A time-honored tradition in Vienna and most awaited by classical music lovers worldwide is the Neujahrskonzert, or the Vienna New Year’s Day Concert performed by the Vienna Philharmonic. Started in 1939, the concert was originally held on New Year’s Eve and was called Auserordentliches Konzert (or “extraordinary concert”). The only music pieces performed then were from Johann Strauss II and conducted by Clemens Krauss. The Vienna Philharmonic initiated the classical music concert at a time when Austria needed a source of inspiration and hope for a better tomorrow. The concert drew such rave reviews that it soon caught the attention of Europeans. It started broadcasting in 1989 and today the concert is beamed across 73 countries with an estimated audience of 50 million.
The Neujahrskonzert is held in the Golden Hall of the Musikverein on the morning of January 1. The Vienna Philharmonic performs waltz and operetta music of the Strauss family and other well-known Austrian composers like Franz Schubert, Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart and Joseph Haydn. The concert lasts for about two and a half hours with about a dozen compositions played ranging from waltz music to polka, mazurka and marches. Aside from the orchestra the concert also features several dance interpretations by the Vienna State Opera ballet. The concert proved to be very popular around the world that tickets are sold out well in advance – it is said that you even have to pre-register a year in advance just so you can get into the lucky drawing of tickets for the following year’s concert.
