In the footsteps of Mozart: top pilgrimage spots
Mozarts Geburtshaus
 Striking-looking
young Japanese tourists having their photograph taken in turn in front of a
plaque at number 9 Getreidegasse: there can be no mistake, this is Mozart's
birthplace (Mozarts Geburtshaus). The child prodigy was born in a cramped
third-floor apartment on 27th January 1756. Here you will discover some
particularly moving objects, such as the violin and clavichord on which he
composed his early works. You will also find some portraits of the composer
and his family, a selection of letters and scores, as well as a room
furnished in the bourgeois fashion of the time. The set designer Robert
Wilson has left his mark on this museum with little touches, a neon light
here, a white rabbit there: the enterprise is sometimes disconcerting...
On your way out, note the original doorbells - cables connected to each
floor - which still work.
Cutting right through the old town, Getreidegasse is also worth a look
for its wrought iron shop signs and hustle and bustle. It was in this street
that we made one of the gastronomic discoveries of our stay in Salzburg, the
Carpe Diem restaurant.
Dom
 Our
Mozart pilgrimage continues at the Dom. This colossal cathedral, somewhat
lacking in grace, was built from plans of the Lombard architect
SantinoSolinari, between 1614 and 1628. Mozart was baptised here under the
name of Johannes Chrysostomus Wolfgang Theophilus at a font originating from
the first Romanesque church built in 774. One of the lions, serving as a
foot, has a shiny nose: the faithful would caress it for good luck.
A cathedral and court organist, Mozart had his own allotted organ to the
right of the altar. The Dom has no less than five, making for a sound system
that was one of a kind at the time, similar to our Dolby stereo surround
sound. Mozart composed many of his religious works on this organ, including
his Coronation Mass.
Benediktinerstiftskirche St. Peter
Founded in the year 696 by Saint Rupert, the abbey of Saint Peter is the
oldest male abbey in German speaking countries, and is still occupied by
around thirty Benedictine monks.
Mozart always maintained close links with this abbey, through his
friendship with the son of the owner of the house where he was born, Kajetan
Rupert Hagenauer, who joined the Benedictines in 1764 under the name of
Dominicus. In honour of his ordination, Wolfgang composed his
DominicusMass,which was played at St Peter's in 1769. During his last stay
in Salzburg, Mozart himself conducted his C Minor Mass here with his wife
Constance singing first soprano.
The Romanesque church of St Peter was altered in Rococo style in the 18th
century and contains a superb wrought iron grille - gilded and so elaborate
that it makes your head spin - which separates the porch from the nave.
Tucked between the church and the rocky face of the Mönchsberg is St
Peter's Cemetery (Petersfriedhof). Several generations of great Salzburger
families are buried here, as well as two eminent personalities: Nannerl,
Mozart's sister, and the singer Richard Mayr, a Salzburger famous for his
performance in Richard Strauss' Der Rosenkavalier. At the foot of the
mountain are arcades containing private chapels; a passageway hollowed out
of the rock provides access to the catacombs (admission charge), where the
first Christian rituals in Salzburg are said to have taken place.
Residenz
The Residenz Palace is a vast architectural conglomeration, built (for
the most part) between the 17th and 18th centuries on behalf of the three
greatest Prince-Archbishops of Salzburg, Wolf Dietrich von Raitenau, Markus
Sittikus von Hohenems and Pâris Lodron. Mozart would come here every day to
entertain the Prince-Archbishop after dinner.
Inside is a succession of state rooms, chambers and antechambers, weighed
down with gilded stuccowork, Venetian mirrors and tapestries from Brussels.
Some of these rooms (there are over 180) are open to the public.
The palace also contains the art collections of Austrian prelates, who
were decidedly Italian in their liking for luxury. European painting from
the 16th to 19th centuries is well represented here, with the highlight
being 17th century Dutch painting and some of its illustrious
representatives, such as Rembrandt, Rubens and Brueghel.
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Hotels Salzburg |
Last Minute Hotels Salzburg |
 Sacher
Hotel Osterreichischer Hof Salzburg 
Carl Freiherr von Schwarz built the Sacher Hotel Osterreichischer Hof on the
bank of the Salzach river in the centre of Salzburg between 1863 and
1866.The hotelier Karl Irresberger opened the hotel in June 1886. In
accordance with the tradition of the house, all the rooms and suites are
tastefully and comfortably furnished. The individual character of each room
is formed with elegance. The breathtaking scenery of the silhouette of the
old town and the Fortress Hohensalzburg gives an unforgettable impression. |
Mozart-Wohnhaus (Tanzmeisterhaus)
To complement the tour of the divine child's birthplace, another must-see
is the Dance Master's House (Tanzmeisterhaus) where Mozart and his family
stayed from 1773 to 1781, in a much bigger apartment than the one in
Getreidegasse.
On display in the museum are letters, manuscripts, books (including a
travel guide to Italy with annotations by Mozart's father) and musical
instruments from the period. Here you also learn that the favourite pastime
of the Salzburgers, and of Mozart in particular, was shooting darts from an
air rifle! These scallywags would aim at wooden targets decorated with
ironic - not to say obscene - sketches... We are a long way from the stuffy
atmosphere that reigns in our concert halls today.
The composer's original scores are kept in the reinforced cellars of this
house.
Friedhof St. Sebastian
A radical change of scene at Saint Sebastian's Cemetery, surrounded by an
Italianate cloister with arcades housing countless funerary monuments.
In the central path stands the Mozart family vault .
On your way out, be sure to take a look on the left, in the vestibule
that leads to the church, at the funerary monument dedicated to the
philosopher, physician and alchemist Paracelsus, who died in Salzburg in
1541.
Mirabellgarten
Of the original castle built in the early 17th century, there remains
only the superb monumental staircase adorned with expressive cherubs by
Raphael Donner, and above all a so-calledMarble room, covered in gilt and
polychrome stucco, where Mozart gave several concerts.
Today, it is a wedding venue, much appreciated by the Japanese, who can
follow the ceremony without leaving their country thanks to a webcam hidden
in the wall.
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Salzburg
Airport Private Arrival Transfer
You
think you know the score: the money-grubbers have sold the soul of Salzburg
on the altar of spin-off products, turning Mozart's name - one of the most
famous in the world - into a juicy brand, valued at over 5.4 billion euros.
The
Original Sound of Music Tour