Vienna: the Haus der Musik and Peterskirche

On the Wednesday, we visited the Haus der Musik. We really enjoyed ourselves playing with sound at all the different interactive exhibits. Clever software let you throw a dice eight times for flute and eight times for cello (each throw choosing a different musical phrase) so you could make your own waltz; you could also make your own CD (as Chloe did) and conduct the Vienna Philharmonic – Chloe did Hoffman’s ‘Can Can’ and I did Eine Kleine Nachtmusik. Great fun! (The speed at which you conduct affects the speed of the orchestra playing – very, very cleverly done.)

Then we had a stroll round the main shopping area. Some of the street artists were amazing. We were very impressed by this man’s balance.

We bought a picture of Stephansdom from one of the street artists, then visited Peterskirche. This may have been built on the site of a Roman encampment (there are some ruins just outside the Spanish Riding School, opposite), and the building of the present church was begun in 1701 after the old church was burned down and then Vienna was hit by the plague. It was the first building in baroque Vienna to have a dome (and it’s oval – very unusual).

Very baroque inside.

The dome was lovely.

But the fully dressed and bejewelled skeleton in one of the chapels was a bit macabre! (It’s a Roman martyr from the catacombs and was dressed and placed here in 1733.)