Are you planning your summer trip 2019 and looking for the right destination? Then you should definitely pack your bags for the top music festivals in Austria & Germany. The Salzburg Festival & Bregenz Festival (Austria) as well as the Bayreuth Festival & Munich Festival (Germany) are among the most large-scale and world-famous festivals with their unique musical and cultural programme. Whether you are a music, culture or festival lover (or all of the above), here you are in the right spot to get inspired and learn everything about the most important highlights that will provide you with an unforgettable festival summer 2019!
Salzburg Festival
Every year, the world-renowned Salzburg Festival attracts countless culture as well as music lovers from all over the world and transforms the city’s beautiful old town into an impressive huge stage. Salzburg continuously impresses its visitors with its rich cultural and musical offerings, and also with its unique historical sights. Moreover, the city of Salzburg also ranks alongside Vienna on the list of the most historic and prestigious music capitals in the world.
For more than 20 years, Salzburg has been listed among the UNESCO World Heritage Sites as a "city of outstanding value for humanity". A stroll through Salzburg's historic city centre will make you realise why the city has received this honour. This beautiful spot in Austria also has a lot to offer in terms of nature, as the famous poet and co-founder of the Salzburg Festival, Hugo von Hofmannsthal, described it so well:
"The Salzburger Land is the heart of the heart of Europe. Hardly any other region in central Europe is more beautiful – and of course, Mozart had to be born here."
Salzburg and its region have so many different sights to discover, besides the beautiful historic old town there are also numerous museums, parks and castles in the area to explore. Especially the Mirabell Palace with its magnificent Gardens should be at the top of your “sights-to-explore-in-Salzburg list”!
A little tip in between, for all photography enthusiasts: get your camera ready and head off to the majestic Hohensalzburg Fortress, Europe's largest medieval fortification. Don't miss the incomparable view from Salzburg's landmark, which is situated high above the rooftops of this baroque town.
If there is one thing for sure, then that your pictures will be magical!
The night of the 20 July 2019 will mark that special time of the year again, when the internationally renowned cultural festival Salzburg Festival returns to the stage. Every year, more than 250,000 (!) people travel to Salzburg in order to experience the magnificent spectacle which includes more than 200 musical events. After yet another outstanding success last year, this year's festival will be dedicated to the theme of ancient myths. The impressive programme consists of works posing questions about the human existence and dealing with war, sacrifice, revenge, love, guilt and atonement.
In addition to the opening premiere ”Idomeneo“ by Mozart and George Enescu’s opera “Œdipe", there will be countless other musical highlights: Giuseppe Verdi´s opera ”Simon Boccanegra", ”Médée“, ”Orphée aux enfers“ as well as Richard Strauss‘ ”Salome“ conducted by Franz Welser-Möst and accompanied by the world-renowned Vienna Philharmonic Orchestra.
Breathtaking performances are also guaranteed through the presence of stars such as Anna Netrebko and Plácido Domingo. And what would the Salzburg Festival be without the highly-acclaimed classic "Jedermann" by Hugo von Hofmannsthal? Unimaginable! The eternal crowd pleaser captivates the audience with his timeless nature; tickets are always sold out very early on.
In conclusion... at the Salzburg Festival you will find everything that a classical heart could ever desire! Whatever your favourite piece is, we'll get you your tickets.
Many people across the whole world have the dream to once in their lifetime be able to experience the Salzburg Festival, and if you are among the fortunate visitors in 2019, then one thing is absolutely certain: you will create special memories to cherish also for the rest of your life. The visit is definitely worth it!
And last, but not least: You haven’t been to Salzburg until you’ve tasted a real Mozartkugel! There is only one address for this, the one and only Café Konditorei Fürst. It was the year 1890, when the Austrian pastry chef Paul Fürst created the famous Salzburg Mozartkugel. Stroll along the old town to the Alter Markt (Brodgasse 13), where you can taste the original Mozartkugel (or any other sweet treat you wish, as there is also a wide assortment of chocolates and truffles), preferably together with a nice cup of coffee.
The confectionery Fürst is ideally located in Salzburg’s beautiful old town, not far from the famous Getreidegasse, where you can visit Mozart's birthplace after treating yourself to a wonderful sweet delicacy.
Bayreuth Festival
The Bayreuth Festival is one of the world's most famous music theatre festivals and is dedicated to the renowned German composer Richard Wagner. Since 1876 the festival has taken place with interruptions, since 1951 annually from July to August in the specially constructed Festival Hall located on the Green Hill in Bayreuth, Germany. Due to its unique acoustics, the Richard Wagner Festival Hall is the perfect location for Wagner’s elaborately staged and complex pieces.
The repertoire of the Bayreuth Festival this year traditionally includes a varied selection of Wagner's magnificent operas such as "Lohengrin", "Tannhäuser", or "Tristan and Isolde", to name but a few. Richard Wagner's legacy is kept alive here and inspires connoisseurs and friends of the classical music scene as well as first-time visitors – year in, year out.
“The error in the art-genre of Opera consists herein: a means of expression (music) has been made the end, while the end of expression (drama) has been made a means.” Richard Wagner
2 days in Bayreuth … Apart from a wonderful visit of the Bayreuth Festival, you can also stroll through the nice alleys of this Bavarian city. A sight worth visiting is also the Margravial Opera House from the 18th century, which has been a UNESCO World Heritage Site for a few years now, ranking as one of the finest baroque theatres in Europe. For a nice walk, you can visit the beautiful park Eremitage or Fantaisie with its rococo castle just outside the city. In any case, there is plenty to discover!
...Some culinary advice: for a breakfast or lunch with regional delicacies, you can pay a visit to the restaurant Oskar (at Maximilianstraße 33) to enjoy Bavarian delicacies & Franconian specialities in a typical German rustic inn ambience.
We would love to reserve a table for you!
Bregenz Festival
A further absolute to-do-activity in your cultural calendar is visiting the Bregenz Festival, which invites you for the 74th time in a row to its breathtaking location at Lake Constance. This year it will present once again various pieces of music theatre, concert and drama of the highest quality in an incomparable atmosphere. Curious? Then go ahead and book your tickets to listen to the wonderful artists at operas, plays or orchestra concerts with the renowned Vienna Symphony Orchestra.
In addition to the cultural and musical dimension of the festival, the impressive natural backdrop of Lake Constance is also a major attraction for the more than 200,000 visitors every summer.
The 2019 programme includes Verdi's opera "Rigoletto", performed on the world's largest lake stage, "Don Quixote" by Jules Massenet or "Eugene Onegin" by Peter I. Tchaikovsky. You really shouldn't miss this glorious acoustic experience.
A personal tip: Those who particularly love to take a look behind the scenes should get a ticket for a guided tour and thus get to know the innermost part of the largest lake stage in the world, while you learn interesting facts about the history of the Bregenz Festival. Book your guided tour here with us!
And for the refreshment in between...why don’t you pay a visit to the falstaff-awarded restaurant "buehnedrei", which is situated directly at the festival location and spoils its culture-loving guests with regional delicacies. But beware, celebrity alarm: James Bond (Daniel Craig) dined here during a film shoot a couple of years ago, and usually you can always spot a local or international celebrity there, especially during festival time!
We would love to reserve a table for you!
Munich Festival
The Munich Opera Festival is also a very special festival in Germany, attracting opera lovers from all over the world every year. It always takes place from June to July, representing the traditional highlight of the Munich opera year. For more than 130 years, the Bavarian capital has lured audiences to this cultural highlight with a variety of opera performances, ballets and concerts.
In 2019, on 27 June, the Munich Festival Summer will start with a brilliant opening premiere: the new production of Richard Strauss' "Salome" at the National Theatre. Furthermore, "Agrippina" by Georg Friedrich Händel will be performed as well as numerous pieces at the festival workshop and magnificent premieres of the Bavarian State Ballet. Exciting highlights will comprise Plácido Domingo's portrayal of Giorgio Germont in "Tosca" as well as the appearance of Anna Netrebko and Erwin Schrott at song recitals or Jonnas Kaufmann in Otello. Munich should definitely be among your list of destinations for 2019 by now.
Take your time in Munich, before your glamorous festival evening starts:
Best with a leisurely walk through the charming old town of Munich and let yourself be enchanted by the centuries-old buildings such as the beautiful town hall at Marienplatz while listening to the delighting popular carillon (“Glockenspiel”).
Experience your perfect Festival Summer 2019 in Austria or Germany and book your tickets here with us for any classical event your heart desires.
You will have the time of your life!
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