Vienna New Year’s Concert

Vienna Royal Artist Orchestra 

Dariusz Mikulski – conductor and presenter

The traditional Vienna New Year's Concert with a large symphony orchestra and soloists. The orchestra performs the most beautiful and well-known works by Strauss, Mozart, Rossini, Tchaikovsky, Brahms, and others, in the tradition of the Viennese concerts.

The world-famous New Year’s Concert of the Vienna Philharmonic

The New Year’s Concert of the Vienna Philharmonic is a musical highlight at the turn of the year, dedicated primarily to the works of the famous Strauss family. Although it first took place on New Year’s Eve 1939, it has been a firm tradition on New Year’s Day since 1941.

Program and Performances

The concert program is presented three times:

A preview performance on December 30th for members of the Austrian Armed Forces, as the musicians of the Vienna State Opera Orchestra, from which the Vienna Philharmonic is composed, are exempt from military service.
A New Year’s Eve concert on the evening of December 31st.
The actual New Year’s Concert on January 1st at noon.
All three concerts take place in the magnificent Golden Hall of the Vienna Musikverein and have been decorated with floral arrangements from Sanremo since 1980.

Musical Diversity

Although the framework of the program is always characterized by works of the Strauss dynasty, each year there is also a focus on other composers such as Lanner or Hellmesberger.

Rituals and Highlights

The New Year’s Concert is rich in traditions:

After the two main parts, encores follow, which are eagerly awaited by the audience. Before the famous waltz “On the Beautiful Blue Danube,” the applause interrupts the conductor before the orchestra conveys its New Year’s wishes. The concert traditionally concludes with “On the Beautiful Blue Danube” and the “Radetzky March,” during which the audience claps along in time. Worldwide Broadcast and Staging

Since 1959, the concert has been broadcast live by ORF to over 40 countries around the world and has thus become a symbol of Viennese musical culture. The television broadcast is enriched with thematically appropriate images and ballet interludes, which are broadcast live from Schönbrunn or pre-recorded from Hof Palace.

Conductors and Other Traditions

In 2007, Zubin Mehta conducted the concert for the fourth time. Brian Large has been responsible for the visual direction since 1991. The two dress rehearsals are also part of the tradition, with one reserved for the Austrian Armed Forces. In 2006, a dress rehearsal was broadcast live on the Vienna Ice Skating Club’s ice rink for the first time.
The New Year’s Concert of the Vienna Philharmonic is thus not only a musical event but also a firmly anchored cultural ritual that inspires people worldwide and festively heralds the new year.