De Limburger, RTV Maastricht Text and photos by Laurens Bouvrie; other photos by Harry Heuts, or screenshots by Ineke. February 28, 2025 Translation Ineke/John Power to the people goes hand in hand with “Make Maastricht Great Again”. With the wreath around the neck of “the Mooswief” (statue of a greengrocer located on the Market square) up to and including the “polonaise” (conga line) after the Transfer of Power ceremony on the square in the town hall; you could see it all during the live broadcast of RTV Maastricht on Saturday afternoon. City photographer Laurens Bouvrie was also present. With an extensive atmospheric reportage, he once again shows the highlights of the traditional moments and the protagonists and guests. How the Maastricht carnival Prince Carlo I will be enjoying his big moment at 't Mooswief. Just like all his predecessors, he will not soon forget the moment he comes face to face with the carnival symbol. Just like the finale of the Transfer of Power. After the wrangling between mayor Wim Hillenaar and Tempeleer leader Georges van Zeijl, the first citizen of Maastricht knows that he has no choice but to hand over the power (the city-key) for three days to the carnival prince and thus to the people of Maastricht. Trump But he does not do so, before he impressively mocks the 47th president of the United States. With gusto! His “Make Maastricht Great Again”-speech, according to a spokesperson for the municipality of Maastricht, was already an opening in the mayor's script book from the start. The way Donald Trump has shown himself in recent weeks made it very exciting for “Team Hillenaar”. Charme The manner in which Wim Hillenaar opened the Transfer of Power ceremony was impressive. Not only lyrically. The always friendly-looking mayor of the Limburg capital managed to create a face with his facial expressions so that little and big rulers not have to act for it. Otoriteitetoeker (Dialect for someone who makes fun of the authorities) The “Otoriteitetoeker” of the Tempeleers knew how to enrapture the audience especially with the song “Bonbonnière” to the music of Charles Aznavour's “La Bohème.” And his duo performance with Struys- host Henri Hochstenbag, in which he mocked the city council to rule the city like monkeys in the jungle, also receiving a lot of applause. Not in the least because of the musical contribution of “'t Mestreechs Vastelaovendsorkes”. (Maastricht's carnival orchestra) Invited guests As always, the Transfer of Power ceremony was attended by numerous dignitaries. In the front seats were, among others, the Minister of Economic Affairs, Dirk Beljaarts, former governor Theo Bovens and the Maastricht world star André Rieu. Three predecessors of Wim Hillenaar were also present. Gerd Leers, Onno Hoes and Annemarie Penn joined in the final, just like all aldermen, in the conga line.

For more information about the revival of the tradition of Hieringebiete concerts by the Maastricht Salon Orchestra (MSO) on Ash Wednesday, click HERE.

Video by L1, AshWednesday March 5, 2025. Hieringebiete concert. Maastrichts Salon Orchestra. Duration: 80 minutes. Guest singer: John Tana. (subtitles follow later). MSO: Frank Steijns piano, Gosia Loboda violin, Justinas Kaunas violin, Tanja Derwahl, cello, Camila Langue Cipoletta, double bass.

Singing the Maastricht Anthem.

Start of the carnival festivities: a tribute to the greengrocer’s statue, Carnival’s symbol: ‘t Mooswief.

Ceremony in the townhall.

The Limburger, March 6, 2025 By René Willems. Translation by Ineke, edited by Diana D. Le Maastricht: Carnival report With the “Hieringebiete (Eating herring) concert”, a piece of nostalgia returns after more than 30 years. Three days of carnival have become five days in Maastricht, including Friday and Saturday. Or rather: six, because yesterday the ancient Hieringebiete concert was revived in the city. André Rieu himself would not be on stage, that was extensively announced in advance. More or less at the request of the municipality of Maastricht, which fully realizes that the intimate Onze Lieve Vrouweplein would be too small, if the fans knew that their Maestro would be playing there. But among the true Rieu fans, there is still a little hope that they would catch a glimpse of their idol on this Ash Wednesday. And look, there he is. Behind the stage, checking whether everything is in order for the Hieringebiete concert of his Maastricht Salon Orchestra. Linda Nijsten spotted him right away. She has come down from Twente to Maastricht, the city where she lived for a few years in the eighties when she worked here at customs. She takes her mobile phone out of her bag: "Look, I'm in the picture with him. He wasn't difficult about it at all. 'It costs four hundred euros', he said. But that was a joke." Young André Rieu For many older Maastricht residents, the open-air concert on Onze Lieve Vrouweplein is a bit of nostalgia. In their younger years, carnival in Maastricht also lasted a day longer, with the annual Hieringebiete concert by the Maastricht Salon Orchestra of a still young André Rieu. Frank Steijns, violinist with the Johann Strauss Orchestra and pianist with the Salon Orchestra, can't really remember it: "I was still a teenager at the time." This applies even more to president Bastiaan Klomp of De Tempeleers, who as a young boy sat on the edge of the stage in the theatre during those concerts. Light classical The concert on Ash Wednesday is back after more than thirty years. With a new Maastricht Salon Orchestra, with five musicians from Rieu's big Johann Strauss Orchestra: Gosia Loboda (Poland, first violin), Justinas Kaunas (Lithuania, second violin), Tanja Derwahl (Belgium, cello), Camilla Langue Cipoletta (Argentina, double bass) and Frank Steijns from Maastricht (piano). The location has also changed: from the cosy Bonbonnière (small theatre) to the atmospheric square in front of the Onze Lieve Vrouwe (Our Dear Lady). But the layout is still just as back then, with cheerful, light classical music as the conclusion of a tiring carnival weekend. In itself, the combination of classical music and carnival is not strange. Steijns explains: "Many carnival songs are originally classical works, such as Funiculi Funicula". This is also evident when the quintet opens the concert with that tune. The audience sings along at the top of their lungs. Eric and Dorien Becker from Leusden look on in surprise. They have just arrived in Maastricht. "We waited a while until carnival was over," they say. And now they are right in the middle of it. They know the melodies that the Salon Orchestra plays. But they leave the singing along to the people of Maastricht. Program The atmosphere is relaxed. Nice. Cosy. But it remains a real Rieu concert. Rieu himself rehearsed the programme with the new Salon Orchestra. "If dad links his name to something, it has to be quality," explains son Pierre. "We do it well or we don't do it at all." The big question is: will André himself also appear on stage? Not at first. The Maastricht Salon Orchestra does have another surprise for the audience: John Tana (local singer) jumps on stage and sings two of his songs translated from French, with the orchestra. The audience is pleasantly surprised; the mobile phones are immediately put in place for a quick photo. And then it happens anyway. During the traditional final song of the Rieu concerts "Adieu, mein kleiner Gardeoffizier", the big boss himself comes out from behind the scenes. He waves enthusiastically to the ecstatic audience. The square waves back just as enthusiastically.