Salzburg’s prestigious winter ‘Mozartwoche’ attracts the musical elite of Europe for a remarkable series of concerts and opera during the uncrowded winter period of late January. Restaurants, shops and museums are refreshingly free of tourists, and the majestic Tyrolean landscapes are often enhanced by sparkling snow-capped mountains.

The programs are always heavily weighted towards the orchestral and chamber music of Salzburg’s adopted native son Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart, but recent years have seen the expansion of the Festival’s repertory into the Romantic works of Beethoven, Schubert Brahms and others. Great Performance Tours is pleased to offer a return visit to this unique winter festival after a hiatus of five years, and the program is so exciting that we will remain in Salzburg for a relaxed period of six nights instead of combining a second city. We do not want to miss any of the performances that have been announced.

Mozart's Birthplace

First, we are thrilled to find that the revered Vienna Philharmonic will be giving two concerts in the Large Festival Hall. Riccardo Muti will be the conductor for an evening of Mozart and Schubert, with the Viennese mezzo-soprano Angelika Kirchschlager as the soloist; and Nikolaus Harnoncourt will offer Mozart and Haydn with the French pianist Pierre-Laurent Aimard. Second, a pair of concerts by the Camerata Salzburg will be heard in the intimate Baroque jewel of the Salzburg Mozarteum. On both occasions the conductor will be Sir Roger Norrington, whose programs will include works of Mozart and his contemporary, Franz Xaver Süssmayr.

The Vienna Philharmonic	Sacher Salzburg Hotel

Third, the acclaimed English Baroque Soloists and Monteverdi Choir will be led by Britain’s Sir John Eliot Gardiner in an evening of choral masterworks by Mozart and Franz Joseph Haydn, with a quartet of vocal soloists. Our opera in the charming Landestheater directly across the street from our hotel will be the peerless lyric comedy Così fan Tutte, a perfect choice during this week of reverential recognition of Mozart’s genius. Finally, our busy program will be completed by two chamber concerts in the Mozarteum: ‘Early Music’ specialist Ivor Bolton leading the Mozarteum Orchester Salzburg in works by Mozart and Haydn, with Emanuel Ax as piano soloist; and the Vienna-Berlin Ensemble offering an evening of Mozart and Schubert, highlighted by the Italian keyboard virtuoso Maurizio Pollini as soloist.

This plethora of eight performances by several of the greatest conductors of our time should prove irresistible to old and new friends. The incomparable Sacher Salzburg Hotel will provide a luxurious and welcoming backdrop for an idyllic winter holiday in Europe’s most beautiful small city.