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In 2010 Gary Bennett released his first CD "Winterreise" from Franz Schubert. This CD was recorded during the sick leave of André. Click on the picture below to get more information about Gary, his CD and the possibility to order this CD.

On December 20th, 2010 the Platin Tenors performed at the Cologne (Germany) Christmas market. Two of the tenors live in Cologne and they were very honored being invited to sing. The concert was done in freezing temperatures, we did not envy the musicians playing with their bare hands!

We did not know much about The German tenor Thomas Greuel. In October 2014 we were very happy to read the following message at André Rieu’s Facebook account. Then we had the feeling to know Thomas a little bit better.

In May 2015 Thomas was suddenly gone. No explanation at all by André Rieu Productions, no good bye. We hope that everything is alright with him. In his place came the Frenchman Eric Reddet, who immediately impressed us very much by his voice and personality.

Eric Reddet with his wife Abigail Richard in the entrance of the Kruisheren Hotel in Maastricht.

Three handsome gentlemen and great tenors.

August 21, 2018: Eric Reddet leaves the Johann Strauss Orchestra. Eric Reddet joined the Platin Tenors in May 2015 to replace Thomas Greuel. On August 21st 2018 he announced on Facebook: “Except the few who know already, I gave up my job with André, and am back freelance!” That is quite a decision and the fans were shocked. We understand that Eric prefers to work on his own projects and we wish him a lot of success.

September 15, 2018. The first concert of the USA/Canada tour was the start of the New Platin Tenor: Serge Bosch from Belgium. He is a familiar face: he already joined André Rieu and the JSO in the male choir before. Welcome Serge!

From Bela’s Facebook: The first concert of the tour tonight (in Milwaukee, USA) was also the first concert for our new Platin Tenor: Serge Bosch from Belgium! He did a fantastic job on his first show as our companion. Gary and I are both looking very much forward to working with him. Please give Serge a warm welcome and wish him luck!

The Platin tenors started with André and the Johann Strauss Orchestra in 2005, with Thomas Greuel from Germany. In 2015 Eric Reddet from France joined them and in 2018 Serge Bosch from Belgium. Gary Bennett and Bela Mavrak were there all the time from the beginning. This is what André Rieu wrote on his official website about the Platin tenors, (when Eric was still part of them). The Platin Tenors I don't think one could find three gentlemen who can sing so beautifully together as the Platin Tenors, while at the same time differing so much from each other when off the stage. Gary Bennett comes from Australia, or rather the island of Tasmania. Bela Mavrak is Hungarian and Eric Reddet hails from France. All three of them have wonderful voices and all three of them have sung in the world's greatest operas. Gary studied mathematics and physics at the University of Tasmania, but with his stunning voice, a musical career was inevitable. He moved to London to study singing, and while there, he won a grant for the National Opera Studio. He now lives in Germany. And where should I start to tell about Bela? Considering that his aunt was the only doctor in his native village, Bela was expected to succeed her. His father made him study medicine, but eventually his voice proved to be so beautiful that he too became an opera singer. Whenever we are not touring, Bela again travels all over the world, preferably to places that are as far away and as isolated as possible. He even managed to sing an opera somewhere amongst a tribe of (former) cannibals in New Guinea. When on tour, he goes shopping every day and returns with the most extravagant clothing and shoes, which he subsequently presents on the soundcheck, often to the great hilarity of the entire orchestra. Eric discovered his love of music at a very young age, when he started to play the clarinet at six. While once conducting an opera as a professional clarinet player, he knew that that was what he really wanted: to become a singer. He turned his life around and started singing at 26. Since then he has not so much as touched his clarinet, and now he sings the most beautiful music as a tenor all over the world. In 2018 Eric left the orchestra and Serge Bosch from Belgium started a new career as Platin Tenor. However much they may differ from each other: when they sing together they create a unique sound, brilliant it is with a warmth that strikes directly to one's heart. The first time that I heard them sing in my studio, I thought: I want to take them along with me on tour! Since 2005, they have formed a permanent part of my concerts and since then we have had so much fun together.

2019: Serge Bosch, Bela Mavrak, Gary Bennett.

In March 2020 the world was in shock since the outbreak of the worldwide corona virus (COVID-19) and all events were canceled, also the André Rieu concerts. In July the borders between Belgium, Germany and the Netherlands opened again with social distancing rules, and the three Platin Tenors with their wives met in Belgium, in Serge’s hometown of Kelmis. Gary and Béla live in Cologne, Germany.

March 20th, 2021. To our surprise we saw Eric Reddet and his wife Abigail Richards performing on Dutch TV in the singing contest “We want more”. They passed the first round with “Granada”.

The Limburger Interview by Ivar Hoekstra December 20, 2025 (Christmas concerts in MECC, Maastricht). Translated by Diana D. Le The Platin Tenors, the loyal trio of André Rieu: "Even in the outback of Australia, I was recognized" They are an unmissable part of his concerts: The Platin Tenors. Gary Bannett (71), Béla Mavrák (59), and Serge Bosch (54) also sing the lungs out of their bodies in the Johann Strauss Orchestra of André Rieu. “Singing 'Silent Night' for ten thousand people, that never bores.” You hardly recognize them in their everyday clothes, because you always see the trio on stage in tailcoats. “But we don't wear those in our free time, you know!” laughs the trio, who are working towards the last two concerts in the 2025 Christmas series. No, they don't stay in Maastricht all the time. Serge: “I live in Belgium, an hour's drive away, and Gary and Béla come from their home in Cologne. Béla: ”We always hope that the traffic jams won't be too bad, even though we leave well in advance." German language Despite the fact that Gary is originally from Australia, Béla from Hungary and Serge from Belgium, the request is to conduct the interview in German. “All three of us are most comfortable with that language,” says Gary, who has been living in Cologne with his family for years. “We speak German at home.” And that is also the language Béla feels most comfortable with. “I am a mix of cultures, born in Baden near Vienna to Hungarian parents and raised in the former Yugoslavia. So I speak many languages, including Spanish, but German is the best for this interview.” And although Serge, as a Belgian, also speaks Dutch, he accepts his colleagues' wishes and the reporter desperately tries to remember the German cases. The trio has been loyal to Rieu for twenty years. What is the chemistry like with the Johann Strauss Orchestra? Gary: "Making people happy with music gives such a satisfying feeling, and thanks to André, we can do that all over the world. André also knows better than anyone how to enchant the audience and get them in the mood. Look at the MECC, for example, which is normally a steel, square colossus, but with the Christmas market and the decor, André has transformed it into a Christmas palace. It's impossible not to get into the Christmas spirit here." And even though they have been giving Christmas concerts since 2019, it never gets boring. Serge: “There is such a special atmosphere, almost sacred. It's special to feel that every night.” The highlight for the tenors is still "Silent Night". Béla: “Because a beautiful kind of calm comes over the audience; they sing along very softly. It's always magical to experience that.” Boomerang Magic that you can only create when you give it your all. Béla: “You can't sing on autopilot; you have to give every concert your all. It's like that boomerang from Gary's country; you have to give it a good swing, otherwise you won't get it back from the audience.” Does performing together on stage for twenty years automatically mean you are friends? Serge: “We are all three different personalities, but we understand each other very well. If there is no mutual understanding, you cannot perform together on stage night after night and sing together. There has to be some form of friendship.” Bond Gary: “When we couldn't perform during the pandemic and saw each other much less, we made a conscious effort to stay in touch and maintain our bond, as long as the measures allowed.” Serge: “And before every concert, we do a group hug; we never skip that. It's become a bit of a superstition; without that hug, we don't feel good going into the concert.” Singing with Rieu's orchestra for so many years, does that mean you get recognized on the street? Gary: “Oh yes, that happens regularly. Especially here in Maastricht. But the strangest place I've ever been recognized was in the Australian outback. A man approached me and said, ‘Aren't you in André Rieu's orchestra?’ Ha, ha, that's really the last place you'd expect that.” Right in the eyes Béla: “If you sing classical opera in small ensembles, you're not likely to be recognized on the street. The fact that we get to perform for millions of people worldwide and can look our audience right in the eyes without masks and camouflage clothing, as you see in many operas, is an absolute privilege in my opinion.” Performing with Rieu in December means there is little room for Christmas celebrations at home with the family. Gary: "But our families will be present at the last concert on Sunday, and then we'll celebrate Christmas at home. No, I'm not going to Australia for Christmas. I still have family living there, but I'll just celebrate in Cologne. It's summer in Australia now, and I've been living in Germany for so long that I find it hard to get used to celebrating Christmas on the beach." Horse remedies In all the years that the men have been singing with Rieu, concerts have rarely, if ever, been canceled due to illness. Are The Platinum Tenors immune to flu and colds? Serge: “I think it's more because we know the horse remedies to nip the flu in the bud.” Does maintaining this level of performance for so long mean you have to live like a monk? Béla: “We live a normal life and do enjoy a drink after a concert. I think that if you are too strict with yourself, you become susceptible to all kinds of things. Of course, we can't spend every evening in the pub; it's a matter of discipline.” André is 76 and has no intention of stopping anytime soon. How does Gary feel about that, now that he's in his seventies? Gary: "Ten years ago, I never would have imagined that I'd still be on stage at 71. But as long as I can keep going, why not? When I can no longer stand properly, get scared, or have to put a lot of makeup on my face to look a little younger, then I'll start thinking about stopping."