“The Limburger”, July 9, 2024, by Ronald Colée. Photo credits: Mitchell Giebels. Translation: Ineke, edited by Diana D. Le Phil Bee waited two years for an answer to his email, now he is “special guest” with André Rieu: “This is Champions League” Philippe Bastiaans – alias Phil Bee – has completed his first weekend as a special guest at André Rieu's Vrijthof concerts and is completely overwhelmed. “I thought I was used to it,” says the 65-year-old singer from Wijlre (town), who won The Voice Senior in 2021. “But this is a different story, this is the Champions League. This is Real Madrid.” (top soccer team from Spain). “After winning The Voice Senior, I simply took the plunge and asked my eldest sister Geneviève if I could have Marjorie Rieu's email address.” Singer Phil Bee (65) explains how he ended up as a special guest at André Rieu's Vrijthof concerts. “'Ginette' and Marjorie used to be in class together at grammar school and I knew that they still had contact every now and then. So, like hundreds of others, I took the chance and sent an email asking if it wouldn't be nice if, as a Maastricht resident - because that's what I've felt since I went to high school there and learned the language, would sing When a Man Loves a Woman or something on the Vrijthof.” An email to which he received no response for two years. Until last October, his phone suddenly rang. “An unknown number. I answered it anyway - it was still a booking - and heard on the other end of the line: 'With André'. I immediately put the phone on speaker.” Bare bottom This way, his wife Jacqueline was able to listen to how the Maastricht orchestra leader invited him to come to the studio in Maastricht a few days later. “It felt like I was standing there naked. I hadn't even taken off my coat when I was asked to sing. One meter away from himself. I found that quite intimidating. After I had sung for fifteen minutes, he asked: What are you doing next July?” Yet, the penny did not drop. “I knew that my band and I had a big performance scheduled for July 12 at the Playing with Fire festival in Omaha, Nebraska. So I asked: Why? ‘Do you know the Vrijthof concerts?’ André replied. Of course I knew it. ‘I want you to join in.’ ‘All twelve?’ I asked. ‘What do you think?’ I was completely overwhelmed, immediately said yes, and canceled the concert in the USA.” Bastiaans asked Rieu when he could make the news public. “‘Not,’ was his reply. 'Only after the first concert, because you are the special guest'.” Fairly short day Now looking back on that audition last October, Bastiaans thinks that Rieu deliberately did not make him feel at ease. “To see how you deal with stress. In addition, it is of course also a good indicator for him to hear how someone sings baldly and acoustically live, instead of on a YouTube video or during a TV broadcast.” Bastiaans was supposed to sing two songs. Delilah by Tom Jones and another song ("No, I won't say which one") that was eventually replaced by Sweet Caroline by Neil Diamond. “Two weeks before the last rehearsal, so that was quite a short time. This may still work in a karaoke bar, but it is a different story for twelve thousand spectators on the Vrijthof. Then you have to pull it hard.” Last Thursday was the day. “The intention was that I would perform around half past eleven in the evening, but because a visitor became unwell twice, my turn did not arrive until after twelve. It was like being hit on the head with a pillow when I first saw that crowd. I don't often suffer from nervousness, but at that moment I had to pinch myself.” Hyper-concentrated Now Bastiaans was used to an audience - "I have once stood in front of six thousand people on the main stage of Ribs & Blues in Raalte (town) and once before in front of about ten thousand people at the Zomerparkfeest (Summerpark party) in Venlo, but that was at times that two-thirds of the audience with their backs turned were chatting about how the holiday had been” – but this was different. “Everyone watched, sang along, and clapped along. Very, very impressive. But also fán-tás-tic.” Now that he has completed four concerts, Bastiaans notices that he is already becoming a little more relaxed. “Those first three days I was hyper-concentrated. I mean, I've performed with the Customs Orchestra before – there were also about sixty or seventy of them – but this is a different story. This is Champions League. This is Real Madrid.” He feels like that kid from Margraten and later Maastricht who played tennis at national level between the ages of fifteen and twenty-five. “Preparation is everything. So, just like then, I make sure I have a good warm-up and that all my gear is in tip-top condition. In this case, my voice. So I still rehearse these two songs every day for half an hour to 45 minutes. Because I can't afford to make a mistake.” The Voice Senior What's next? Bastiaans has no idea. “When I was allowed to do a theater tour with Johan Derksen in 2019, I thought it was incredible. When I subsequently won The Voice Senior in 2021, I thought: this cannot be surpassed. Now, I will be singing here for twelve evenings with André Rieu and his orchestra in front of a sold-out Vrijthof, and after that, a tour of eighty theaters with the Phil Bee Cocker Band awaits me. Then, I'll just wait and see what kind of outcome these Vrijthof performances will have.