traveldk.com

The 515-seat theatre was built in 1910 and was first known as the Residenztheater. It is closely connected to the Theater in der Josefstadt and actors usually perform in different plays in both venues. The Kammerspiele’s programme is made up entirely of comedies.

This is a small and intimate stage, located in a former officers’ mess of the imperial army that was adapted as a Burgtheater venue in the 1990s. Its programme includes contemporary plays for a young audience, often followed by debates and talks with the actors.

The Vienna Concert House was opened in 1913 by Emperor Franz Joseph I and the design, by Ferdinand Fellner and Hermann Helmer, is clearly influenced by Art Nouveau style. With seven halls, more than 3,100 seats, and a diverse programme, including contemporary and classical music and jazz, the Konzerthaus attracts music-lovers from various camps.

When Beethoven (1770–1827) gave his first concert in the Vienna Court Theatre in 1795 he already had a reputation as an excellent pianist. Born in Bonn, he moved to Vienna aged 22 to receive tuition from Joseph Haydn and, briefly, Mozart. In 1805 his opera Fidelio premiered at the Theater an der Wien (see p111).

Two dance levels in an old palace.

A cenotaph from Saint Marx Cemetery was relocated to the Zentralfriedhof in 1891.

Characters from the opera The Magic Flute watch over the square.

Mozart was buried at the Saint Marx Cemetery but the site of his grave is unknown.

Mozart’s instrument can be found in the Art History Museum.

Public concert life began in Vienna with the foundation of the Society of Friends of Music in 1812; up until then, concerts were restricted to aristocratic homes. This grand concert hall was commissioned by the society in 1869 after previous locations had become too small. The society’s aim was, and still is, to promote music in all its facets; until 1909 it also ran a music academy with teachers such as Anton Bruckner and eminent students such as Gustav Mahler (see p59). The school was the predecessor of the present Academy of Music (see p117).