Provided: JaxFax (Marketing Magazine for Travel Professionals)

By:  Tom Bross (Article summary)

Some, but only a few cities on Planet Earth can match Austria's capital when it come to artistic expression and sheer cosmopolitan verve.  And, for those of your clients who like urban energy and bigness, Vienna is their kind of place - home to 1.6 million people, 20% of the country's overall population.  True to long-time habits, the Viennese have adjusted to the city's sprawling expanse by infusing it with an understated kind of charm, a lifestyle they refer to as Wiener Schmah.

Credit Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart for a whirl of special attractions on 2006's events calendar.  This year marks the 250th birthday of musical history's quintessential whiz kid, who produced 626 published works during his short lifetime (1756-1791).  Many of Vienna's most prominent landmarks are staging performances of his operas, symphonies, concertos, chamber pieces, sonatas, masses (including 1791's Requiem) and varied miscellenia.

Foremost among such venues are the Staatsoper and Volksoper, the Musikverein's acoustically pitch-perfect Golden Hall, Theater an de Wien, Schnonbrunn Palace, St. Stephen's Cathedral, the Wiener Konzerthaus and the Hofburg imperial palace.  The Vienna Boys' Choir sings in the Musikverein on Fridays through October 27th.

Admist all that, a comprehensive Viennese Mozart exhibition, which will run through September 17th has been drawing onlookers to the Albertina (www.albertina.at).  Mozart-themed tour and concert packages, several including meals and hotel overnights are plentiful.  For a roundup, log onto: www.mozart2006.net