If you come to Vienna in early summer, you have the opportunity to attend one of the Vienna Philharmonic Orchestra’s newest traditions – the Vienna Philharmonic’s Schönbrunn Summer Concert. This is a free concert on the grounds of the beautiful Schönbrunn Palace.
The Vienna Philharmonic Orchestra is one of the world’s finest orchestras, and it is usually difficult to get tickets to hear them perform in Vienna’s Musikverein or on tour. The Schönbrunn concert is different because it is totally free and open to anyone who wants to attend. Just some of the superstar conductors to lead these concerts have been Daniel Barenboim, Valery Gergiev, and Gustavo Dudamel.
I brought my musical tour group to hear the 2102 concert, and we had a fantastic time. Gustavo Dudamel conducted. We arrived at the palace a couple of hours before the concert, found a nice place to sit, and then went to one of the many food stands to enjoy some delicious Viennese sausages and beer. (They also have some vegetarian options!)
One of the beautiful parts of the evening was arriving in the daylight and watching the lights of the palace and stage gradually come on as darkness fell. The sound system was very good and there were huge monitors to see Dudamel, the orchestra, and the ballet dancers.
The 2013 Schönbrunn Summer Concert will be part of In Mozart’s Footsteps May/June trip. I just had to see it again and want to share the concert with fellow music lovers! Click here for information about the tour.
Of course, what concert in Vienna would ever been complete without a Strauss waltz? Here is some spontaneous waltzing to “Wiener Blut”!