Archive

The handkerchief that Sir Simon Rattle used to dry his forehead during the memorable performance of Karlheinz Stockhausen's »Gruppen« on 23 March 1996 is safe in the archives of the Wiener Konzerthaus. And, of course, a part of the bull's skull that was smashed on stage to great public acclaim at the premiere of George Lopez's »Schatten vergessener Ahnen« on 24 October 1996. Of course, users - the archive is open to the public - will find items of significant individual value: letters from artists (such as Richard Strauss and Johann Strauss, Dvorák, Bruckner, Wolf, Nono, Ligeti, Cerha, Stockhausen and many others), autograph scores, historical sheet music, but also programme notes, posters, concert reviews, records and CDs, historical photographic material and music books.

Main areas of work
One focus of the archives' work, however, is the documentation of concerts and events at the Konzerthaus, whereby the artistic and financial conditions are at the centre of interest. This makes the history of the house, which has existed since 1913 but whose institutional roots go back to the 19th century, the actual main subject of the archive work. The aim is to analyse, make accessible and process the available information and materials in such a way that a wide range of enquiries from archive users can be answered.

SUPPORTED BY