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Austria: Salzburg & Vienna

Music & Culture in Salzburg and Vienna

This program gives you the unique opportunity to spend your summer in two of Europe's most sought after cities. Learn outside of the classroom in the theaters, concert halls, and landmarks we visit. Get to know the birthplace of some of the world's most legendary composers - from Beethoven and Brahms to Mahler and Mozart.

You will have opportunities to perform with the Cathedral Choir in Salzburg, participate in folk dance and historical dance workshops in Vienna, and attend concerts and musical productions throughout the program.

Program Details

Itinerary

This itinerary ran in 2024. It is subject to change in 2026.

Munich: DAYS 1 – 4
1. Munich City Highlights & Course Lectures: Asamhaus and Asamkirche (Baroque styles
and aesthetics), Bürgersaalkirche, Marienkirche, Residenz Schatzkammer, Cuvillier-ÌýTheater (Mozart), Orlando di Lasso monument, Rathaus Glöckenspiel

2. Welcome dinner at the Hofbräuhaus

3. Day at Ludwig II’s Neuschwanstein Castle (Wagner)

4. Glyptothek sculpture museum

5. Boat trip to the Königsee: Outdoor Baroque dance lesson, nature walk, and lunch at theÌýGastsätte St. Bartholomä

Salzburg: DAYS 5 – 10
1. Salzburg City Highlights & Course Lectures: Franziskanerkirche, Nonnberg Abbey, St.ÌýSebastian cemetery (Mozart family), Mirabell palace & Residenz museum (Music andÌýpatronage in Salzburg), St. Peter’s cemetery and church (Maria Anna Mozart andÌýMichael Haydn)

2. Lunch at the Festung (fortress) above the city

3. Guest lecturers at the Salzburg Cathedral archive, the Old University Library and AulaÌý(Biber), The Mozart Manuscript Archive

4. Concerts: Mirabell Palace string quartet concert; Salzburg Marionettentheatre The MagicÌýFlute; Joseph Haydn mass at the Franziskanerkirche; Organ concert at the Cathedral

5. Other activities: Music therapy workshop; Hellbrunn Palace with trick fountains, zoo,and Stone Theatre; Cable car to the Untersberg, hiking and traditional Austrian lunch onÌýthe mountain.

Stift Melk (Monastery):ÌýDAYS 11 – 13Ìý
1. Guided tour of the high Baroque style Imperial guest rooms, library, and church

2. Archival visit, with archivist’s presentation on manuscripts and early prints on medicinalÌýplants in the library

3. Visit to the Abbey’s apothecary garden; lecture and sampling of Melk’s plant-basedÌýsyrups

4. Concerts and music-making: Singing Vespers with the monks; Outdoor evening militaryÌýband concert in the Abbey courtyard; Singing chant in the Maria Himmelfahrt PfarrkircheÌýin the city

5. Contradance lesson in the Abbey’s Baroque garden pavilion

Vienna: DAYS 14 – 21
1. Vienna City Highlights & Course Lectures: Grinzing cemetery & church (Mahler);ÌýHeiligenstadt Haus (Beethoven); Schubert birth house (Schubert); Strauss Casino andÌýMuseum (Strauss family); tour of the Musikverein (Brahms); Mozart Figaro HouseÌý(Mozart’s Vienna years); Arnold Schoenberg Center (Schoenberg)

2. Lunch at the Strauss Casino Café; Traditional Viennese Heurigen dinner at Mayr amÌýPfarrplatz; Ice cream at the Gloriette at Schönbrunn Palace; Farewell dinner at the ZwölfÌýApostelkeller

3. Lecture and visit to the Archive of the Musikverein; Habsburg history lecture &ÌýKaisergruft visit (music and patronage in Vienna)

4. Concerts: Beethoven mass with Vienna Choirboys at the Hofburg Chapel; Concert ofÌýtypical Viennese arias, waltzes, and marches; Richard Strauss, Salomé at the Vienna StateÌýOpera; c. 1642 mean-tone organ, lecture & recital at Franziskanerkirche

5. Other activities: View of the city from the Kahlenburg; Prunksaal at the National Library;ÌýKarlskirche; St. Stephen’s Cathedral; St. Marx cemetery (Mozart’s burial place)

Accommodations

Students will board, with breakfast included, at youth hostels in each city.

Course

MUS 477: Music & Culture in Austria (3 credit hours)

  • Students will prepare for the course by becoming familiar with the composers, repertoire, and cultural contexts for performing in each city.
  • Dr. Roth will provide a CD and listening list of repertoire, and Dr. Malkiewicz will provide a list of websites and readings related to the places we will visit.
  • All classes will be taught in English; no foreign language requirement.
  • In bad weather, classes will be conducted in a classroom at the Mozarteum.
  • Evaluation will be based on participation, on-site quizzes, and a final paper.
Program Costs & Funding

Program Fee Costs for 2026 are to be determined

Includes:

  • In-country costs: housing, some meals, activities, in-country travel, entrance fees/tickets, insurance
  • Does not include tuition or round trip airline tickets

Travel Dates: May/June 2026

Total Tuition Costs (3 cr.)

  • SPARK-eligible students will have tuition for 3 credits covered in addition to receiving $1,500 from The Center for Life's Work.
  • Non-SPARK eligible students will receive a 2 credit-offset scholarship and will be responsible for the remaining tuition for 1 credit (per Summer 2026 credit cost); each student will be eligible to receive some funding from the Center for International Education.

* All costs quoted are subject to change.

Payment Timeline

Payments are made in 5 installments:

November 2025

December 2025

January 2026

February 2026

March 2026

*Students must submit a color photocopy of their passport valid through December 2025 with the first program deposit in November.

Ìý

Studying Abroad Expanded My Understanding of Music, History, & Culture

This program helpedÌýPaige Lee '22Ìýbetter understand and appreciate music history.Ìý"It allowed me to experience so much joy, amazement, growth, and new knowledge that I will hold onto forever," she says.

Mountains, Mozart, and Monks?! Oh my!

Hannah Komar '23 traveled to Austria in summer 2022.Ìý"Within hours, I began to realize how the similarities in our lives outnumbered the differences."

Views from Abroad

    View of Salzburg

    At A Glance

    (S): SPARK-Eligible

    Semester:ÌýSummer A 2026

    Program Level:ÌýUndergraduate

    Program Type: Academic

    Major(s):ÌýMusic Theory, Music Therapy, Music Education

    Language Requirement:ÌýNone

    MinimumÌýGPA Requirement: 3.0

    Three Favorite Moments

    "Every music performance we had seen ... left everyone in the group awestruck and walking out of the venue with our mouths hanging down towards our feet." — Tori Kelpen '23