Denon Classics' Andre Rieu #1 Top Selling Classical Artist in 2008!

Denon Classics' Andre Rieu #1 Top Selling Classical Artist in 2008!

#1 INDEPENDENT CLASSICAL LABEL AND #1 ARTIST AGAIN DOMINATE BILLBOARD CHARTS

'Andre Rieu's Greatest Hits' on CD and DVD set for release March 3rd

Unprecedented 'Greatest Hits' Tour Begins Spring '09

SANTA MONICA, Calif., Dec. 17 /PRNewswire/ -- Denon Classics, once again the U.S.'s #1 independent Classical label is celebrating the announcement this week that Andre Rieu is the #1 selling Classical artist for 2008 according to Billboard Magazine! Already well established as a top-seller of the Classical music world and on the eve of celebrating his 30-year anniversary on stage, Andre Rieu has always dominated the charts consistently debuting at or near the top with each consecutive Denon Classics release. With the #4 chart debut of "ANDRE RIEU LIVE IN VIENNA" this past September, he continued an unbroken string of Top 5 chart debuts (which also included the #1 chart debuts of "Live at Radio City" and "The Flying Dutchman"). In addition, buoyed by national airings on PBS stations throughout September, the companion DVD "ANDRE LIVE IN VIENNA" debuted at #6 on the Billboard Music DVD Chart. When added with brisk sales of his past Denon Classics releases, Rieu finally landed atop this year's sales tally. Andre Rieu will return to the United States in the Spring of 2009 for an unprecedented "Greatest Hits Tour" with 30 dates spanning April, May and June. To commemorate his artistic achievement and to honor his upcoming 30-year milestone, Denon Classics will release "Andre Rieu's Greatest Hits" as chosen by his fans and collected from all of his Denon releases on CD and DVD on March 3rd.

(Logo: http://www.newscom.com/cgi-bin/prnh/20081217/LA52981LOGO)

Says Steve Vining, President of the Savoy Label Group: "It's unprecedented these days that a truly independent company would have the #1 selling artist in any music category. This is testament to Andre's incredible talent and energy and the legions of loyal fans he now has in the U.S. We congratulate Rieu and his team and we continue to be thrilled to be working with him."

Andre Rieu has already earned the distinction as the #1 pledge drive artist for PBS and now the #1 Classical artist according to Billboard Magazine. Firmly established as one of the top performing artists according to Pollstar Magazine, Rieu has won legions of fans worldwide and his success continues to grow with each new release and tour. 2009 is certain to be another banner year for Rieu with the 30-city arena tour, select repeat airings of his specials on PBS beginning in March and the release of his hand-picked greatest hits collections. Denon Classics' "Greatest Hits" collections include songs and performances taken from all of his hit releases on the label such as "Live in Dublin," "At Radio City," "Live in Vienna," "At The Movies," "Wonderland," "New Years in Vienna," "Tuscany," "Homecoming" and more. "Andre Rieu's Greatest Hits" will be released as a 15-track CD, a 20-performance DVD and a two-disc limited edition CD with bonus tracks which will also include a bonus DVD with five exclusive performances.

A platinum selling artist in the US and Canada, Rieu's worldwide appeal is as strong as ever having recently earned his 4th Platinum certification from Canada's CRIA for the DVD "CHRISTMAS AROUND THE WORLD" marking his 7th video certification from Canada over the last four years. In addition, prior to the U.S. leg of the tour, Rieu recently announced upcoming tour dates in Europe.

In addition to the best-selling Rieu projects, Denon Classics' success is furthered by the award-winning "Most Relaxing" series of releases. Sales of the popular collections have sold over a million units in the U.S. to date.

Confirmed U.S. dates for Rieu's "Greatest Hits" tour are:

4/23 New York Hammerstein Ballroom
4/24 Bridgeport Arena @ Harbor Yard
4/25 Nassau, NY Nassau Coliseum
4/26 New Jersey Prudential Center
4/27 Reading Sovereign Center
4/28 Philadelphia Susquehanna Bank Center
5/14 Baltimore 1st Mariner Arena
5/15 Wilkes-Barre Wachovia Centre
5/16 Cleveland Quicken Loans
5/17 Pittsburgh Mellon Arena
5/18 Columbus Nationwide Arena
5/19 Detroit Fox Theatre
5/21 Chicago Allstate Arena
5/22 Milwaukee Milwaukee Theatre
5/23 Minneapolis Target Center
5/24 Des Moines Iowa Events Center
5/25 Omaha Qwest Center
5/26 Denver Pepsi Center
6/12 Vancouver GM Place
6/13 Seattle/Tacoma Tacoma Dome
6/14 Portland Rose Garden Arena
6/16 Oakland Oracle Arena
6/17 Sacramento Arco Arena
6/18 Fresno SaveMart Arena
6/19 Los Angeles Nokia Theatre
6/20 San Bernardino Citizens Business Bank Arena
6/22 San Diego Cricket Wireless Pavilion
6/23 Phoenix Jobing.com Arena
6/24 Las Vegas Orleans Arena
6/25 Salt Lake City Usana Amphitheatre

For more information, go to www.denonclassics.com

The Savoy Label Group (SLG) features not only the historic Savoy Jazz label but also the Denon, Denon Classics, SLG and 429 Records labels. Savoy Label Group is the North American unit of Columbia Music Entertainment (formerly Nippon Columbia), the oldest music company in Japan. SLG is lead by Steve Vining and CME is headed by Chairman Strauss Zelnick, founder of Zelnick Media which owns interests in and manages an array of media companies.

Photo: http://www.newscom.com/cgi-bin/prnh/20081217/LA52981LOGO
http://photoarchive.ap.org/
PRN Photo Desk, photodesk@prnewswire.com
Source: Denon Classics

CONTACT: Kurt Nishimura of SILVERLAKE MEDIA, +1-323-663-6303,
kurtnishimura@earthlink.net, for Denon Classics

Web Site: http://www.denonclassics.com/

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