Mozart Week in Salzburg!

View from atop the Hohensalzburg Fortress

Right as our train pulled into to the station in Salzburg, I could tell I was going to love this place.  A town surrounded by mountains and hills, in my opinion the most beautiful views of the entire trip.  Our stay in Salzburg started like any of the other locations on the trip, with a walking tour of the city.  Compared to the other places we’ve been, Salzburg is very small.  I really liked that about it, and I would always say it’s pretty much impossible to get lost in Salzburg, there are so many landmarks in the town to base your location off, most notably the Hohensalzburg Fortress.  After our walking tour, we went to the Mozart birthplace museum, which was really cool especially considering this was only a couple days before Mozart’s actual birthday.

Mozart's Birthplace

The next day was busy with music of Mozart to hear.  It started with a catholic mass service and then The Marriage of Figaro at the Salzburg Opera House.  From a very serious, religious event, to one of the most famous comic operas, it was great to see how good Mozart was at everything he did.  Over the course of the week we heard many different genres of music by Mozart including chamber music for many different combinations of instruments and recitative and arias for voice, all of which were spectacular.  Many composers were very specialized in one specific type of music, and lacking the same talent in compositions in different genres, but Mozart was so good across the board, and we got to witness that during Mozart week in Salzburg. 

Holy Berlin!!

Well, where to start Berlin is just a fantastic place. I feel like all the blog posts I do start the same way, but boy every city is just amazing in there own way. Berlin has been a beautiful home for almost a week. I got my first tattoo ever here in Berlin, which I do have to say is going to be a memory that will be on me for a lifetime lol!! 

Our city tour was fantastic got to learn so much about how the city operates during World War Two and how the city has been thriving to remember there past and how they have created monuments to remember those who were lost during World War Two. From the killing of millions of Jews to African Americans, Homosexuals and the list goes on. It's interesting to see how a city tries to come to terms with what happened. 

Berlin honestly has some fantastic view from the first day you could see the blue sky and the incredible landscape of the city. From museum island to the cathedral of Berlin to the Brandenburg gate and on is just a high road of fantastic architecture and sculptures. Beyond sides, the view the food and DRINKS were terrific some of the best meals I have had so far were in Berlin. From a fantastic Burger to amazing Mexican food to some kick-ass Italian food just amazing all around.  

It is interesting to see how just within the span of a few days at a city you would like to make it your home for a short while. One of my favorite moments while in Berlin would have to be riding one of the lime scooters through the Brandenburg gate. Which I thought to be funny since both Napoleon and Hitler went through the gate when both came to power in Germany. 

While there, I got to go to the Berlin Cathedral, which has an amazing few of the city. The inside of the cathedral was just beautiful. The dome is just amazing. Below you will see my favorite pictures I took inside of the temple I hope you enjoy them as much as I do! The first one going from left to right is the Berlin Cathedral from the outside. The middle picture is the view once you walk in. The image on the right is the dome of the cathedral. The bottom left photo is the cathedral organ!! Which is just beautiful!! The last picture on the bottom right from the balcony section of the temple. 

 

                 

In Berlin, we got to see two incredible performances. The first one was Andra Chenier which to this point has been my favorite opera that we have watched. The second performance we attended was the Berlin Philharmonic, and I do not have words to explain what that performance was like. Honestly, it was just life-changing and it made me want to go home and practice my Euphonium lol. Mahler's 6th is the first Mahler piece I have heard performed live, so now I feel like anything else I here might be a little bit of a letdown, but that's ok.  

   

Thank you, Berlin, for being a fantastic home I am looking forward to the day we meet again!! ❤️

                                                                                                                                     

Wrapping Up Salzburg!

Mozart Statue 

There is so much to talk about in this city! First of all, we were here during Mozart week which was super interesting to see. For those that don't know, Mozart was born in Salzburg in 1756. Well, he hated it there, and ended up leaving because he didn't feel that Salzburg offered him enough opportunity to grow into what he felt he could become. But, Mozart week did not show that side of things in Salzburg. All of the music we heard was composed by Mozart and everyone was talking about him. As well as there were signs all around the city that advertised Mozart week. I would love to see how he felt about Salzburg taking all of this pride in his name knowing that he didn't like it there.

Group Dinner at Mozart Dinner

Mozarteum 

We got to hear an amazing performance by the Les Vents Français and the Kodaly String Quartet at the Mozarteum. The wind players absolutely blew my mind. There was an oboe player that was just amazing. I have never heard someone play oboe so well... it is a very difficult instrument to make sound pretty. In fact, there were several members of group that were in tears because the music was played so well. It wasn't just the oboist that was amazing, they all were. The solo wind instruments besides the oboe were clarinet, horn, and the bassoon. I would watch this group again without a doubt!

Another thing that we got to do in Salzburg was hike up the side of the mountain up to the Hohensalzburg Fortress and take a tour. While I was huffing and puffing going up the side of the mountain the view paid off. We could see over the whole city. PLUS, we got to go in restricted areas since we were on a guided tour... as much as I have complained about guided tours, this one was so worth it! We got to go up to the lookout area where the soldiers fired and looked out from. This was so cool, it was an amazing view plus it was a nifty experience.

Me next to the Fortress Wall

Me where the soldiers looked over the city 

Last thing, of course I have to talk about food and drinks. We went to an Italian restaurant and I got a four cheese tortellini, yummm! We ended up going back again... it was so good. I got a nice glass of sweet white wine. Something to savor, plus it went well with my pasta. We also went to a brewery called Augustinerbrau. You could get a liter of beer for 6Euro. That's insane! It was super cool experience.

Pasta and Wine

Liter of Beer 

I would love to come back here sometime, it is beautiful! I will be writing two more blogs, stay tuned!

The Magic of Salzburg

The view from where we watched the sunset

Salzburg. I am not even sure where to start when it comes to reflecting on Salzburg. From the moment we got off the train I fell in love with this beautiful little city. Our train got in around 3:30 and made it to the hostel and were checked in at about 4:40. Jennica and I decided that we wanted to see the sunset, as the weather report said that this was supposed to be the only sunny day, but when we looked up what time the sun was supposed to set it said 5:00. We ran up to our room and dropped our bags off, then went running out the door, in search of the closest and highest point we could find. Ahead of the stood the tallest hill we could find within walking distance, so we started running towards it. We got lost a few times trying to find a path that led up it, but once we found one we went up the stairs and the cobble-stone hills as fast as we could. We made it to a little lookout point and stopped to watch the sunset. Watching the sun set behind the Alps, with the top of the city in front of us, made this one of the most magical sunset I’ve ever seen. 

The concert hall where the morning concerts were held

And the magic of Salzburg never wore off. Every day a new beautiful part of the city seemed to emerge. From the inside of beautiful churches, to adventures up the hillside, to all of the amazing Mozart Week concerts we attened, the magic never wore off but rather seemed to grow each day. Each and every one of the concerts that we attended while in Salzburg were incredible. Being able to see one of Mozart’s masses in the church where Mozart was baptized, and where he preferred to attended church, was a truly amazing experience. Attending the opera The Marriage of Figaro and being able to see the entire opera without any cuts, a rare occurrence, was a great privilege. I believe that it was one of the longest, if not the longest, concert that I have ever attended, but being able to listen to every note of the opera that Mozart wrote was a very special experience, and one that I feel very lucky to have witnessed.
On two of the days we attended mid-morning concerts, both of which consisted of smaller chamber ensembles. The first of the morning concerts that we saw was unique because two different chamber groups joined together. In the morning concert the next day the performers performed on period instruments rather than modern instruments. This means that we were able to hear the pieces played the same way that Mozart would have heard them. Both of these morning concerts were unique in their own ways, and in each the music was moving and beautiful. Another one of the concerts that we attended while in Salzburg was the Vienna Philharmonic. At first we thought it was a bit ironic that we were seeing the Vienna philharmonic in Salzburg rather than in Vienna, however their Mozart set was amazing. They performed his Symphony in B-flat major, his third French horn concerto, and his piano concerto no 20. Both the symphony and the soloists were absolutely incredible.

Always smiling in Salzburg

Nearly every concert that we attended during Mozart Week had some aspect of it that made it unique and different from the majority of other performances of these same pieces. Each and every performance that we have attended while on this trip have each been amazing, and it has been a privilege to see each of them, however, the ones that we saw during our time in Salzburg were even more of a privilege to be able to attend because of the things that made them so unique and special. The variety of Mozart’s music that we got to see while in Salzburg also made it even more special. From an opera, to full symphonies, to concertos, to chamber ensembles, to a dinner concert, we saw it all. Being able to see such a variety of Mozart’s music made his incredible talent to compose even more apparent. He was not good at only writing one genre or for one specific orchestration, but rather the music that he wrote for each type of ensemble that he wrote for was equally incredible. The time that we spent in Salzburg was special and magical in every way, and having to say goodbye to such a memorable and incredible little city was no easy task.

Leisure in Leipzig

It seems like my favorite city of this trip tends to be the one I'm in at the moment! Every place we've been has so much history, and so much to offer. My favorite thing about Leipzig was the feeling of the mundane. Despite a population of 560,000, it feels surprisingly small. The city center is mostly composed of areas that have a lot of foot traffic and few cars. This encourages people to walk around and shop on foot! Making my way through the crowds evoked a sense of belonging that stemmed from being around so many people doing the same thing as that I was. I haven't had that experience before.

Leipzig is also known for its coffee and chocolate: patisseries, konditoren (specialty cake/sweet shops), cafes, and coffee shops were around every corner. Alyssa, Kelli, and I walked into a konditorei to get a treat one day, and I had the best cup of coffee I'd ever had. The slice of chocolate walnut torte didn't hurt either. 

Saxony is especially known for its love of coffee! In Leipzig, everyone takes a break at around 2 o'clock to have a cup of coffee and a pastry. It's become a rather strict tradition today. The first European use of porcelain was in Leipzig due to its location in Saxony. It was spurred by the arrival of coffee to the region. This porcelain was produced in the Meissen factory that still sells porcelain today. I was able to have a look in the shop; their wares are stunning, but quite pricey at 200 euro a cup. 

I thought the whole thing was a fascinating example of how the arrival of one product to a region can really shift the foundation of a culture. Porcelain was first in use during the Han dynasty of China near 200 BC, so it certainly wasn't the world's first use of porcelain. But it was an interesting idea to think that coffee alone inspired such a fundamental change in their culture.

Another unique trend in Germany is the idea of the currywurst. Shops will serve it as a regular menu item. It's a bratwurst sliced and covered in barbecue sauce, and then covered with curry powder. It was shockingly delicious. I'd highly recommend it to anyone with some ingredients and time on their hands. 

On the music side of this trip, we've seen some incredible performances! My favorite from Leipzig was the Bach motets at St. Thomas Kirche (church). It was the works of Bach performed by the ensemble he directed and wrote for during his lifetime, in the very church he worked in. The choir was all boys of varying age, with some that looked as young as four. They sang earnestly and with excellence. It was an extremely high level of musical performance, and I'm honored that I was able to be there for it.

Here are some more pictures! The period costumes were provided by one of the museums we attended. Enjoy!

Be Thou My Vision

I went to a German Lutheran service in the St. Thomas cathedral. It seemed unreal when I was walking down the street and the bells from the cathedral filled my ears. I held a little tighter to my hymnal and paced faster towards the main entrance. When I entered the building, they had run out of bulletins, but the usher told me that everything was in the hymnal. My internal thoughts turned into “Yes, but what is the order?”  As I sat in the back of the hall, I was very appreciative of the people

around that knew the order so I was able to follow along with the music. While I do not understand German, the sermon of the day was very interesting and kept me engaged. At the end of the service, multiple people talked for around five minutes and I did not know what was happened and I just clapped when everyone else did. When a bulletin was returned, the usher handed it to me. I was very grateful for the bulletin cause I could then see what was happening for the last ten minutes of the service.

The music in the service was used from the motets we saw the previous day. It was still amazing to hear the same songs echo in the halls from a different origin in the room.  I also enjoyed the procession of the choir and how it changed the context of their song. All of the hymns used in service are placed on a board, so someone could follow along only with their hymnal (if they knew the order of the service). 

After the postlude (which no one moved a muscle for), I thought that communion was going to take place after the service. I stayed around and sat in the front of the cathedral. After twenty minutes of people talking and clapping, I realized that I was sitting in on a church council meeting. I quietly as I could, I managed to leave the meeting space.

The day before service, we saw the Bach motets from the rafters seats. This was very cool because we were able to face the choir and orchestra. Since this concert was my presentation, I expected only two compositions to be played, but the concert turned out to be even more songs and the Lord’s prayer. The organ pieces were amazing and resonated through the space. We all sat there for an additional 10 seconds in silence as the sound dissipated from the final note. The boys choir was excellent. To see people younger than me singing at that high of a caliber was breathtaking. They had very clear articulation of notes and lyrics, while maintaining chord balances and shifts.  What is also stunning about this concert is that a different motet is presented every Saturday. This ensemble has to learn new repertoire constantly and has dedicated their lives to this musical craft.

Close for Comfort

Alps View from the Fortress 

I take the Amtrak train to get from Tacoma to Portland all the time, so these long train rides to various cities haven’t bothered me much. There’s something beautiful about watching the world pass by when traveling. Watching the scenery change from urban to rural and slowly to the next city. I always plan on being productive on a train ride but it never happens. I find that staring out the window, thinking about a million other things is more entertaining to pass the time. As we traveled back to Vienna, it really occurred to me just how fast this trip has gone. I feel both so ready and not ready to go back. I’m reminded of all the wonderful things I’ve done between first landing in Vienna to go back to the city. I really don’t know what I’m going to do over the next forty-eight hours in Vienna. I feel as though I’m conflicted between needing to do everything and not wanting to do anything at all. I still need to write blog posts, repack all my stuff and, really, I’m too poor to do anything besides provide meals. Thus far, I’ve spent the majority of the day trying to get over my cold because the worst thing I could possibly think of is a ten hour flight with congestion. Colby, Janelle, Abby and I are going out in a bit to go souvenir shopping with what little money we have left and then plan to revisit some of our favorite restaurants that we enjoyed our first time here. 

Performers crave audience attention. It’s the whole reason for having a concert, isn’t it? Being able to see all the people who came builds up anticipation for a concert and pushes us to do the very best we can. What if I that audience member was only a few inches from you, though? And I mean, like close enough to touch you. Well that’s me tonight, folks. If I were to stretch out my hand only a few feet, I could feasibly grab one of the violinists legs. I wouldn’t, of course, but there’s always the potential. 

Mirabell Gardens 

I honestly can’t imagine having someone sit that close to me during a concert. Not that I’m any expert in the pieces we’re hearing tonight—because I’m not—but knowing that people would very clearly see or hear my mistakes is an unnerving idea. Musicians are often told to just “keep playing” whenever you make a mistake and because of that attitude, we’re programmed to have a sort of poker face when it comes to performance; to keep our composure when it all goes awry.   It’s something I’ve practiced—I can’t think of a performance where I wasn’t spending the majority of the time thinking about how to not react when I messed up. This concert was different though. The performers were very visibly not shaken by the audience or by the gold trims of the room. The focus was on the music. Being sick, during the majority of the performance, I couldn’t breathe out of one nostril so I felt bad not being able to enjoy it to it’s full extent. At the end of the piano concerto, the soloist, Jasminca Stancul, did an encore of one of my favorite pieces Moonlight Sonata by Beethoven. The piece was a staple of my childhood—but not the way you think. For one of my birthdays—maybe it was Christmas—my mother got me this book called Beethoven’s Wig. It was this children’s book that came with a CD of classical songs set to silly poems. With the exception of the title track “Beethoven’s Wig” set to Beethoven’s 5th Symphony, my other favorite piece was “Beep Beep” set to the Moonlight Sonata. I’ll put a link below. This concert reached me in a more personal sense than I really thought it would. I didn’t plan on hearing this piece and it just happened. The little things are so wonderful in performances, aren’t they. 

Tomorrow is a packing day. Oh boy, to widdle down all of my stuff and shove it all into three bags will be a challenge. Wish me luck! And watch out for my next few posts! I’m excited to write them. 

All Mozart

It's hard to believe this trip is almost over. The experiences we've had have been absolutely incredible, especially when we arrived in Salzburg. Mozart week, a full week to celebrate Mozart's birthday. To have some of the best playing one of the best composers. Salzburg itself was a gorgeous city and was very pleasant to be in because of the lack of tourists with the off-season. This was probably my favorite city for the music and the place itself. I was so sad that we had to leave because I could've spent an entire week there and not be bored.

The Mozart performances were absolutely incredible. The first one we went to was the Vienna philharmonic who played a horn concerto and a piano concerto. Those were absolutely jaw dropping. To have such a group perform an almost spotless performance was a gift in itself. The piano concerto, my favorite part of any compositional works, was amazing with the improved cadenzas to show off the player's talent. Especially being in the third row and on the left side I got to view the performer and how his hands moved with elegance and grace. Since I'm a pianist, I'm very partial to these performances because I absolutely love piano concertos.

Simple stage, but amazing music

Then a performance the next day was Mozart's Catholic mass in the church he used to play at. Also, a full, uncut version of the Marriage of Figaro. The singers were amazing and had such amazing stamina for the four hours of performance. Then on monday we went to a pretty unique chamber group performance because it was two different groups coming together to play Mozart quartets, quintets, etc. These performers took our breath away, to the point where some of us even cried.

A very intricate hall for the chamber groups

They were masters of their instruments and I was completely floored because of just how unexpected the level of skill was. It was another incredible performance. On the last day in Salzburg we say an early music performance where they played on remade historical instruments that were from Mozart's time. That night we also went to a Mozart dinner concert, where we were fed and listened to some extremely talented opera vocalists sing selections from some of Mozart's operas. That was also an incredible experience.

Salzburg was probably one of the hardest places to leave because even though we had so much free time to wander and explore, I still feel like there was so much more I could have seen. This was my favorite city and I hope I can come back one day and see more and do more and experience more.

Chasing Sunsets

We admired the castle from the second we got to Salzburg. In fact, the very first night I ran halfway up to catch the sunset. I knew Salzburg was something special from the second we arrived. Even on the train ride in I was getting excited going through all the mountains. I tried not to look up pictures of the cities before traveling to them, because I didn’t want any bias when I experienced them so I didn’t exactly know what to expect from Salzburg before arriving.

The Hohensalzburg Fortress

 I was in for a treat! Growing up in Colorado, I love mountains and they hold a very special place in my heart. I had enjoyed all the cities on the trip, but Salzburg was quaint, smaller and pristine. Often times I would be walking around the town and all the sudden I could see the jagged mountains peering over the city. It kind of reminded me of when Rainier peaks out of the clouds because it takes my breath away every time.

The View From the Top

Finally, on the fourth day in Salzburg we got to ascent the steep mountain to the castle that awaited. We stared at the castle for days wondering what the views look like. The climb was certainly steep, but whenever I see a hill or anything that has the potential of having a beautiful view, I have to climb it. I live for the feeling of conquering a hill or mountains and then basking in the trill of a beautiful view. The Hohensalzburg Fortress met all these expectations and more! Our tour guide pointed out the Eagles Nest and we could see for miles once atop the fortress.   

The mountains towered over the city and made Salzburg look so small.  Snow blanketed the serrated peaks and I wanted nothing more than to climb that mountain which was about 10 times taller than the hill. It broke my heart to be so close to the mountains and not be able to touch them, but all the more reason to come back one day. Salzburg was a special place for me, and I will always cherish my time surrounded by its beauty.