Festivals, stages & customs in Upper Austria
Carmen* dances...
...to brass music in the Innviertel region, to guitar riffs at Clam Castle or to the electro beats of Parov Stelar. Today she’s heading to the Brucknerhaus in Linz, tomorrow to a jazz festival, and on Sunday she’s wearing her traditional Goldhaube headdress.
*Carmen, the tragic main character of Georges Bizet’s opera of the same name. Perhaps her musical talent would have found a better home on the stages of Upper Austria.
Upper Austrian cultural summer
During the festival season, all of Upper Austria becomes a stage. From the lakes of the Salzkammergut region to serene castle courtyards and historical arcades — Upper Austria’s most beautiful places become part of the productions of the Upper Austrian cultural summer.
There are no limits to the cultural delights of summer: operettas on a warm summer evening under the open sky, local dialect renditions of the classic “Jedermann”, concerts in churches and castles and captivating jazz or brass music.
And because a warm summer evening doesn’t have to end after the final curtain, it’s best finished off with some excellent local cuisine and fine wine.
Every summer, the international brass band scene meets in Ort im Innkreis. The brass sounds and the wood whistles so that every dancing leg simply has to move to the rhythm.
Steyr's castle moat is the setting for the Steyr Music Festival. Every summer, great musical theatre is performed here, illuminated only by the stars in the sky.
Every year in July, street artists from all continents flock to Linz to perform their entire repertoire on the main square, in the surrounding historic city centre and on the Landstraße: Acrobatics, juggling, magic, clowning, street theatre, and, and, and...
The unrivalled landscape around Lake Traunsee has inspired artists. And they all enjoy coming to perform in the programme of the Salzkammergut Festival - from classical music and jazz to literature and theatre.
The International Bruckner Festival in Linz sets the final chord in the festival summer in September. And what a one! Orchestras and musicians of international standing pay their respects to the Upper Austrian grand master of the symphony.
Since 1973, the OÖ. Abbey Concerts have been a highlight of the cultural summer. The venues are the churches and halls of Upper Austria's monasteries and convents. The repertoire ranges from chamber music to the Bruckner symphony in the St Florian Abbey Basilica.
Colourful hustle and bustle, music, programme highlights and 100% organic regional cuisine. Austria's largest green event in Taiskirchen is now in its eleventh edition.
Ars Electronica is one of the world's largest stages for media art, the unique festival for art, technology and society.
The somewhat different Linz harbour festival transforms the area of the industrial harbour into a party zone. It's all about trendy and extreme sports, live music and hands-on activities.
Gustav Mahler meets the 200th anniversary celebrant Anton Bruckner at his summer retreat and place of work, Steinbach.
Crossing Europe Filmfestival Linz is a six-day film festival that has been taking place in Linz at the end of April since 2004.
![The \"Mondseer Jedermann\"](https://media.tourdata.at/display/nceTourdataBig/def45d871f6a0143fb62a25ea5f2d665.jpg "The \\"Mondseer Jedermann\\" | © Erich Unteregelsbacher")
The version of the mystery play set in dialect by Franz Löser and authorised by Hugo von Hofmannsthal. The Mondsee Jedermann has been performed since 1922.
The Salzkammergut is getting a new lake stage. It will be open to the public for the first time in 2024 with the play Wolf ≈ The Mystical.
One word that isn’t in Hubert von Goisern’s vocabulary is downtime. Even at over 60, the star of Alpine rock is constantly reinventing himself – most recently as an author. Hubert von Goisern published his first novel, “flüchtig”, under his real name, Hubert Achleitner.
He conducts the Vienna Philharmonic, is a regular guest at the Salzburg Festival and has made an international name for himself in the music world – star conductor Franz Welser-Möst, one of the most notable conductors of our time, lives in private seclusion on Lake Attersee.
Austrian conductor Franz Welser-Möst professed that he had never heard such a treble voice before. Alois Mühlbacher, once a member of the St. Florian Boys’ Choir, is now making his mark as a countertenor on the global opera and concert circuit.
The out-and-out artist from the Mühlviertel – Parov Stelar is considered to be the originator of electro swing and, with his deal with Falco, was the first Austrian to sign with a US label. He has won the Amadeus Award seven times already and his single “Booty Swing” alone has millions of views on YouTube.
They’re well known as an Upper Austrian institution. The St. Florian Boys’ Choir can be seen laughing in their traditional sailor suits on the covers of CDs and DVDs. Their vocal performances are of the highest calibre, captivating audiences worldwide.
Clear the stage for your holiday
Two nights in Linz including concert ticket.
Two nights in Linz including concert ticket.
Christian Thielemann and the Vienna Philharmonic make a guest appearance in Linz and celebrate Anton Bruckner.
Two nights in Linz including concert ticket.
Two nights in Linz including concert ticket.
Two nights in Linz including concert ticket.
Composers' trip to Linz. Bruckner's coming home...
The Bad Schallerbach Music Summer has been a hit for 25 years. 2 nights with breakfast and a ticket for one event of the music summer.
2 nights, admission ticket "WOLF - the Mystical" category 1, boat trip to the lake stage
2 nights, admission ticket "WOLF - the Mystical" category 1, boat trip to the lake stage
2 nights, admission ticket "WOLF - the Mystical" category 1, boat trip to the lake stage
That’s our custom
Preserving customs is deeply ingrained in the cultural life of Upper Austrians. Throughout the year, there are many occasions to breathe life into old traditions.
The annual cycle of customs begins on 5 January with a highlight — the Glöckler Runs in the Salzkammergut region. The carnival season has its stronghold in Ebensee on Lake Traun, where ‘Fetzen’ (masked revellers) take over the town. Lake Traun has also given rise to one of the most beautiful customs of the fasting season — the “Liebstattsonntag”.
The Corpus Christi procession on Lake Hallstatt, midsummer fires or “Liachtbratlmontag” in Bad Ischl in autumn — every season offers an opportunity for communal celebrations. But it’s the Advent season, with its Christkindl markets, Advent singing and contemplative moments that stand out.
5 January is Glöcklertag in the Salzkammergut.
The Fetzenfasching, the "national holidays of Ebensee".
Stroll, enjoy, Christmas scent. Advent markets in Upper Austria.