I have descibed some of the sites I’ve seen in Vienna  but this blog is about the sounds of Vienna.

Due to the generosity of Margret’s family I am staying in an apartment that they own in the 3rd district. It is a lovely place filled with antique furniture and old framed paintings. There are big double windows in the living and bed rooms (important fact, as you will find out). It is on the 4th floor of the building and is close to the underground. Behind the building is an old hospital that is undergoing massive construction works. A few blocks behind that is a church. I can’t see this church but I can certainly hear it’s bells!  I thought there was only one set of bells which keeps the time and chimes every 15 minutes. I  am woken by the bells each morning which is quite pleasant but then I  am also assaulted  by the cacophony of construction equipment at 7 am as well! Some mornings it’s been hard to get out of bed and I  have needed more sleep. I then have to make a choice between hearing the din of drills and cranes and cement trucks or going without fresh air! Vienna has been suffering through a veritable heat wave since I  have been here, and the apartment  has been a little hot box so I  have the windows wide open when I  am there. This is why the noise of the construction  is so loud. Sometimes though, catching a few more hours of sleep in a pool of sweat has been more preferable. The double windows mean almost no noise gets through but then neither does any air!

On Sunday morning a sleep in was out of the question as not only did the usual clock  bell chime but around 8.00am and then again at 8.30 am other bells chimed. It was not just a simple ding dong either but an insistant, very loud clanging of what sounded like a dozen bells! I swear they were yelling at me to get up and go to church! So I  did my mother proud and went to church!

Having been so impressed with St Stephens cathedral  I went there for mass – why not make a grand gesture? Besides I had read somewhere that Bach was giving a performance there! Sure enough as I  slipped in past the tourists at the back of the church, I  could hear the grand tones of the huge pipe organ located halfway down the church. Sitting in one of the large wooden pews I tuned into the familiar rhythm of the mass. Even though I can barely understand a word of German,  I obviously understood what was going on, athough there was much more standing and sitting and kneeling than I’m  used to. I think the Austrians are a very polite people! All the parts of the mass were sung with the wonderful accompaniment of the organ, as well as some unfamiliar hymns. I  wondered when Bach was turning up and thought he must’ve slept in,  though God knows why the bells didnt wake him up!

Actually  Bach did eventually  turn up at the end of the mass and the organist did a mighty job of playing him! There really is something quite spectacular and possibly even spiritual (if you’re that way inclined) about the reverberating tones of a pipe organ echoing in a cavernous cathedral. No wonder the “Church” was such a crowd puller in past centuries!

After Mass, I  just hung out in a cafe in the square of the Stephansplatz and watched the passing parade of tourists, an entertainment of a differnt kind!

And while I’m on the subject of entertainment this brings me to another experience of the sounds of Vienna. What music could I hear that would be the height of Austrianness? (if there is such a word) Yes you guessed it, The Sound of Music! Margret and I went to the Volksopera production of this classic musical on Saturday night.

Call me a nerd if you like but I  have always loved this musical. The Sound of Music movie is one of my earliest film memories. I have watched it on tv many times and also own the Dvd. Hearing it sung and acted in german was no great problem as of course, I  know all the lyrics! There was a translation screened above the curtain but Margret said it was pretty poor and inaccurate. I  confess to having to stop myself from singing along to every song but we were given our opportunity at the end. After thundering applause and countless bows by the cast, the orchestra started up again and we were all encouraged to sing along to Eidelweiss! Naturally I sung along with gusto! On a sentimental  note, I always used to sing this song to Christian when he was a baby and he couldn’t sleep – worked like a charm!

I’m finding it quite fascinating to be surrounded by the German language and I am even starting to pick up some phrases. I’ve always had a bias towards what I  think are the more melodious tones of the Italian and French language and have in the past labelled German a harsh sounding language. Maybe it’s because I  feel the Austrians to be a softer people, that it sounds softer or maybe I am just “getting my ear in”. Whatever the case, there is music to be heard in all languages!