Herzlich Willkommen, Österreich!

We have reached Austria! I am so happy to be back in a German speaking country and in the charming birth place of Mozart! Salzburg is s small town with a large history and a lot of culture! Not only did Mozart live here for the first generations of his short life and revolutionalize Salzburg but the entire world, but there are an astounding 108 different churches in a city of about 150,000. We haven't been here long, but the views of the alps, the kind people we have met and the outstanding musical culture (especially during Mozart week- how lucky are we?) have stole my heart. I've found it to be a very welcome change of pace to the busy and exciting large cities of Prague and Berlin.

Photo: looking through some narrow Salzburg streets, we finally see some sun!

Photo: Michael Haydn's grave in St. Peter's church. 

Photo: view from the catacombs in Salzburg! (Located behind St. Peter's church where Mozart's sister and Haydn's family is buried.) 

Yesterday I had the pleasure of walking around and exploring Salzburg which lead my curious feet into two of the most beautiful churches I have ever seen. I was taken aback by the architectural beauty, and the revealing artistry of the paintings that covered the walls and ceiling. To add to all this glory, The first church housed not one, but five different organs. One of the highlights of this trip for me was returning to this church later that afternoon and hearing a dual-organ rehearsal where two organists sat across the church from one another and made beautiful chamber music. This was a real treat. The last part of this miraculous space was the basement that held old graves and memorials to previous archbishops, bishops and priests. This was a beautiful and quiet space that seemed to be a popular stop based on the flowers and lit candles by many of the stones.

Photo: my photos can't do this beauty enough justice. A spectacular view.

Photo: where Mozart was baptized as a young infant! 

Photo: part of the ceiling. Many of the painting were lined with white to give the illusion that they were indented, when in reality they were painted on the flat ceiling. 

Photo: the church exterior from the square. With those magical clouds. 

Photo: one of the smaller of five organs. Was lucky enough to catch a rehearsal here! 

Photo: inside Franziskaner Kirche. 

Last night we went to a Mozart Concert and dinner. This was a very cool event and a different pace compared to a regular sit-down dinner or formal concert. The performers were very talented, a string quintet (which was fun to see since Mozart helped create this form of chamber) and two singers, a soprano and tenor. They performed selections and arias from Don Giovanni, The Marriage of Figaro and die Zauberflöte (the magic flute). One of the best parts of th performance was the acting by the tenor soloist who really brought the show to live and drew in the audience, not only by his interactions with other cast members, but also several times serenading specific audience members or bringing them up to stage.

Photo: the venue before the show began at Mozart dinner.

Photo: Today we saw this beautiful city from above (at the monastery). Incredible.

The last treat of today was a phenomenal performance of Mendelssohn's Elias by the Camerata Salzburg. In the Mozarteum Theater tonight I felt two hours fly by in a trance of musical beauty. The Orchestra, the powerful story, the choir and the soloists: together an incredible show. To top it all off the student tickets just so happened to be in the front row. While my sight was limited, the sound and sensation was incredible. Especially in the delicate quite sections, I could nearly feel the principal violinist tapping her bow against the strings with remarkable precision, hear each page turn and each breath of the soloist. The whole evening was remarkable. I loved seeing how the orchestra could adapt from a full sound during the non-singers sections to nearly a whisper while still retaining a pure tone when accompanying a vocal soloist. This seemingly simple act is so difficult, especially while remaining the integrity of balence and supported sound. The orchestra's ability to do so lead me to greatly respect them. And the soloists. Their emotion and inflection was unparalleled. You could tell each had entered the role like an actor in a play. One part I particularly loved was hearing the soprano soloist sing about the potential loss of her son, praying to God for him to have mercy and save him. The hallow and real emotion struck me to nearly the point of tears. Aside from the emotion, however, what was outstanding was how she changed her tone from a full soprano opera to a soft and thin, nearly a cry that made you want to lean in closer, hanging on every syllable. I don't think my words can do justice for this performance, it was all-around incredible. Bravo, Camerata Salzburg, bravo. 

Photo: view from my seat. Front row ain't bad.

Tschüß! 

-Lyndi