vienna concerts

You will probably get a better answer on this if you post to Tripadvisor in the Vienna forum. There are several expert posters there who can really give you good advice. Though I have been to Vienna many times I have not been to either of these concerts. I can say that most of the tourist concerts (especially done in period costumes) are of lower quality and overpriced.

I'm going out on a limb here, because I haven't attended either, but here goes... In my experience, most of the concerts geared towards tourists are perfectly acceptable if you don't listen to classical music very often. The ensembles usually consist of students or recent conservatory graduates. There's nothing wrong with them, and they play the music fairly competently. However, the performances consist of a rather limited repetoire that relies heavily on Vivaldi's 'Four Seasons", Mozart's "Eine kleine Nachtmusik" and various Strauss waltzes. But if you listen to classical music often, you won't hear anything new or challenging. For that, you should investigate tickets for the Vienna Philharmonic, which is usually touring or on hiatus during the summer.

When I visited Vienna in the summer you could go to the Rathausplatz and see recorded concerts of the previous season. It was a great thing to do as you could also buy food from a wide range of food stalls a la Taste of Chicago. You don't have to stay in a beer tent to drink your beer, and your meal is served on china and not flimsy paper plates! I've been trying to find out if they will repeat this practice this summer and I can't seem to find any info. Pam

Tom's answer is spot-on. I attend a few symphony concerts, as well as some smaller chamber concerts and other performances each season, but I'm not a musician and would have a really tough time determining the caliber of the musicians performing in these touristy concerts (unless they were noticeably amateur). I attended a concert at the Hofburg Imperial Palace a few years back with a couple of travel partners who are musicians. They're both quite proficient and thought these musicians to be just okay (ego check). On the other hand, I thought they sounded really good. Still, it was fun and we all had a very good time enjoying the music (limited repertoire based on what tourists want to hear as Tom mentioned). The setting couldn't have been be better...we were in a Baroque palace in Vienna, listening to the most well-known works of Strauss and Mozart. There were hundreds (maybe a thousand) tourists from all over the world. All around us were folks speaking many different languages, but everyone understood and appreciated the music. I remember this older Hungarian (I think) gentleman right behind us with this huge, push-broom/handlebar mustache, yelling "Bravo! Bravo!" at the end of the performance before the encore...it was pretty cool. It probably doesn't matter which one you pick, as long as it's a good venue that you like. The music will be fine, and you'll have a great time. You can't go wrong with the Hofburg.

I saw a youtube video of an outdoor concert at Schoenbrunn. It was a giant mobscene, I don't mean an unruly crowd but it looked like thousands of people. Large TV screens made it possible for people way in the back to see the concert. The Orangerie and Palace concerts are indoors? In that case, they'd probably be more fun.

The concerts in the Rathausplatz were not massively crowded. There was the big screen, but there were lots of folding chairs and plenty of open seats. I think that these concerts were every night. That would explain why it wasn't quite the mob scene that would have been at Schoenbruen. Pam

I second the advice to go to Trip Advisor. I have received very good advice about Vienna on that forum. I also agree with Tom. One other thing worth mentioning. The tourist-oriented orchestras (eg. Vienna Mozart Orchestra) will use the Golden Hall of the Musikverein. That is a shame, but I suppose a necessity for even the world-famous venues. It does make money for them.
I am headed to Vienna in just a week and will attend a concert at the Musikverein performed by the Berlin Staatskapelle with Daniel Barenboim. Also going to hear the Vienna Boys Choir perform a Haydn Mass. This is world class talent. The tickets are very easy to book: http://www.wien.info/en/music-stage-shows/city-of-music