The Great Music City - Vienna
21 to 29 August 2012

VIENNA - The name alone evokes thoughts of great music. We spend nine nights in this city steeped in history staying in the heart of the Old Town minutes walk from most of the historic sites and major attractions. We attend the Aron Quartet’s Chamber Music Festival in the romantic Schloss Laudon - the most beautiful Baroque water palace in Vienna, surrounded by a splendid park on the edge of the Vienna Woods. We visit places associated with Mozart, Beethoven, Haydn and Brahms, as well as the highlights of this great city - most of which are easily reached on foot from our hotel. We enjoy a variety of wonderful meals in historic places and an informal, friendly social life meeting and playing with local amateur musicians. Coaching is by the world renowned Aron Quartet.

ACCOMMODATION - is in a charming family run hote in the heart of the historic Inner City. There is a very warm Viennese Gemutlichkeit welcome when you enter. The staff are very knowledgeable and keen to help. The rooms have modern amenities including bath or shower with WC, cable TV, Wi-Fi access in the entire building and direct dial phone. There is a substantial breakfast included in a charming breakfast room. There are many Jugenstil features in the building and a delightful roof garden terrace, an ideal place to relax and look over the roof tops of this amazing area. The location is fantastic - in the winding streets of the Old Town with a huge variety of traditional restaurants, taverns and coffee houses. It is two or three minutes walk from St Stephen's Cathedral and the Mozart House and a few more minutes to many historic sites, museums, wonderful gardens and parks. Stations for three U-Bahn lines are two to three minutes away, as are the trams around the Ring. Lunch or dinner daily will be in typical Viennese and historic restaurants. We shall also visit two Heurigen, typical Viennese wine gardens - one frequented by Beethoven.

SALZBURG - Departing 29th August there will be an optional two days in this amazing city. We stay in the centre, within walking distance of most of the historic places. Please email for further information.

CHAMBER MUSIC PLAYING and COACHING - Playing will be scheduled on on the mornings 21st to 24th. You are free to choose what you will play, or work on something for coaching. One of the attractions in Vienna will be the coaching sessions with members of the Aron Quartet on the 27th and 28th for three hours morning and afternoon or 27th and three hours morning on 28th - a total of nine hours. You are asked to choose from this list for the first day and the second day you can continue with the same or choose another piece.

• Haydn Quartet op 64 no 5 “The Lark”
• Mozart quartet K465 “Dissonace” 
• Mozart Quintet in g minor K516,
• Beethoven op 18 no 1 or 4
• Schubert op 125
• Brahms Sextet op 18

Coaching will be structured so that everyone knows in advance what they will work on. When you send your application form, send an email with your choice of music, your experience playing chamber music and instrument (1st or 2nd violin for example). Parts will be sent to you to work on in advance. You are free to make suggestions for the second day. Local musicians will join us for playing sessions and we are often invited into their homes. A music library and stands are provided. Violin, viola, cello and keyboard rental is available.

SCHLOSS LAUDON CHAMBER MUSIC FESTIVAL
THE ARON QUARTET and FRIENDS. - Four evening concerts from 21st to 24th August and the final concert at 11 a.m. on Sunday 26th will be followed by a Party with a buffet lunch, always a great social occasion. Programme by the Aron Quartet and friends including the Auer Quartet from Budapest. Quartets by Beethoven, Schubert, Dvorak, Debussy, Schulhoff, Shostakovich, Berg and Borodin. The final programme will be announced in the near future. The venue for this Festival is one of the most attractive and romantic Palaces in Vienna. The Aron Quartet from Vienna have played in most counties in Europe, the USA, Japan, Mexico and last October in South America and have great critical acclaim wherever they play. Further information about their highly successful and interesting career can be found here.

EXCURSIONS - Most of our sightseeing will be done on foot and some by public transport for which a weekly ticket is provided. Visits include:

• A walk in the Old City, its small winding streets packed with history and atmosphere. We visit the refurbished and enlarged Mozart House. In the past years we have spent well over two hours here on our visits, everyone has found it a mine of fascinating information.
• Our visit to the absorbing Beethoven Museum in Heiligenstadt is followed by a stop in a nearby Heurigen - a traditional Viennese wine garden where he spent many hours. We  then take a bus to Kahlenburg with outstanding views over the city and parts of the Vienna Woods. Finally to an interesting Heurigen in Grinzing, one frequented by locals.
  
• A ticket for the Hop on Hop off bus which stops at fifteen of the city’s most important and historic sites. This gives flexibility for everyone to visit places which interest them.
  
• The Haydn Museum, the house and garden where he spent his last years from 1797 to 1809 composing his last nine string quartets, The Creation and The Seasons. The house and garden were enlarged in 2009. There is also a small but most interesting Brahms museum.
• The extensive Musical Instruments .Museum is always a highlight for us.
  
• There will be some free time to visit museums of your choice. 2012 is the 150th anniversary of the birth of the great artist Gustav Klimt. There are exhibitions in the wonderful Belevedere Palace and several other galleries. Shopping is also interesting especially for sheet music.

PRICE PER PERSON

Players:
Double - 1,998 euros (£1,816 sterling)
Twin - 1,968 euros (£1,789 sterling)
Single - 2,178 euros (£1,980 sterling)

Listeners:
Double - 1,848 euros (£1,680 sterling)
Twin - 1,818 euros (£1,652 sterling)  
Single - 2,028 euros (£1,843 sterling)

There is a discount of 120 euros for payment in full by December 14th. Early application is advised as we have a strictly limited number of rooms in the hotel.

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PRICE INCLUDES - Accommodation with large buffet breakfast and either lunch or dinner with wine; all activities including parties; excursions including entrances to museums listed on excursions; the 24 hour ticket for the Hop on Hop off bus; tickets for the five Festival concerts; a week public transport ticket from 20th for all public transport; coaching, the use of music stands and the music library. (Air tickets to Vienna are not included as participants come from all over the world.)

To pay by bank to bank transfer in Euros click here.
Bank details for payments to a Euro account in England or in Corfu  will be sent to you once you have filled out the application form.

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Bank details will be sent to you once you have filled out the application form.

Prices in Pounds on the application forms are calculated at £1 = 1.10 euros. Should the pound fall below £1 = 1.10 euros or rise above £1 =1.20 euros the price will be adjusted.

We reserve the right to make changes due to circumstances beyond our control.