HAYDN AT EISENSTADT
Each September the magnificent 17th century Schloss Esterházy in Eisenstadt, capital of the Austrian province of Burgenland, hosts an international festival in honour of the town’s adopted son, Joseph Haydn.
Haydn (1732-1809) spent most of his career as a court musician for the aristocratic Eszterházy family, both in Eisenstadt itself and just across the Hungarian border at Fertöd, where we will visit another of the great Esterházy palaces. Haydn’s former home in Eisenstadt is now a museum and the composer is buried in the town’s Bergkirche.
A unique attraction of the Eisenstadt Festspiele is the opportunity to hear Haydn’s music in the very rooms for which it was composed. The 2010 festival will celebrate Haydn’s genius in many genres: we will hear his final great oratorio The Seasons, performed by the Austro-Hungarian Philharmonia under Adam Fischer, and the award-winning Finnish string quartet Meta4 will play two of his quartets (from Op 64 and 76) alongside Schumann’s A Major Quartet. And then there are the symphonies, ranging from the relatively little-known No 59 through Nos 82 and 90 to the famous London masterpieces The Military, The Clock and The Drumroll.
Although Haydn’s music naturally dominates the programmes, we will also hear work by Mozart (Melvyn Tan plays his Piano Concerto K 413), Beethoven (Triple Concerto), Pergolesi and Cherubini.
In Vienna we will tour the house where Haydn lived from 1795 until his death, and at Rohrau we will see his charming birthplace museum.
We stay at the Haus der Begegnung, once a Franciscan monastery, beautifully preserved and ideally situated opposite Eisenstadt’s Bergkirche.
This tour will be led by Rupert Scott, BMus, who is a musician, composer and musicologist. Rupert studied at King’s College, London, and at the Royal Academy of Music. A composer, and for many years a professional orchestral violinist, Rupert now lectures widely on music.
Itinerary
Day 1Depart Heathrow 0925 on Austrian Airlines for Vienna, arriving 1245. Transfer to Haus der Begegnung, Eisenstadt, for six nights. Afternoon: Bergkirche (with Haydn mausoleum) and Kalvarienberg. Evening: concert in Haydnsaal of Schloss Esterházy.
Day 2Morning seminar followed by concert in Empiresaal of Schloss Esterházy. Afternoon: walking tour of Eisenstadt and Haydnhaus. Evening: concert in Haydnsaal of Schloss Esterházy.
Day 3Morning seminar followed by concert in Haydnsaal of Schloss Esterházy. Afternoon: guided tour of Schloss Esterházy.
Day 4Morning: Forchtenstein Castle (including priceless historic Esterházy treasury) then continue to Rust: Fisher Church (mediaeval frescoes) and Neusiedlersee. Evening: concert in Haydnsaal of Schloss Esterházy.
Day 5Morning seminar followed by Rohrau: Haydn’s birthplace museum, Harrach Palace (art collection). Afternoon: Schloss Esterházy park. Evening: concert in Haydnsaal of Schloss Esterházy.
Day 6Whole-day excursion to Hungary: Sopron (mediaeval, Renaissance, Baroque architecture) and Esterházy Palace at Fertöd (modelled on Versailles). Evening: concert in Haydnsaal of Schloss Esterházy.
Day 7Depart for Vienna: Haydnhaus in Gumpendorf (where Haydn spent his last 14 years) followed by Kunsthistorisches Museum. Depart Vienna 1720, arriving Heathrow 1840.
