Visiting Vienna's Composers: The Musician Apartments

On the first Sunday of every month, the historic sights operated by Wein Museum are free to all visitors. Since I am basically a museum junkie, this was good news to me. I wanted to learn more about Vienna's musical history. It is "the world capital of music." So I decided to visit the former homes of some famous composers.

My tour started at the Haydn house. Haydn spent the last twelve years of his life in this charming house near what is now Westbahnof. When he lived there it was the “outermost suburb” of Vienna, Windmühle. The house featured a cute garden. It has been refurbished to reflect the typical designs of gardens in the 1800’s.

 

Throughout the house were many of Haydn’s belongings, such as his piano and original works he wrote. A few of his most famous works, including “The Seasons” and “The Creation” were written here. These were displayed alongside portraits and busts of the composer.

 

The museum also detailed what happened to Haydn’s estate after his death. Since he had been such a well-know musician at the time, his belongings were very valuable. His African Grey Parrot was auctioned off as an art piece for almost twice what he paid for it. The truly remarkable thing is, that same parrot is alive today in the Schönbrunn zoo.

Speaking of what happened after Haydn’s death, there is a very interesting story concerning his head. I highly encourage you to read about it here. 

Next stop was Beethoven Pasqualatihaus, an apartment directly across from the University of Vienna. You have to walk up a hill to get there though, because it is perched on top of the Mölker Bastei, the old city fortifications. Beethoven lived and worked in an apartment on the fourth floor for eight years. It was here that he wrote his 4^th, 5^th, 7^th, and 8^th symphonies, as well as his only opera, Fidelio. Similar to the Haydn house, the sparsely furnished apartment had been filled with memorabilia. Beethoven’s piano was inside, along with original copies of his music, and many artistic renderings of the composer.

There were also stations where you could listen to the symphonies and opera written in that very apartment. I thought that was a nice touch. It helped me to better understand the importance of the space. Especially since I am not enough of a music buff to know what Beethoven’s 7^th symphony sounds like off the top of my head.

Beethoven's piano

A symphony

The libretto for Fidelio

The Schubert Geburtshaus (Schubert’s birthplace) was honestly a bit of a let down. It was farther from town than I had originally anticipated. He was born on a residential street in the suburbs, without much around. Inside you could see the family apartment where Schubert spent his early years as one of 14 children. It was not the place where he grew up though. His family moved when he was still relatively young. The most fascinating exhibit were his eyeglasses. You could also listen to some of his music. I did enjoy comparing and contrasting him with Beethoven.

Schubert's birthplace

The apartment with the listening station

Some pictures of Schubert

My last stop was Strauss’ apartment, which wasn't far from the center of town and overlooked a busy street. It was clear that Strauss enjoyed success as a composer. His apartment was the most lavishly decorated. He lived there for seven years, during which time he wrote “The Blue Danube Waltz,” Austria’s unofficial national anthem. Inside visitors could see his piano, violin, and even a small organ. Since Strauss was so well known, there was even a room full of cartoons in which he was featured. Inside there was another station for listening to his compositions. I thought his apartment had the most personality, and it was my favorite stop of the day.

All of the cartoons

My whirlwind trip around town had taken me to some radically different locations. From Beethoven’s tiny apartment on the hill to Strauss’ lavish city flat, to Haydn’s retired garden house, each one gave some insight into the person who lived there. Unlike a grand palace, when visiting these residences I wasn’t overwhelmed by the sheer beauty of anything. Strauss’ piano was very similar in appearance to Beethoven’s, but the hands that touched them were so different. Here, what was overwhelming was the spirit of those who had lived there before. It was a very immersive way to learn a little more about music history.

Since listening to the music composed by these men at all the locations (except the Haydn house, but I may have not known what to look for) added so much to my experience, I thought I would make a Spotify playlist to go with this post. So here you are. It includes selections from the works I mentioned.