5 Best Performing Arts Venues in Salzburg, Austria

Two institutions share the address in this building finished just before World War I—the International Foundation Mozarteum, set up in 1870, and the University of Music and Performing Arts, founded in 1880. The former organizes the annual Mozart Week festival in January. Many important concerts are offered from October to June in its two recital halls, the Grosser Saal (Great Hall) and the Wiener Saal (Vienna Hall). Behind the Mozarteum is the famous Zauberflötenhäuschen—the little summerhouse where Mozart composed parts of The Magic Flute, with the "encouragement" of his frantic librettist Emanuel Schikaneder; he locked the composer inside to force him to finish.

Classical soloists and chamber ensembles perform in more than 230 concerts each year in the legendary Marmorsaal (Marble Hall) at Mirabell Palace, where Mozart performed. Concerts begin at 8 pm and last 1½ hours.

The heart of Salzburg's contemporary art and culture scene beats at this modern, multipurpose performance venue. Its two performance spaces host envelope-pushing experimental music concerts, modern dance and theater performances, Austrian cabaret evenings, and poetry slams. The Open Mind Festival in November is the big annual event, featuring productions created especially for the festival.

The concerts performed by the Salzburg Mozart Ensemble and the Mozart Chamber Orchestra are presented in the grand Golden Hall at Festung Hohensalzburg and often include works by Mozart. A special candlelight-dinner-and-concert ticket is offered.

World-class guest orchestras and Salzburg's own Mozarteum Orchestra appear in the Grosses Festspielhaus and the Great Hall of the Mozarteum during the fall and winter under the auspices of the Salzburg Cultural Association. If you visit over Sylvester (New Year's Eve), you can experience the Austrian tradition of the brass-and-wind-powered New Year's Concert. It also created Salzburg Cultural Days, filling the autumn off-season with top talent and exciting performances.