your personal experiences versus how do you think the
average person feels? What are the pain points of such concert – going experiences?
Who are the noncustomers of traditional classical concerts?

3. Some critics and hard – core classical music lovers don’t see André Rieu’s music as
authentic classical music. In your opinion, what genre of music does his fit into? In what
way did he change and reconstruct the classical music industry?

4. What is the key logic underlying André Rieu’s business success?

5. Despite his impressive achievements over the years André Rieu suffered a financial
downfall at one point in his career, as described in the case. Seen from blue ocean
strategy perspective, what did he do wrong there?