Please sign in to post.

Classical Music Performance Venues in Vienna

my husband and I will be in Vienna in September. We are both classical musicians and want to attend some concerts while we are there. I've already selected an opera to attend.

What I'm really looking for help with is identifying those venues where top musicians who tour might be playing in while I'm there. I'm not really interested in the tourist concerts that are the same every single night. I would just die if, say, Yuja Wang, was performing while I was there and I didn't know about it! Can anyone steer me towards performance venues in Vienna whose calendars I should look at?

I did find Konzerthaus Vienna but it appears their season starts Sept. 20 and I will be leaving on that day.

Posted by
89 posts

Maybe the best approach is to look up an artist you particularly like and see if they might be touring in Vienna while you are there. After a little searching, I found a festival in the town of Eisenstadt that may have something you like. I don't know names of the headliners in the classical music world so you'll have to check the schedule. The festival runs Sep 10-21. It's called Herbstgold. The town of Eisenstadt looks to be about an hour outside of Vienna.

Posted by
22206 posts

wmt1, based on what? I would have guessed if you aren't a classical music nerd and you loved tourism (I do, it's a great thing), then it would be a great memory. But the best classical concert hall / orchestra in Vienna? BUT, wmt1 I defer to your expertise as a local in that it's the best Vienna has to offer.

Posted by
2427 posts

The Golden Hall in the Musikverein is the acoustic benchmark for all concert halls around the globe. (Not that I could hear the difference between this room and e.g. the Concertgebouw in Amsterdam.)

Posted by
22175 posts

Hate to say it, but all most all the concerts in September at the Musikverein are the Vienna Mozart Orchestra that perform in 18th century costume. While I reserve judgement, that usually signals "tourist" concert.

Posted by
73 posts

I second the Wiener Staatsoper, the Vienna State Opera. It's one of the finest opera houses in the world. I've been to Vienna twice and seen three operas. It is absolutely amazing. It looks like the Vienna Philharmonic will be on tour while you're there but might be worth visiting the Musikverein for a tour if that interests you!

Posted by
22206 posts

Most of us aren’t music experts, history experts, or architectural experts; but we do know a good experience when we encounter one. So this is really about a music experience in a place famous for music, which is not necessarily about the best of anything. Our lack of knowledge is demonstrated in that the thread has conflated Opera Houses and Concert Halls.

In the Germanic world I vote for the Wiener Staatsoper as a great classic music experience but of course its the only opera house I have been to in the Germanic world. The others were Milan (but so many decades ago, I really dont remember much), Prage, Bucharest, Lviv, Odesa, Budapest, D.C., NYC, San Francisco, moscow and if I compare to those, it was still a splendid experience ... maybe tied with Odesa and Budapest on the count of "classic music experience".

But if you are a music nerd and you do want the best acoustics for classical music without regard to how good the orchestra is, then one expert analysis says:

  1. Royal Albert Hall, London
  2. Concertgebouw, Amsterdam
  3. Berliner Philharmonie
  4. Philharmonie de Paris
  5. NOSPR Katowice Concert Hall, Katowice.

https://www.rockfon.co.uk/about-us/blog/2022/top-5-concert-halls-for-the-best-classical-music-experience/
Even then, as different masters wrote different pieces to capitalize on the acoustics of different concert halls, there really is no "perfect" hall for all pieces.

Posted by
5647 posts

What are your dates?

In addition to the Wiener Staatsoper, of course the Musikverein is the other top venue, but your timing isn't right. Other world class venues include the Wiener Konzerthaus (https://konzerthaus.at/language/en-US/StartPages/WienerKonzerthaus2025-05-05) and the Volksoper (https://www.volksoper.at/volksoper_wien/index.en.php). There is also the Vienna Boys' Choir Mass - I see a special performance from them on Sept. 14 at Theater am Park (https://theaterimpark.at/programm-tickets). Jason Mraz will perform at the Stadthalle in Sept. if that is your thing.

Posted by
22206 posts

Every location should have an "Emily". For now on I think I will refer to similar ones as "Emilys" or would it be "Emilies"?