Music in Vienna

In Vienna, the birthplace of classical music, if you don’t really have a particular interest in music, you definitely will once you leave. It is so refreshing to be in this city, as it is a more spacious version of Paris. The streets are much wider, filled with tons of Baroque architecture, which has been preserved very well.  I stayed with a friend of my dad’s who works at the UN. I got a nice tour of UNO-City and even saw the Nobel Peace Prize that his group, the IAEA (International Atomic Energy Agency) received in 2005. I don’t consider myself to be musically inclined, but the Haus der Musik is an exhilarating experience in sound. There is a perception lab which explains the different dimensions of sound and how what you hear is altered based on various factors including an internal volume we have different types of sounds. Cool stuff!  Another floor showcased the most famous composers of Vienna (Mozart, Haydn, Beethoven etc). 

Musikverein is a remarkable music hall built in 1870 (with heavy Greek influence) is the best place in the world for an orchestra to play. The design allows for maximum deflection of sound from the many hollow wooden objects so that mics are not needed and you just hear pure acoustic sound. Though, just looking at the Golden Hall, you wouldn’t quickly see all the wood. With 2000 seats, a seat for the Vienna Philharmonic’s New Year’s performance goes for nearly 1,000 euros, if you are lucky enough to win the lottery for tickets that is. I was lucky enough to get tickets to see another orchestra; I must say, half of the experience lies in just sitting in this magnificent hall.  

And for a little taste of Austrian history, I visited the Hofburg and Shonbrunn palaces, the former residences of the Habsburg dynasty that rule the Austro-Hungarian Empire for nearly 6 centuries. I was keenly mesmerized by the story of Empress Elizabeth; a royal who did not have an interested in her royal duties but rather wanted her freedom. Through the palace, you learn about her strange daily routine.  She was not well liked in her depressive life, yet was revered after her assassination by an Italian anarchist. For art, the Belvedere museum is one of the best; housing one piece called The Philharmonic by Max Oppenheimer. This fiery painting portrays an intense conductor and it’s as though you can see the sensation of sound through this piece. All in all Vienna was astounding, I leave wishing I had a few more days and wondering how my life would have turned out if I grew up here, surrounded by classical music, culture and arts.