MARTIN RANDALL TRAVEL

The Danube Music Festival A

20–27 August 2015 In association with Wigmore Hall Curated by John Gilhooly martin randall travel The Danube Music Festival 20–27 August 2015 In association with Wigmore Hall A Schubertiade Curated by John Gilhooly

• Nine private concerts in beautiful and Matching music & place appropriate historic buildings The annual Danube Music Festival combines music and • A Schubert festival, with his music in almost architecture in a singularly beguiling way. Concerts take place in palaces, churches, monasteries, country houses every programme alongside other composers and other historic buildings which are among the most of the Austro-Hungarian Empire beautiful and historically resonant along the Danube. • Musicians of the highest calibre, most of But the value of the juxtaposition goes deeper. The whom are regulars at Wigmore Hall, London buildings are generally of the same period as the music performed in them, and in some cases there are specific • Choice between accommodation on a ship historical associations between the two. which sails the Austrian Danube or in hotels Musicians of the highest calibre for a variant which features country walks Now in its twenty-second year, the festival is established • Daily talks by leading authorities on music as a prestigious event in the musical calendar, featuring and history musicians of the highest calibre. Most of the artists performing this year are regular guests at Wigmore Hall in London – itself a guarantee of excellence. This is the line-up: singers Ailish Tynan (soprano), Robin Tritschler (tenor) with accompanist James Baillieu and Florian Boesch (baritone) with accompanist Graham Johnson; chamber ensembles the Bennewitz Quartet, the Endellion String Quartet, the Heath Quartet, and the ATOS Trio; Igor Levit (piano), Michael Collins (clarinet) and Alasdair Tait (cello); the Austro-Hungarian Haydn Philharmonic with their conductor Adam Fischer and the Wiener Kammerchor. ‘We’ve been on many MRT Music Festivals, starting in 1997 on the Danube. They have always been the BEST travel experiences we have ever had!’

Martin Randall Travel Ltd Australia: Telephone 1300 55 95 95 Voysey House, Barley Mow Passage, New Zealand: Telephone 0800 877 622 London, United Kingdom W4 4GF [email protected]

Tel 020 8742 3355 Fax 020 8742 7766 Canada: Telephone 647 382 1644 5085 [email protected] [email protected] www.martinrandall.com USA: Telephone 1 800 988 6168 The Danube Music Festival, 20–27 August 2015

Wigmore abroad audience. MS Amadeus Silver II is one of the most modern and comfortable passenger ships on European waters. All the artists have been selected by John Gilhooly, Director of Wigmore Hall in London, the world’s leading Acting as both hotel and principal means of transport, centre for chamber music and song. Almost all the it enables passengers to attend all the concerts and see musicians are Wigmore Hall favourites, or are due to make some of the finest art and architecture in the region their debut in 2015. without having to change hotel or drive long distances. The itinerary takes you past some of the most picturesque John worked closely with Martin Randall and his team to stretches of the Danube. ensure a good fit between artists, music and place. In many ways, however, this venture is far removed from Celebrating Schubert the usual cruising routine. There is little regimentation, no obligatory seating plan, no on-board entertainment, no Every edition of the festival explores the music of the intrusive announcements – and absolutely no piped music. Austro-Hungarian Empire, sometimes focusing on a particular theme. In 2015, the music of will The spoken word form the core of the programmes. Talks and lecturers are another important ingredient. A rare intensity of musical communication Musicologist Dr Michael Downes, Director of Music at the University of St Andrews, and Professor Sir Richard Evans, The concerts are private, being exclusive to the a leading authority on the history of German-speaking approximately 140 participants who take a package which Europe, give daily talks on the ship. Richard Wigmore, includes accommodation, meals, interval drinks, travel by music critic and broadcaster, is the lecturer attached to the air, river and road, lectures and much else besides. walking party. See page 12 for their biographies. The small size of the audience and of the venues leads to an informality and intimacy which engenders a rare intensity The walking alternative of musical communication. The walking alternative mixes the concerts with country Musicians love playing for this festival. Not only are the walks. Six of the concerts are included, and there are five venues an inspiring change from modern concert halls, but guided walks of two to three hours through some of the the audiences are among the best in the world – attentive, most ravishing scenery of the Danube valley. Participants knowledgeable, appreciative. stay in hotels, in Melk, and Dürnstein, rather than on the ship. Travelling in comfort The tour finishes a day before the main festival (the dates To this exceptional artistic and intellectual experience is are 20–26 August). See the text in grey under each day of added a further pleasure: the comfort and convenience of a ‘The Programme’ for an outline of the daily itinerary. The first-class river cruiser, chartered exclusively for the festival group is limited to 22 participants.

Contents The Programme...... 5–11 Travel Options...... 13 About us...... 15 Making a booking...... 19 Lecturers...... 12 Accommodation...... 14 Pre-festival tour...... 16 Booking Conditions...... 19 Fitness requirements....12 Prices & the package.....15 Booking form...... 17–18 martin randall travel

artin Randall music Ailish Tynan and Robin Tritschler, with South African Mfestivals are always spoken born accompanist James Baillieu, another firm audience of with such enthusiasm by favourite, who will also do his best to keep Irish mischief those who attend them that the at bay! Baritone Florian Boesch will already be known to opportunity to curate such a many of you as among the most compelling of all current Festival is both a challenge and recitalists, a singer who holds audiences in thrall. He will a privilege. I hugely enjoyed be partnered by Graham Johnson, doyen of accompanists. curating the 2012 Danube An always rewarding aspect of my job is the chance it Festival, meeting friends both gives me to hear young artists at early stages in their old and new, and I am therefore careers, sign them up for Wigmore Hall appearances, and delighted to be given a second opportunity to showcase watch with pride as their careers blossom, nationally and some of the wonderful performers we often hear at internationally. It is gratifying to see the rise in recent Wigmore Hall and love to share with others, especially as years of so many singers, instrumentalists, chamber and the iconic concert venues along the Danube route add so baroque groups: the ATOS Trio, founded in 2003, belongs much to the beauty and richness of the events. As before firmly in this category of relatively new and important I have tried to link artists and venues as appropriately as stars, with their ever-imaginative repertoire and committed possible, and, also as before, it is a particular pleasure for playing. What better way to hear Schubert Symphonies me to collaborate with Martin, who is such a good friend than at the Palais Ferstel with the Austro-Hungarian and supporter of our programme at Wigmore Hall. Haydn Philharmonic and surely the world famous Wiener Kammerchor will give us a moving and memorable evening When I first heard the pianist Igor Levit I was struck at in the glorious surroundings of Dürnstein Abbey. once by the maturity and sensitivity of this young artist. His Wigmore Hall debut was something of a sensation, and These are all performers I feel sure both you and I will he is now greatly in demand, as are the three magnificent enjoy and be inspired by, and I have very much appreciated string quartets which join us throughout the week. I am the opportunity to share them with you. very pleased that the acclaimed Bennewitz Quartet will John Gilhooly, October 2014 open the Festival, and look forward to the Heath Quartet with Alasdair Tait for Schubert’s Quintet in C, as well as the Endellion Quartet in partnership with the celebrated clarinettist, Michael Collins. There is likely to be an Irish flavour to the song recital by the appealing Irish singers Illustration: Schubert and friends in Vienna, painting 1927 by Otto Nowak (1874–1945).

4 introduction book online at www.martinrandall.com The Danube Music Festival, 20–27 August 2015 The Programme Day 1, Thursday 20 August Passau Fly from London or Manchester to Munich, from where you are taken by coach to Passau. Alternatively, make your way to Passau independently (for travel options, see page 13). The ship, MS Amadeus Silver II, is ready for boarding from 4.00pm. Afternoon tea is available upon arrival. Piled up on promontories at the confluence of three rivers, the Bavarian city of Passau is dominated by a great Baroque cathedral and crammed with unspoilt streetscape and historic buildings. It was one of the most important episcopal seats in Central Europe and served as a refuge for the Habsburg court in times of danger. After sailing at 6.30pm there is a reception followed by dinner. Walkers. Fly at c. 9.00am from London Heathrow to Vienna. Drive directly to Felbring for an afternoon woodland walk through landscapes of beech and pine, with vistas across the Danube Valley. Walk c. 6km on a mixture of grassy footpaths and stony tracks, on level terrain with some downhill and uphill sections (sturdy walking boots are necessary). Arrive in Melk, a delightful little town on the Danube nestling under the abbey. First of two nights here.

Day 2, Friday 21 August Grein, Dürnstein The series of daily lectures begins. Moor at Grein, a charming little town squeezed between the Danube and the hills with a sixteenth-century Schloss rising to one side. It is a short walk from the ship to the main square where the tiny municipal theatre lies hidden within the town hall. Constructed in 1791 – the year of The Magic Flute – it is the oldest working theatre in Austria. It is too small to hold the entire audience in one sitting so the walkers have the afternoon performance to themselves. Concert 1 Grein, Stadttheater The Bennewitz Quartet The Bennewitz Quartet was founded in 1998 at the Academy of Performing Arts, Prague. They studied with Rainer Schmidt and were taught by Walter Levin at the Basel Music Academy where they were Quartet in Residence for some time. They have won many awards including the first prize at the International Chamber Music Competition, Osaka and at the Borciani Competition, Italy. The Quartet will play a Schubert and Mozart programme, the exact pieces are to be confirmed. Return to the ship and sail downstream through the Wachau, one of the most beautiful stretches of the Danube. Moor at Dürnstein, perhaps the loveliest little town on the river. The ruins of a castle in which Richard the Lionheart was imprisoned cling to a steep hill which rears behind, while a gorgeous Baroque abbey church perches on the waterfront. Disembark for an evening concert. ©Kevin V Ton Illustration, above: Dürnstein, German etching 1935. Photo: the Bennewitz Quartet. Previous spread, main image: Dürnstein, 1820s aquatint by Jacob Alt (1789–1872); inset: Franz Schubert, woodcut by Leopold Wächtler c. 1930.

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The Programme

Concert 2 Day 3, Saturday 22 August Dürnstein Abbey, Church Vienna, Bratislava Wiener Kammerchor (Vienna Chamber Choir) Moor at Nussdorf, twenty minutes by coach from the centre Michael Grohotolsky director of Vienna. One of Austria’s finest choirs, the Wiener Kammerchor performs Principal seat of the Habsburgs for over six hundred years, throughout the country and abroad and has made several Vienna became capital of a vast agglomeration of territories that recordings. Their conductor, Michael Grohotolsky, is a lecturer at encompassed much of Central and Eastern Europe. The fabric Vienna’s University of Music and Performing arts, and is a voice of the city is a glorious mix of the magnificently imperious and teacher and lecturer at numerous seminars. Tonight they give a the charmingly unpretentious, and it remains one of the world’s performance of vocal music. greatest centres of art and music. Return to the ship and sail overnight from Dürnstein to Concert 3 Vienna-Nussdorf. Vienna, Albertina, Hall of the Muses Walkers. Drive along the picturesque road beside the Danube Florian Boesch baritone before turning into the hills to start the walk (c. 6km). Begin among upland pastures and farmland before descending through & Graham Johnson piano woods of pine, beech and birch to the sound of tumbling streams. The Albertina, a Habsburg residence named after a son-in-law Walk on moderately gentle woodland paths and quiet roads, of Empress Maria Theresa, is home to one of the world’s greatest the few steep sections being fairly short. Catch glimpses of the collections of prints and drawings. The building was refurbished Danube and then of the little riverside town of Grein. Private at the beginning of the nineteenth century, and the light-filled, concert at Grein Theatre with the Bennewitz Quartet. Lunch delicately Neo-Classical Hall of the Muses where the concert here. Return to Melk and visit the abbey state apartments and takes place is an exact contemporary of Schubert’s maturity. church, which are among the most brilliant creations of the Age of Baroque. Overnight Melk. Austrian baritone Florian Boesch is one of today’s foremost Lieder interpreters with appearances at Wigmore Hall,

6 the programme book online at www.martinrandall.com The Danube Music Festival, 20–27 August 2015

©Clive Barda

©Lukas Beck

Photos, clockwise from above left: Graham Johnson; Wiener Kammerchor; ATOS Trio; Florian Boesch. Illustration, facing page: Vienna, Palais Ferstel, wood engraving 1890; left: Bratislava, 20th-century woodcut. ©Frank Jerke

Musikverein and Konzerthaus Vienna, Het Concertgebouw Concert 4 Amsterdam, Laeiszhalle Hamburg, Philharmonie Cologne, Bratislava, Primatial Palace Carnegie Hall New York, Edinburgh and elsewhere. Florian Boesch will be a Wigmore Hall artist in residence in 2014–15. The ATOS Trio Graham Johnson obe has appeared in recital with the world’s Since its foundation in 2003 the multi-award winning ATOS Trio leading recitalists. His extensive discography includes the entire has rapidly risen to international prominence, giving hundreds Schubert and Schumann Lieder for Hyperion Records. Professor of concerts throughout Europe, USA and Australia to capacity of Accompaniment at the Guildhall School of Music and Drama, audiences and critical acclaim. Their recordings endeavour to he holds Honorary Doctorates from Durham University and the showcase lesser-known works as well as familiar repertoire. New England Conservatory, is a Chevalier in the Ordre des Arts The Trio perform Schubert’s Piano Trio in B flat, Op.99, his et Lettres and an Honorary Member of the Royal Philharmonic Notturno and Dvorak’s Piano Trio in F minor Op.65. Society. He was awarded the Wigmore Hall Medal in 2013. After the concert, sail upsteam and moor at Vienna-Nussdorf Their programme includes Schubert settings of Goethe, Jacobi once again. and Mayrhofer. Walkers. Drive to Vienna for a morning concert in the Albertina Return to the ship after the recital and sail during lunch with Florian Boesch (baritone) and Graham Johnson (piano). downstream to Bratislava (formerly Pressburg). Now capital of Lunch and time to settle in at the hotel. In the afternoon drive up Slovakia, it was for three hundred years capital of the Habsburg the Leopoldsberg, a high hill with fine views over the capital and rump of Hungary while Ottoman Turks occupied most of the the Danube valley. Walk down through beech woods, vineyards country. Its compact historic centre is a delight, one of the and salubrious ivy-clad suburbs on a 5.5km walk on footpaths, loveliest along the Danube, a dense mesh of unspoilt streets, country roads and quiet streets. Easy terrain. Refreshments in squares and well restored façades. the attractive wine-producing village of Heiligenstadt before The concert takes place in the two-storey Mirror Hall in the returning to the centre of Vienna for the first of two nights here. Primatial Palace, formerly the seat of the Archbishop of Hungary, now the Town Hall. When completed in 1781 it was the grandest building in Bratislava after the castle.

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The Programme

Day 4, Sunday 23 August Sail overnight to Melk. Vienna Walkers. A free day in Vienna with the option of a walking tour Wake up at Nussdorf. There is free time in Vienna before you with a local guide. Attend the evening concert. Overnight Vienna. converge for an afternoon concert at the Palais Ferstel, a beautiful, opulent neo-mediaeval building of the 1860s. It formerly Day 5, Monday 24 August accommodated the stock exchange and a bank, and still houses Melk offices, shops and the famous Café Central. A leisurely morning sailing upstream from Vienna to Concert 5 Melk, passing through some of the loveliest scenery along the Vienna, Palais Ferstel whole of the Danube. Disembark for a visit to the Melk Abbey, which rises dramatically on a rock outcrop beside the river. One Austro-Hungarian Haydn Philharmonic of the most brilliant creations of the Age of Baroque, there is a Adam Fischer conductor sequence comprising ceremonial courtyards, guest apartments, hall and library culminating in a church of unsurpassed The Österreiches-Ungarisches Haydn Philharmonie was decorative richness. founded by Adam Fischer in 1987 to bring together outstanding musicians from both countries. They have recorded Haydn’s The concert follows. complete symphonies, performed a cycle in 2013 and Concert 6 will perform the complete Schubert symphonies in 2015. Touring widely, they have acquired an international reputation as Melk Abbey, Kolomanisaal one of the most spirited and sensitive interpreters of the Michael Collins clarinet Viennese classics. & The Endellion String Quartet Despite being in demand around the world, and a busy summer Central European monasteries enjoyed a final flowering in the schedule, conductor Adam Fischer continues a very special eighteenth century, and among their contributions to society relationship with the orchestra he founded and with Martin many ranked as considerable patrons of music. Mozart was one Randall Travel. Nicolas Altstaedt will become the artistic director of innumerable professional musicians who performed at Melk, of the orchestra as of next season. and it is recorded that monks played chamber music for private The Orchestra performs Schubert’s Symphonies No.3 & No.4.

©Bernhard Wolff

©Felix Broede

8 the programme book online at www.martinrandall.com The Danube Music Festival, 20–27 August 2015

enjoyment. The concert is in the lavishly frescoed Kolomanisaal, a Day 6, Tuesday 25 August second-floor hall not normally accessible to visitors. Grafenegg, Atzenbrugg Since at the age of sixteen winning the woodwind section of Sail to Krems in the morning and disembark for the short drive the first ever BBC Young Musician of the Year Award, Michael to Schloss Grafenegg, a mediaeval country residence which was Collins has become one of today’s most sought-after clarinettists. augmented with one of Austria’s most flamboyant and successful He is also a noted conductor, appointed in 2010 as Principal essays in the Gothic Revival. Conductor of the City of London Sinfonia. His extensive discography has won him many awards. At the end of a procession of rooms, elaborately decorated with carved and inlaid woodwork, the 1840s Garden Room is filled The Endellion String Quartet recently celebrated its 35th with natural light. anniversary. They have toured worldwide, have broadcast numerous times on BBC radio and television and performed Concert 7 many times at London’s Southbank Centre and Wigmore Hall. Grafenegg, Gartensaal Today Michael Collins and The Endellion String Quartet and Igor Levit piano Friends perform Schubert’s Octet and his Quartettsatz. The Russian-German pianist Igor Levit, born in 1987, emerged Return to the ship and moor overnight at Melk. from the Hanover Academy of Music with the highest Walkers. Drive up to Göttweig Abbey, a magnificent building performance and academic marks in the institution’s history. which crowns a prominent hill, and begin the walk, which He has rapidly become one of the most sought-after pianists of incorporates a segment of the pilgrimage route to Santiago his generation and appears throughout Europe. His Beethoven (c. 5km). After a steep descent, traverse gently inclined vine-clad sonata cycle has earned particular praise. slopes to the Danube. Cross the river for lunch in Krems and then Igor Levit performs Schubert’s Moments Musicaux and drive to Melk for the afternoon concert at Melk Abbey. Then a Beethoven’s Sonata No.3 in C, Op.2. short drive to Dürnstein, the prettiest little town on the Danube, a compact group of mediaeval, Renaissance and Baroque buildings Return to the ship for lunch and sail downstream to Tulln. set amidst the finest wine-producing area in Austria. First of two Disembark and drive to the village of Atzenbrugg. Here is a nights here. modest manor house once tenanted by the uncle of one of ©Eric Richmond ©Eric

Illustration, facing page: Vienna, watercolour by Donald Maxwell, publ. 1932; above: Melk Abbey, engraving c. 1850.

Photos, clockwise from top left: The Austro-Hungarian Haydn Philharmonic with Adam Fischer (conductor); ©Ben Ealovega The Endellion String Quartet; Michael Collins; Igor Levit.

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The Programme ©Ben Ealovega

©Garreth Wong

©Kaupo Kikkas

Schubert’s circle, Franz von Schober, whither Schubert came with Wood-framed, Viennese and dating to 1864, the piano at Schloss friends in the early 1820s. Entertainments were contrived which Atzenbrugg produces a sound with which Schubert would have came to be known as ‘’ – music was played, songs been familiar. The audience splits again and the hour-long recital sung, poems read, drinks drunk, jolly japes perpetrated. is performed twice. Concert 8 Return to the ship after the concert and sail upstream through the Schloss Atzenbrugg night and following morning. Walkers. Drive to Schloss Grafenegg for the recital with Igor R obin Tritschler tenor Levit (piano). Lunch on board the ship with other festival Ailish Tynan soprano participants and sail downstream to Tülln. Disembark and drive James Baillieu piano to the village of Atzenbrugg. Concert at Schloss Atzenbrugg with Robin Tritschler (tenor), Ailish Tynan (soprano), James Baillieu Tenor Robin Tritschler has quickly gained a reputation both in (pianist). Overnight Dürnstein. operatic roles and as a recitalist, and performs in major venues in Europe and America. A recent BBC New Generation artist, Day 7, Wednesday 26 August, Linz he has won awards at the Kathleen Ferrier competition, the China International Singing Competition and the Wigmore Hall Towards the end of the morning moor at Linz, the historic capital International Song Competition. of Upper Austria. A picturesque maze of streets, alleys and historic buildings is grouped around the huge market square only Irish soprano Ailish Tynan received the BBC Cardiff Singer yards away from the mooring. of the World Rosenblatt Recital Prize (2003), was a BBC New Generation Artist and a Vilar Young Artist at the Royal Opera Drive to the Abbey of St Florian. Founded in the eighth century, House, Covent Garden. She has performed internationally in the Abbey became one of the richest in the Austrian Empire. opera, concerts and recitals. Wholesale rebuilding took place between 1686 and 1751, Austria’s great period of political and military confidence and architectural South African pianist James Baillieu is in great demand both to ambition. The concert takes place in the Sala Terrena, a room accompany many of today’s leading singers and instrumentalists whose decoration shows that it was used for making music. and as a coach, working in Italy, Spain and Germany, as well as Britain. He became Professor of Piano Accompaniment at the Royal Academy of Music in 2011. Photos, clockwise from top left: Robin Tritschler; Ailish Tynan; James Baillieu. Illustration: Linz, main square and Old Cathedral, aquatint c. 1930. Their programme includes some well known Lieder by Schubert, including his masterpiece Gretchen am Spinnrade, as well as settings by Shakespeare, von Schober and Ossian.

10 the programme book online at www.martinrandall.com The Danube Music Festival, 20–27 August 2015

©Sussie Ahlburg The group will perform the Schubert’s Quintet with their former teacher, Alasdair Tait. Sail upstream overnight from Linz to Passau, with a reception and dinner against a backdrop of river and wooded hills receding into the dusk. Walkers. A morning walk of c. 6.5km starts with a climb of 15 minutes on a small road into the vine-clad hills overlooking the Danube and dips periodically into shaded gullies with butterflies, abundant wildflowers and red-roofed villages in the valley below. The terrain is easy underfoot as the walk is predominantly on quiet, shaded roads. Return to Dürnstein for some free time before travelling by coach to Vienna Airport. Return to Heathrow at c. 8.30pm. Day 8, Thursday 27 August Passau, Munich The ship moors at Passau and coaches leave for Munich city centre and the airport between 8.30 and 9.30am. See page 13 Concert 9 for the options available for return travel to London. Selecting St Florian, Sala Terrena Option 2 allows for four hours of independent sightseeing The Heath Quartet in Munich. & Alasdair Tait cello Photo, left: The Heath Quartet. Formed in 2002, the Heath Quartet is an exciting and original Illustration: Abbey of St Florian, lithograph c. 1840. voice on the international chamber music scene. Recipients of many awards, they perform regularly at major centres, often collaborating with leading artists and composers. Highlights in their current schedule include recitals in Spain and their debut at Lincoln Center. They are members of the faculty at Guildhall School of Music and Drama.

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More about the festival

Lecturers Dr Michael Downes (left). Director of Music at the University of St Andrews. He is a reviewer for the Times Literary Supplement, and has lectured on music and opera for organisations including the Royal Opera House and Glyndebourne. He is the author of a highly praised study of contemporary British composer Jonathan Harvey. Since moving to Scotland, he has established St Andrews Opera and has become the musical director of the St Andrews Chorus. Professor Sir Richard J. Evans (centre). Regius Professor of History and President of Wolfson College at the University ©Bill Knight of Cambridge. He is author of numerous books on Central European history including The Coming of the Third Reich, The The concerts Third Reich in Power and The Third Reich at War, and is currently working on The Pursuit of Power: Europe 1815–1914, a volume Private events. These concerts are planned and administered by in the Penguin History of Europe. His latest book is Altered Pasts: Martin Randall Travel. The audience, no more than 140, consists Counterfactuals in History (Little, Brown, 2014). exclusively of those who have booked the full festival package. Richard Wigmore (right). Music writer, lecturer and broadcaster Seating. Specific seats are not reserved. You sit where you want. for BBC Radio 3. He writes for BBC Music Magazine and Acoustics. This festival is more concerned with authenticity and Gramophone and has taught classes in Lieder history and ambience than acoustical perfection. While some of the venues interpretation at the Guildhall, Trinity College of Music and have excellent acoustics, others have idiosyncrasies not found in Birkbeck College. His publications include Schubert: the Complete modern concert halls. Song Texts and Pocket Guide to Haydn. Changes. Musicians fall ill, venues require restoration, rivers Fitness for the festival flood (or run dry): there are many unforeseeable circumstances which could necessitate changes to the programme. We ask you Quite a lot of walking is necessary to reach the concert venues to be understanding should they occur. and to get around the towns visited. The ship has a lift, but most of the venues do not. Participants need to be averagely fit, sure- Floods and droughts. We cannot rule out changes to the footed and able to manage everyday walking and stairclimbing programme arising from exceptionally high or low water levels without difficulty. on the Danube, either of which may bring river traffic to a halt. These might necessitate more travel by coach or the loss of a This festival is not really suitable for wheelchair users but please concert, though we would always try to minimise the impact on speak to us if you would like to discuss this. the itinerary. We will issue all participants with more detailed fitness (The photograph above was taken at one of the concerts of The requirements, but please contact us now if you would like to Danube Music Festival in 2014.) discuss your level of fitness. There is no age limit but we do ask you to think seriously about the above. Fitness for The Walking Party. This is a walking tour: it is essential for participants to be in good physical condition and to be used to country walking with uphill content. There are a few moderately steep climbs for short stretches, but no walk is more than 6 miles or 3 hours. There is not always the opportunity to return to the hotel to freshen up before every concert or dinner.

12 more about the festival book online at www.martinrandall.com The Danube Music Festival, 20–27 August 2015 Travel Options

Flights from the UK We are offering a choice of three scheduled Lufthansa flights to Munich, from London or Manchester. Please note that each outbound flight is tied to a particular inbound flight. You cannot mix flights from different options.

Option 1: Heathrow, lunch in Landshut Option 4: Making your own arrangements Fly from London Heathrow to Munich at 9.05am (LH 2471, You can choose not to take any of these flights and to make departing Heathrow 09.05, arriving Munich 11.55). Break the your own arrangements for joining at Passau, boarding the ship journey to Passau with lunch at Landshut, a former capital of between 4.00pm and 6.00pm. You are welcome to join one of the Bavaria. There are two hours here, and it should be possible to see group transfers from Munich Airport. the main street with its Renaissance and Baroque house fronts, There is a price reduction for this ‘no flights’ option of £210 per the great Gothic church of St Martin or the precociously Italianate person. Renaissance ducal palace. Return to London Heathrow at 3.35pm (LH 2476, departing The Walking Party Munich 14.35, arriving London Heathrow 15.35). Thursday 20 August: fly at 9.55am from London Heathrow Option 2: Heathrow, free time in Munich to Vienna. Thursday 27 August: fly from Vienna to London Heathrow, Fly from London Heathrow to Munich at 11.05am (LH 2473, arriving at 8.35pm. departing London Heathrow 11.05, arriving Munich 13.55). Drive directly from Munich Airport to the ship at Passau, a Pre-festival tour journey of under two hours. Vienna’s Masterpieces Return to London Heathrow at 7.20pm (LH 2480, departing Munich 18.20, arriving Heathrow 19.20). Coaches take you first (See page 16 for full details of this tour) to the centre of Munich, where you have about four hours of free Sunday 16 August: fly from London Heathrow to Vienna time, before continuing to the airport. at 9.15am. Option 3: Manchester Thursday 27 August: fly from Munich to London Heathrow, arriving at 3.35pm (i.e. festival flight option 1). Fly from Manchester to Munich at 10.50am (LH 2501, departing Manchester 10.50, arriving Munich 13.50). Drive directly from Munich Airport to the ship at Passau, a journey of under two hours. Return to Manchester at 4.30pm (LH 2502, departing Munich 15.25, arriving Manchester 16.30). Coaches take you first to the centre of Munich, where you have about two hours of free time, Illustration: Grein, lithograph by A. Kunike c. 1840. before continuing to the airport. This brochure was produced inhouse. The text was written chiefly by Martin Randall and It is not usually possible to arrange connecting flights with other Frances Filmer-Sankey with assistance from Lizzie Howard. It was designed by Jo Murray regional UK airports. and was sent to the printers on the 7th October 2014.

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Accommodation ©Bill Knight The Ship The Amadeus Silver II is one of the most comfortable cruisers on the waterways of Europe. The multinational crew is dedicated to the highest standards of service. With a minimum floor area of 17.5m2 the cabins are reasonably spacious by the standards of river cruisers. All have windows to the outside and are equipped with the facilities one would expect of a first-class hotel including shower, w.c., individually adjustable air-conditioning, telephone, TV and safe. Special attention has been paid to noise insulation. In layout and furnishings the cabins are identical, the significant differences being the size of windows and height above water level (higher cabins enjoy better views and fewer stairs). Cabins on the top two decks (Mozart and Strauss) are the most desirable, with floor to ceiling windows (200 x 250 cm) which slide open. Also on the Mozart deck are twelve suites measuring approximately 26.4m2 which have a sofa, table and armchair, a bath, minibar, safe and a small balcony. Cabins on the lowest (Haydn) deck have smaller windows (160 x 40 cm) which don’t open. There are no single cabins as such but we are allocating some two-bed cabins for single occupancy. The public areas on the upper deck include the lounge and bar, a library area and a restaurant which can seat everyone at a single Standard cabin (17.5 m²) Suite (26.4 m²) sitting. The sun deck has a tented area for shade. Please note that this information may change as the vessel is still under construction. www.lueftner-cruises.com

Hotels, for the walkers Hotel zur Post, Melk (post-melk.at): a family-run hotel in the centre of the town, fairly simple, but adequately comfortable. Ranked as 4-star but more comparable to a good 3-star. Hotel Bristol, Vienna (bristolvienna.com): a 5-star hotel in a superb location on the Ringstrasse near the opera house, traditionally furnished and decorated. Richard Löwenherz, Dürnstein (richardloewenherz.at): a lovely old-fashioned hotel occupying a historic building with garden and outdoor pool. A view over the Danube, engraving c. 1850. Standard cabin (17.5 m²)

Mozart

Strauss Suite (26.4 m²)

Haydn

14 accommodation book online at www.martinrandall.com The Danube Music Festival, 20–27 August 2015 Prices & the festival package Staying on-board the ship

Single All prices are per person Two sharing occupancy*

Haydn deck (lowest) £3,140 £3,760

Strauss deck (middle) £3,910 £4,680

Mozart deck (top) £4,280 £5,160

Suites (Mozart deck) £4,930 –

No flights:subtract £210 per person from the prices above. Deposit: £300 per person. *All cabins are designed to accommodate two passengers. We make a limited amount of cabins on each deck available for single occupancy, which usually sell out quickly. Around three months before the start of the festival we may offer any remaining unsold cabins previously reserved for double occupancy to single travellers on the waiting list at a higher price (Haydn £4,060; Strauss £5,060; Mozart £5,560).

The Walking Party What the price includes £2,790 per person, based on two sharing. Admission to all nine concerts (six for the walking party) and £3,070 for single occupancy. daily lectures. Price without flights: £2,600 per person, or £2,880 for single Accommodation on a first-class river cruiser for seven nights, occupancy. or for six nights in hotels for the walking party. Pre-festival tour Flights between the UK and Munich for those on the ship, or London and Vienna for the walking party. There is a price Prices and full details for Vienna’s Masterpieces, are on page 16. reduction if you do not use these. All meals, from dinner on the first day to breakfast on the last, with wine, and interval drinks. For the walkers, five dinners and four lunches are included. Coach travel between the airport and ship or hotel and to the concert venues (when not reached on foot). All tips, taxes and admission charges. Practical and historical information and a detailed programme booklet. The assistance of an experienced team of festival staff. Illustration, above: engraving c. 1880; top right: Franz Schubert, engraving c. 1870.

About us Each year there are about 240 expert-led tours for small groups (usually 10 to 20 participants), a dozen music festivals and Martin Randall Travel aims to provide the best symposia and about 80 study days in London. For over twenty- planned, best led and altogether the most fulfilling and five years the company has led the field through incessant enjoyable cultural tours and events available. They focus innovation and improvement, and set the benchmarks for on art, music, history and archaeology in Britain and itinerary planning, operational systems and service standards. continental Europe, the Middle East and North Africa, MRT is Britain’s leading specialist in cultural travel and one of Asia and the Americas. the most respected tour operators in the world.

prices & the package 15 Telephone +44 (0)20 8742 3355 martin randall travel

Vienna’s Masterpieces – the art collections of an Imperial capital

Day 4. Another walk through picturesque streets and squares passes private palaces and public buildings such as the Gothic Revival city hall and the Neo-Classical Parliament. The Leopold Collection comprises excellent examples of the arts from the turn of the 19th century. The afternoon is spent in the Kunsthistorisches Museum, this time concentrating on Italian pictures – Bellini, Titian, Bellotto. There is also the recently re- displayed Kunstkammer here, an outstanding collection of metalwork and sculpture. Day 5. Take a tram around the Ringstrasse, a boulevard encircling the inner city lined with magnificent palaces and institutions of the later nineteenth century. Visit the Museum of Applied Arts, an outstanding collection from all eras and places, well displayed. Walk back to the hotel through further enchanting streetscape. Travel by rail 14.52–17.18 to Passau to join the festival. Vienna, Josefsplatz, engraving c. 1810. On the final day of the festival (27th Pre-festival tour display with the Gemütlichkeit of the coffee August), return on festival flight option 1 16–20 August 2015 (mb 416) houses. Diversity and delight. (Munich to Heathrow, arriving at c. 3.40pm). Lecturer: Angus Haldane Itinerary Lecturer 5 days • £1,960 Day 1. Fly at c. 9.15am from London Angus Haldane studied Classics at Oxford, and Byzantine and Renaissance art at the Focuses on the best of the art in the city – Heathrow to Vienna (Austrian Airlines) Courtauld. He worked for many years as painting, sculpture and decorative arts. and drive to the hotel. After lunch, walk to the Kunsthistorisches Museum, one an expert in the Impressionist and 19th- Also the key architectural monuments and of the world’s greatest collections of Old Century Department at Christie’s and in the characteristic streetscape. Masters. For this first visit concentrate on British Paintings Department at Sotheby’s. the northern schools, especially the early Angus now acts as a private art consultant, Perfectly located 5-star heritage hotel. Netherlandish school, the famous Bruegels, dealer, writer and lecturer and is a member Rubens, Rembrandt and Vermeer. of the Society of London Art Dealers. Vienna possesses one of the most significant concentrations of great art to be found Day 2. The splendid Belvedere Palace now Practicalities anywhere in the world. There are Old Master houses the national collection of Austrian paintings of the highest quality, indigenous art, mediaeval, Baroque, Price: £1,960 (deposit: £200). Including air early-modern art and design of the highest and Secessionist – Klimt and Schiele. An travel (economy class); 1st class train ticket importance, furnishings and decorative arts afternoon walk around the Roman and from Vienna to Passau, coach travel for from many civilizations, precious regalia mediaeval core of the city takes in the transfers and excursions; accommodation; and goldwork without peer – and much else Cathedral, the greatest of Gothic buildings in breakfasts, 1 lunch, 3 dinners with wine; besides. This tour includes all of the main the Danubian lands, distinguished for its late admissions; tips; taxes; services of the art museums and many of the smaller or mediaeval sculpture, and the Hofburg, the lecturer. Single supplement £250 (double less-visited ones. There is also more than a sprawling winter palace of the Habsburgs. for single occupancy). Price without flights passing glance at the most important works The precious regalia and objets d’art in the £1,750. of architecture, and the lecturer’s input Treasury are the best of their kind. As flights are included in the price of this tour, touches on the fascinating and turbulent Day 3. In a park a few minutes from the your festival booking will automatically be history of Austria and her empire. hotel see the former metro charged at the ‘no flights’ price. The seat of the Habsburgs, pre-eminent stations by and the great Accommodation. Hotel Bristol city of the Holy Roman Empire and capital Baroque Church of St Charles. The excellent (bristolvienna.com): 5-star hotel in a superb of a vast multinational agglomeration Vienna Museum traces the city’s history location on the Ringstrasse near the opera of territories, Vienna is appropriately through art and artefacts. In the afternoon house, traditionally furnished and decorated. equipped with magnificent buildings and visit the Secession Building which contains broad boulevards. But cheek by jowl with Klimt’s Beethoven Frieze, the magnificent How strenuous? Quite a lot of walking on grandiloquent palaces and trumpeting Great Hall of the Court Library and the and standing around in galleries. Tram is churches are narrow alleys and ancient excellent if small gallery of the Academy used on some occasions. courtyards which survive from the mediaeval of Fine Arts. Among its holdings is a Group size: 10–22 participants. city. In Vienna the magnificent mixes with masterpiece by Hieronymus Bosch. the unpretentiously charming, imperial

16 pre-festival tour book online at www.martinrandall.com The Danube Music Festival, 20–27 August 2015 Booking form

Travellers’ names. Give your name(s) as you would like it/them to appear to other festival participants.

1.

2.

Contact details for correspondence.

Address Fax

Mobile

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Postcode ☐ Tick if you do NOT want to receive updates by email on other tours and festivals. Telephone (home) ☐ Tick if you do NOT want to receive any more of our brochures.

Telephone (work) How did you originally hear about us?

Deck & cabin type (see page 14). Please tick. The walking alternative (tick to book)

Single Twin cabin Twin cabin ☐ Walking the Danube, 20–26 August 2015 (mb 421) occupancy (beds together) (beds separate) Room type Flights

Haydn deck ☐ Single occupancy ☐ Group flights (lowest) ☐ ☐ ☐ ☐ Twin (two sharing) ☐ Making own travel Strauss deck arrangements (middle) ☐ ☐ ☐ ☐ Double (two sharing)

Mozart deck (top) ☐ ☐ ☐ Pre-festival tour (tick to book)

☐ Vienna’s Masterpieces, 16–20 August 2015 (mb 416) Mozart suites – ☐ ☐ Room type Flights

☐ Single occupancy ☐ Group flights (at the Travel options (see page 13 for fuller details and prices). start of the tour and ☐ Twin (two sharing) end of the festival) ☐ Option 1: Heathrow, lunch in Landshut ☐ Double (two sharing) ☐ Making own travel Heathrow–Munich 09.05–11.55, lunch in Landshut arrangements en route to the ship. Munich–Heathrow 14.35–15.35.

☐ Option 2: Heathrow, free time in Munich Heathrow–Munich 11.05–13.55. c. 4 hrs free time in Special requests including dietary requirements (even if you Munich on the final day, Munich–Heathrow 18.20–19.20. have told us before).

☐ Option 3: Manchester Manchester–Munich 10.50–13.50. c. 2 hrs free time in Munich on the final day, Munich–Manchester 15.25–16.30.

☐ Option 4: no flights. Making your own arrangements for travelling to and from the festival.

If you are booking the walking alternative or the pre-festival tour, you do not need to complete this section. martin randall travel

Booking form

Passport details (in block capitals). Essential for airlines and in case of emergency during the festival.

Traveller 1 Traveller 2

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EITHER deposit(s) at £300 per person for the festival, plus £200 ☐ OR by bank transfer. Please use your surname and the per person if you are booking the pre-festival tour. festival code (mb 420) as the reference and allow for all bank charges. Total: £ Account name: Martin Randall Travel Ltd Bank name and address: Royal Bank of Scotland, Drummonds, OR full payment – required if you are booking within ten weeks 49 Charing Cross, London SW1A 2DX of departure (i.e. 11th June 2015 or later). Account number: 0019 6050 Sort code: 16-00-38 Total: £ IBAN: GB71 RBOS 1600 3800 1960 50 Swift/ BIC code: RBOS GB2L

☐ EITHER by cheque. Please make cheques payable to Martin Agreement Randall Travel Ltd. Write the festival code (mb 420) on the back. I have read and agree to the Booking Conditions on behalf of ☐ OR by credit or debit card. We accept payment by Visa, all listed on this form. Amex or Mastercard.

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Martin Randall Travel Ltd Australia: Telephone 1300 55 95 95 USA: Telephone 1 800 988 6168 Voysey House, Barley Mow Passage, New Zealand: Telephone 0800 877 622 London, United Kingdom W4 4GF [email protected] 5085 Telephone 020 8742 3355 Fax 020 8742 7766 Canada: Telephone 647 382 1644 [email protected] [email protected] www.martinrandall.com The Danube Music Festival, 20–27 August 2015

Making a booking 1. Provisional booking 2. Definite booking 3. Our confirmation We recommend that you contact us first to Fill in the Booking Form and send it to us with Upon receipt of your Booking Form and ascertain that your preferred accommodation the deposit(s). It is important that you read deposit we send you confirmation of your is still available. You can make a provisional the Booking Conditions at this stage, and that booking. After this your deposit is non- booking which we will hold for one week you sign the Booking Form. Full payment is returnable except in the special circumstances (longer if necessary) pending receipt of your required if you are booking within ten weeks of mentioned in the Booking Conditions. completed Booking Form and deposit. the festival. Booking conditions Please read these countries should ascertain whether visas are holder will perform those obligations and required in their case, and obtain them if they you agree to pay any money outstanding to You need to sign your assent to these booking are. be paid by you under your contract to that conditions on the booking form. alternative ATOL holder. However, you also If you cancel. If you have to cancel your Our promises to you agree that in some cases it will not be possible participation in the festival or the pre-festival to appoint an alternative ATOL holder, in We aim to be fair, reasonable and sympathetic tour, there would be a charge which varies which case you will be entitled to make a claim in all our dealings with clients, and to act according to the period of notice you give. Up under the ATOL scheme (or your credit card always with integrity. to 57 days before departure the deposit only is issuer where applicable). If we, or the suppliers forfeited. Thereafter a percentage of the total We will meet all our legal and regulatory identified on your ATOL certificate, are unable cost will be due: responsibilities, often going beyond the to provide the services listed (or a suitable minimum obligations. from 56 to 29 days: 40% alternative, through an alternative ATOL from 28 to 15 days: 60% holder or otherwise) for reasons of insolvency, We aim to provide full and accurate from 14 to 3 days: 80% the Trustees of the Air Travel Trust may make a information about our tours and festivals. within 48 hours: 100% payment to (or confer a benefit on) you under If there are changes, we will tell you promptly. the ATOL scheme. You agree that in return for We take as the day of cancellation that on If something does go wrong, we will try to put such a payment or benefit you assign absolutely which we receive your written confirmation of it right. Our overriding aim is to ensure that to those Trustees any claims which you have or cancellation. every client is satisfied with our services. may have arising out of or relating to the non- All we ask of you If we cancel the festival or tour. We might provision of the services, including any claim decide to cancel the festival or tour if at any against us (or your credit card issuer where We ask that you read the information we send time up to eight weeks before there were applicable). You also agree that any such claims to you. insufficient bookings for it to be viable. We maybe re-assigned to another body, if that Specific terms would refund everything you had paid to other body has paid sums you have claimed us. We might also cancel if hostilities, civil under the ATOL scheme. Our contract with you. From the time we unrest, natural disaster or other circumstances We provide full financial protection for receive your signed booking form and initial amounting to force majeure affect the region. our package holidays that do not include a payment, a contract exists between you and Safety and security. If the UK Foreign and flight, by way of a bond held by ABTA The Martin Randall Travel Ltd. Commonwealth Office advises against travel to Travel Association. Eligibility. We reserve the right to refuse a places visited on the festival or tour, we would The limits of our liabilities. As principal, booking without necessarily giving a reason. cancel or adjust the itinerary to avoid the risky we accept responsibility for all ingredients You need to have a level of fitness which area. In the event of cancellation before the of the festival or tour, except those in which would not spoil other participants’ enjoyment festival or tour commenced we would give you the principle of force majeure prevails. Our of the holiday by slowing them down – see a full refund. obligations and responsibilities are also limited ‘Fitness for the festival’ on page 12. To this Our tours and festivals subscribe to the health where international conventions apply in end we shall issue fitness requirements to all and safety legislation of the destination. In respect of air, sea or rail carriers, including the participants to self-assess their capability. some parts of the world the law concerning Warsaw Convention and its various updates. Those participants who are unable to cope seatbelts differs to the UK. during the festival or pre-festival tour may be If we make changes. Circumstances might required to opt out. Financial protection. arise which prevent us from operating the We provide full financial protection for our festival or tour exactly as advertised. We Insurance. It is a requirement of booking that package holidays, by way of our Air Travel would try to devise a satisfactory alternative, you have adequate holiday insurance. Cover Organiser’s Licence number 3622. When you but if the change represents a significant for medical treatment, repatriation, loss of buy an ATOL protected flight inclusive holiday loss to the festival or tour we would offer property and cancellation charges must be from us you receive an ATOL Certificate. This compensation. If you decide to cancel because included. Insurance can be obtained from most lists what is financially protected, where you the alternative we offer is not acceptable we insurance companies, banks, travel agencies can get information on what this means for would give a full refund. and (in the UK) many retail outlets including you and who to contact if things go wrong. We Post Offices. English Law. These conditions form part will provide you with the services listed on the of your contract with Martin Randall Travel Passports and visas. Participants must have ATOL Certificate (or a suitable alternative). Ltd and are governed by English law. All passports, valid for at least six months beyond In some cases, where we aren’t able do so for proceedings shall be within the exclusive the date of the festival. No visas are required reasons of insolvency, an alternative ATOL jurisdiction of the courts of England for the countries visited during the festival holder may provide you with the services you and Wales. (Austria, Germany, Slovakia) for UK or other have bought or a suitable alternative (at no EU citizens, or for citizens of the USA, Canada, extra cost to you). You agree to accept that Australia or New Zealand. Nationals of other in those circumstances the alternative ATOL

booking details 19 Telephone +44 (0)20 8742 3355 Martin Randall Travel Ltd ‘The programming was superb, and the Voysey House Barley Mow Passage performances, without exception, were wonderful.’ London United Kingdom ‘This tour was an example of a master class W4 4GF in organisation and choice of music.’ Telephone 020 8742 3355 Comments from participants on previous MRT music festivals Fax 020 8742 7766 [email protected]

Martin Randall Australasia Canada: Telephone 647 382 1644 PO Box 1024 Fax 416 925 2670 Indooroopilly [email protected] QLD 4068 Telephone 1300 55 95 95 USA: Telephone 1 800 988 6168 Fax 07 3371 8288 [email protected] Front cover: a print published in 1897 after A 5085 Schubert Evening in a Vienna Salon by Julius Schmid. From New Zealand: Back cover: Melk Abbey, lithograph by Alois Telephone 0800 877 622 www.martinrandall.com Hänisch (1866–1937).