Salzburg is the city where Mozart was born and spent a great portion of his life. Although the composer was discontented with Salzburg because the city provided only rare occasions for operas which Mozart longed to compose, he had a great number of friends and admirers in Salzburg.
The city of Salzburg is proud of being the birthplace of one of the world’s greatest composers. It has several organizations dedicated to celebrating Mozart’s life and work. One of the most influential organizations of this kind is the International Mozarteum Foundation known for hosting numerous cultural events including the Mozart Week festival.
The Mozart Week is a series of concerts dedicated to Mozart’s birthday. The festival features orchestral and chamber concerts, opera performances and soloist recitals. Each January, world-renowned soloists, ensembles and orchestras come to Salzburg from around the world to perform their interpretations of Mozart’s works in front of a wide audience. Renowned musicians and ensembles that have performed at the festival include Sir András Schiff, the Artemis Quartet, and the Hagen Quartet. The festival has also welcomed a number of famous conductors such as Karl Böhm, Gustavo Dudamel, Ivor Bolton, Marc Minkowski, Nikolaus Harnoncourt, and Georges Prêtre.
The festival performances are held in several venues operated by the Mozarteum Foundation such as the Great Hall and the Viennese Hall. Operas and big orchestral concerts take place in three venues of the Salzburg Festival – the Felsenreitschule theater, the House for Mozart theater, and the Large Festival House.
Salzburg’s Mozart Week is one of the highlights of the European concert calendar. It welcomes attendees from around the world to rediscover the finest of Mozart’s works and to hear them anew in various interpretations.
In 2021, the event was held online due to the coronavirus pandemic.
Photo: mozarteum.at
