Spending Mozart’s Birthday in Salzburg!

Mozarts Geburtshaus

On our first full day in Salzburg we had a very interesting walking tour of the city. As Salzburg is Mozart’s birthplace and we went there during his birthday week, we saw a lot of historical Mozart sites! One of these was Mozarts Geburtshaus, or Mozart’s Birth House. I got to learn so much about Mozart’s childhood in Salzburg and even got to see his childhood violin! It was so surreal to be in the places where Mozart grew up, to stand where he stood, to look out the window and see the views that he saw.

That evening we headed over to the Festspielhaus to see the Vienna Philharmonic. I am constantly amazed by the level of musicianship of the groups we are able to see, especially the soloists. The first soloist was on the French Horn, and I do not think I’ve ever heard a French Horn sound so beautiful. The tone was insanely clear and the notes were so accurate. The soloist was completing complex melismas with such ease and beauty that I was sitting in my seat awestruck. The second soloist was the conductor, on the piano, and he was equally as incredible. 

On our next day we visited the Salzburg Cathedral for Sunday morning mass. It was so interesting to sit through a service in German and hear a beautiful Mozart Mass during it. It’s hard to imagine that these masses were so common in churches. The general public would expect to hear one of these every Sunday! This is something that I grew up only hearing in concert setting, so it took awhile for me to adjust to this different setting. It was also interesting that the choir was behind the congregation and up on a loft by the organ, not on a stage in front. 

After this we headed over to the Festspielhaus again to see Le Nozze di Figaro. This version was not fully staged, but instead had the orchestra taking up most of the stage and the actors, with very few props, move along the sides of the stage and on the very front. There was also no costuming, which made it quite interesting for points where characters were “disguising themselves as each other” in the opera, but weren’t actually changing outfits. Although this opera was over three and a half hours long, I found that the saying “time flies when you’re having fun” to be very fitting for this performance. While I always enjoy some Mozart, I found this comedic story line and the complex, but pleasant listening music created an opera that I enjoyed so much I can’t wait until I can see it again. I was surprised I enjoyed it so much, partially because I was nervous about the fact that it wasn’t fully staged, and partially because I knew it was quite long, but I am ultimately very happy that we were able to see it, and it made it all the more special that we were able to see it in Mozart’s hometown. 

View from the top of the Hohensalzburg Fortress

On our third day in Salzburg we began with a tour of the Hohensalzburg Fortress. Although the hike up to the fortress was quite taxing, the reward made it worthwhile. I enjoyed learning about this history of the fortress and what life was like for those who lived there. We got to learn about all of the ways that they armed the fortress in case of an attack, not to mention the view of the city from up there was absolutely stunning.

The Mozarteum

After making the trek back down it was time to get ready to go se the Les Vents Français and Kodály String Quartet. Not surprisingly, this was another incredible performance. As it was Mozart Woche (Mozart Week) in Salzburg the entire program was Mozart. The most notable piece was a piece that was apparently written just after the oboe went through some renovations, and was meant to show off that instrument. Of course to go along with that means that the oboe player must have some chops in order to pull off such a complex and impressive oboe line, and this group had it! Time and time again I find myself speechless during these performances, which I suppose is good as it’s considered quite rude to talk during them. After the performance was over it seemed as if the only thing our group could talk about was the oboe player and I can’t say I blame us.

On our final day in Salzburg we saw our last concert with Mozart Woche, and perhaps the most different. Of course it was a full Mozart set, but what set it apart was the fact that the pieces were played on time period appropriate instruments. It was interesting to hear Mozart’s pieces how he would have heard them and on the instruments he wrote them for. The timbre of the common instruments that we have today (ex. oboe, clarinet, bassoon) was quite different, so I enjoyed getting to hear the pieces performed this was. It helped me get a sense of where Mozart was going when he composed these, as he was expecting the instruments to sound like that. This was an experience that I would so enjoy to have again, especially with pieces by different composers of that era. 

Mozart Concert Dinner

That night we got all dressed up and headed to a Mozart Dinner Concert and I loved it. We got to eat food that Mozart would have eaten (which was surprisingly better than expected) and between courses see performances of duets and arias from some of Mozart’s most famous operas. It was easy to pretend that we were back in the classical era at a dinner party where Mozart was having his pieces performed, as the costumes of the performers and the decoration of the ball room we were in set the scene quite nicely. This was such a memorable experience, and although I felt slightly out of place, as, besides for two kids, our group was quite younger than the rest of the guests there, I was able to put that aside, immerse myself, and have a great time!