0:00:51 > 0:00:56APPLAUSE.
0:01:00 > 0:01:08Happy New Year and good morning to you from Vienna, where hundreds
0:01:08 > 0:01:10of flowers tended by the municipal gardeners
0:01:10 > 0:01:12and park-keepers of this city complement the gilded ceiling,
0:01:12 > 0:01:14the golden caryatids and glittering chandeliers of the large
0:01:14 > 0:01:17hall of the Musikverein.
0:01:17 > 0:01:20For the next few hours waltzes and polkas, marches, mazurkas,
0:01:20 > 0:01:23quadrilles and gavottes by the Strauss family will provide
0:01:23 > 0:01:27a perfect start to 2018 - a model unchanged in eight decades.
0:01:27 > 0:01:30Its reassuring familiarity perhaps key to the popularity
0:01:30 > 0:01:33of this great annual event.
0:01:33 > 0:01:35The Vienna Philharmonic New Year's Day Concert
0:01:35 > 0:01:37in association with Rolex.
0:01:37 > 0:01:40On the conductor's podium this year, Riccardo Muti who is an honorary
0:01:40 > 0:01:42member of the Vienna Philharmonic having conducted them
0:01:42 > 0:01:43more than 500 times.
0:01:43 > 0:01:46This is his fifth New Year's Day Concert.
0:01:48 > 0:01:51To get here this morning I walked past the Theatre An Der Wien
0:01:51 > 0:01:54associated with Mozart and Beethoven and also with Johann Strauss Junior,
0:01:54 > 0:01:59whose operetta The Gypsy Baron premiered there in 1885.
0:01:59 > 0:02:02A comedy set in both rural Hungary and imperial Vienna,
0:02:02 > 0:02:04Strauss thus cleverly bringing together both parts
0:02:04 > 0:02:07of the old Dual Monarchy.
0:02:07 > 0:02:12Riccardo Muti makes his way onto the platform to open the 2018
0:02:12 > 0:02:14Vienna Philharmonic New Year's Day Concert with the Entrance March
0:02:14 > 0:02:18from The Gypsy Baron.
0:02:33 > 0:02:35MUSIC: Johann Strauss, Sohn -
0:02:35 > 0:02:37Einzugsmarsch aus der Operette "Der Zigeunerbaron"
0:05:49 > 0:05:52The Entrance March from the Gypsy Baron by Strauss launching the 2018
0:05:52 > 0:05:56Vienna Philharmonic New Year's Day Concert.
0:05:59 > 0:06:02Johann's younger brother Josef next, celebrating the rich murals
0:06:02 > 0:06:05and ceiling paintings found in the churches and palaces of this
0:06:05 > 0:06:07city in his waltz "Vienna Frescoes".
0:06:15 > 0:06:20MUSIC: Josef Strauss - Wiener Fresken, Walzer, op249.
0:15:14 > 0:15:18APPLAUSE
0:15:18 > 0:15:21Vienna Frescoes by Josef Strauss, with images of the Austrian National
0:15:21 > 0:15:31Library in the Hofburg, the old Imperial Palace.
0:15:31 > 0:15:34This is the third performance of the concert, the Vienna
0:15:34 > 0:15:36Philharmonic ended the old year with a performance last night
0:15:36 > 0:15:39and on Saturday morning the Austrian Armed Forces made up
0:15:39 > 0:15:41a substantial chunk of the audience, their olive drab uniforms
0:15:41 > 0:15:43contrasting with the golden glow of this hall.
0:15:43 > 0:15:44We opened with The Gypsy Baron.
0:15:46 > 0:15:49Such was its success that Strauss wrote a series of works
0:15:49 > 0:15:52on it, including this.
0:15:52 > 0:15:55MUSIC: Johann Strauss, Sohn Brautschau, Polka francaise op.417
0:19:58 > 0:20:02APPLAUSE
0:20:02 > 0:20:05Strauss' polka Bridal Parade.
0:20:05 > 0:20:07In 1866, Austria was defeated at Koniggratz in the decisive battle
0:20:07 > 0:20:10of the Austro-Prussian War.
0:20:10 > 0:20:12As a result, the country lost much of her political
0:20:12 > 0:20:14influence in Europe.
0:20:14 > 0:20:18Carnival season the next year desperately needed music
0:20:18 > 0:20:21that would bring cheer, one of the works Strauss
0:20:21 > 0:20:22provided was his fast polka "Leichtes Blut" -
0:20:22 > 0:20:24"Light of Heart".
0:20:24 > 0:20:26MUSIC: Johann Strauss -
0:20:26 > 0:20:28Sohn Leichtes Blut, Polka schnell op.319
0:22:32 > 0:22:36APPLAUSE
0:22:36 > 0:22:38Light of Heart.
0:22:38 > 0:22:41Johann Strauss writing for the 1867 Carnival Season,
0:22:41 > 0:22:44for which he also wrote the Blue Danube which we will
0:22:44 > 0:22:46hear much later in this New Year's Day Concert.
0:22:46 > 0:22:50Also ahead later, dancers from Vienna State Ballet taking us
0:22:50 > 0:22:53to a railway station designed by the architect Otto Wagner,
0:22:53 > 0:23:03who died a century ago this year.
0:23:34 > 0:23:37Johann Strauss, Vater Wilhelm Tell-Galopp, Polka schnell, op.29b
0:24:46 > 0:24:52APPLAUSE
0:24:52 > 0:24:54The William Tell Gallop by Johann Strauss Senior,
0:24:54 > 0:24:56ending the first part of the 2017 Vienna Philharmonic
0:24:56 > 0:25:00New Year's Day Concert.
0:25:00 > 0:25:02Managed with some speed by Riccardo Muti who will be
0:25:02 > 0:25:12back on the platform in about 25 minutes' time.
0:25:45 > 0:25:47We"ll return to the Strauss family shortly - after another
0:25:47 > 0:25:50composer of the Austro - Hungarian Empire, Franz von Suppe,
0:25:50 > 0:25:52who came from Dalmatia, in what is now Croatia.
0:25:52 > 0:25:55A prolific writer of operettas - four dozen in total -
0:25:55 > 0:25:56he was also a fine bass singer.
0:25:56 > 0:25:59His operetta Boccaccio opened here in Vienna in 1879.
0:25:59 > 0:26:00The Italian conductor Riccardo Muti takes us
0:26:00 > 0:26:03to his homeland for a drama set during Renaissance times.
0:26:03 > 0:26:03APPLAUSE.
0:33:08 > 0:33:18APPLAUSE.
0:33:18 > 0:33:22Giovanni Boccaccio an Italian poet, writer and parliamentarian active
0:33:22 > 0:33:24in Florence and Naples, Muti's hometown, author
0:33:24 > 0:33:26of the Decameron, in which he criticlally
0:33:26 > 0:33:31and sarcastically portrayed 14th century Florentine society.
0:33:34 > 0:33:371881 wedding music next.
0:33:49 > 0:33:54Empress Elizabeth, the much-loved Sisi Belgian Princess was just 16.
0:33:54 > 0:33:58Long-term it was not to be a happy partnership
0:33:58 > 0:34:01but the wedding was a grand affair, like the hall this morning,
0:34:01 > 0:34:05every available space decked with flowers.
0:34:05 > 0:34:08The people of Vienna welcomed the new Princess with open arms.
0:34:08 > 0:34:12As part of the celebrations, Strauss provided his waltz.
0:34:20 > 0:34:23MUSIC: Johann Strauss - Sohn Myrthenbluten, Walzer op.395
0:43:29 > 0:43:34APPLAUSE
0:43:34 > 0:43:43Riccardo Muti, conducting the Vienna Philharmonic.
0:43:43 > 0:43:46Myrtle Blossom, written for the marriage of Crown Prince Rudolph
0:43:46 > 0:43:48and Princess Stephanie.
0:43:48 > 0:43:50Our next work also written for that Grand Royal Wedding,
0:43:50 > 0:43:53the Stephanie Gavotte, by the Imperial Bandmaster
0:43:53 > 0:43:55Alfons Czibulka.
0:43:55 > 0:43:58And this is the moment where we first meet dancers
0:43:58 > 0:44:00from the Vienna State Ballet.
0:44:00 > 0:44:03This year, Vienna marks a centenary since the death of the great
0:44:03 > 0:44:05Austrian modernist architect Otto Wagner.
0:44:05 > 0:44:08Many of his buildings survive, including stations
0:44:08 > 0:44:11that he built for the Stadtbahn, a new Metropolitan Railway
0:44:11 > 0:44:14constructed as the 19th century turned into the 20th.
0:44:14 > 0:44:18Emperor Franz Joseph had his own pavilion
0:44:18 > 0:44:21at its station at Heitzing, which is where we will
0:44:21 > 0:44:27find the dancers.
0:44:27 > 0:44:28Not a favourite amongst the Emperor's buildings -
0:44:28 > 0:44:30he only used it twice.
0:44:30 > 0:44:33Not that that worried Otto Wagner,
0:44:33 > 0:44:36He got the royal seal of approval.
0:44:42 > 0:44:45MUSIC: Alphons Czibulka - "Stephanie-Gavotte" op 312.
0:49:28 > 0:49:33APPLAUSE
0:49:33 > 0:49:35The Stephanie Gavotte - and a celebration of Otto Wagner,
0:49:35 > 0:49:38the architect who died a century ago and left a vital legacy
0:49:38 > 0:49:46with his buildings in Vienna.
0:49:46 > 0:49:48Davide Bombana choreographing the Vienna State Ballet
0:49:48 > 0:49:53for his third New Year's Concert.
0:49:57 > 0:49:58MUSIC: Johann Strauss -
0:49:58 > 0:50:00Sohn Freikugeln, Polka schnell op.326
0:52:18 > 0:52:23APPLAUSE
0:52:23 > 0:52:25A polka premiered 150 years ago in 1868.
0:52:25 > 0:52:28Magic Bullets, written for the 3rd German Federal Shooting Contest
0:52:28 > 0:52:32in the Prater Park.
0:52:32 > 0:52:33The event attracted no less than 10,000 marksmen
0:52:33 > 0:52:41from many parts of the world.
0:52:41 > 0:52:45Work that Strauss took to America - he conducted it in Boston
0:52:45 > 0:52:48to an audience of tens of thousands with an orchestra of 809,
0:52:48 > 0:52:53including 200 first violins.
0:52:53 > 0:52:55Another work Strauss composed 150 years ago was "Tales
0:52:55 > 0:53:01from the Vienna Woods", premiered under the collonades
0:53:01 > 0:53:04of the Paradise Cafe.
0:53:04 > 0:53:06Alongside excerpts from Wagner's brand new opera, The Mastersingers
0:53:06 > 0:53:08of Nuremburg.
0:53:08 > 0:53:16A pause for a table to accommodate a zither.
0:53:16 > 0:53:19The oldest instruments of the family are found in China, there are many
0:53:19 > 0:53:21different national variations.
0:53:21 > 0:53:24The Austrian Zither grew in size during the C19,
0:53:24 > 0:53:28and zither virtuosi started to emerge around the 1850s.
0:53:28 > 0:53:34The Shrammel brothers were the most celebrated players in Strauss' day,
0:53:34 > 0:53:36though he only used the instrument occasionally and Tales
0:53:36 > 0:53:39from the Vienna Woods the only time he gave it a prominent solo passage.
0:53:39 > 0:53:42An instrument that became synonymous with Vienna in the 20th century,
0:53:42 > 0:53:46thanks to the film the Third Man.
0:53:46 > 0:53:48Soloist Barbara Laister Ebner Strauss gave the zither a prominent
0:53:48 > 0:53:58role in his Tales from the Vienna Woods.
0:54:08 > 0:54:09MUSIC: Johann Strauss -
0:54:09 > 0:54:12Jr Tales from Vienna Woods, waltz, op 325.
1:06:18 > 1:06:22APPLAUSE
1:06:22 > 1:06:25Strauss' Waltz Tales From the Vienna Woods.
1:06:26 > 1:06:29The zither player Barbara Laister Ebner, born here in Vienna
1:06:29 > 1:06:36and studied the instrument at the State Conservatoire,
1:06:36 > 1:06:39one of 16 zither players auditioned for this prestigious concert.
1:06:39 > 1:06:44She is one of just six women on stage today.
1:06:44 > 1:06:47We were up to nine or ten, so it's a backwards journey this year.
1:06:54 > 1:07:00Riccardo Muti, born in Naples.
1:07:00 > 1:07:05Another Italian connection next chosen by Maestro Muti,
1:07:05 > 1:07:09a march written for a wedding that took place in a villa on the coast
1:07:09 > 1:07:12near Lucca in 1893 - the wedding of Prince Ferdinand
1:07:12 > 1:07:14of Bulgaria, who later became the Tsar of Bulgaria.
1:07:14 > 1:07:17He held the role for a decade before he abdicated in favour
1:07:17 > 1:07:20of his son in 1918, in order to save the Bulgarian throne.
1:07:20 > 1:07:22Ferdinand lived on until 1948, long enough to see his nine-year-old
1:07:22 > 1:07:24grandson deposed in 1946 when the communists
1:07:24 > 1:07:31abolished the monarchy.
1:07:31 > 1:07:35For the first half of this year it will hold the Presidency of the EU,
1:07:35 > 1:07:37hence the inclusion of the march today.
1:07:37 > 1:07:39Austria will then take over for the second six
1:07:39 > 1:07:42months of the year.
1:07:52 > 1:07:59Ferdinand was from Vienna.
1:07:59 > 1:08:00The King is completely captivated
1:08:00 > 1:08:02by you and your music, Strauss was told.
1:08:02 > 1:08:06The grandson had a brief stab at being Tsar as a boy and returned
1:08:06 > 1:08:09as Prime Minister of Bulgaria in 2001 and it was he who was in
1:08:09 > 1:08:11part responsible for bringing about Bulgaria's membership
1:08:11 > 1:08:13of the European Union.
1:08:15 > 1:08:18So we await the return of Riccardo Muti.
1:08:21 > 1:08:29The music director of The Chicago Symphony Orchestra.
1:08:29 > 1:08:32He has conducted the Philharmonic 500 times, in a relationship that
1:08:32 > 1:08:36spans nearly half a century. The Festival March, written for a royal
1:08:36 > 1:08:38wedding.
1:08:38 > 1:08:41MUSIC: Johann Strauss - Sohn Festmarsch op.452
1:12:23 > 1:12:26APPLAUSE
1:12:26 > 1:12:30Strauss's Festival March.
1:12:30 > 1:12:32It was at a charity concert in the Floral Hall
1:12:32 > 1:12:35of the Vienna Horticultural Society that Strauss introduced his
1:12:35 > 1:12:38polka Stadt und Land - town and country, a title that
1:12:38 > 1:12:40rather reflected his lifestyle after he purchased a yellow
1:12:40 > 1:12:43sandstone villa in the green suburb of Hietzing.
1:12:51 > 1:12:53MUSIC: Johann Strauss -
1:12:53 > 1:12:54Town and Country, polka mazurka, op 322.
1:16:48 > 1:16:54APPLAUSE
1:16:54 > 1:16:57Town and country.
1:16:57 > 1:17:00Like his father, Strauss always took a keen interest
1:17:00 > 1:17:02in musical happenings abroad - the first nights of new
1:17:02 > 1:17:03operas in particular.
1:17:03 > 1:17:06He managed to work a little Verdi into his Masked Ball Quadrille,
1:17:06 > 1:17:09which we'll hear next.
1:17:09 > 1:17:13Verdi's opera heard it in St Petersburg in 1862.
1:17:13 > 1:17:17MUSIC: Johann Strauss - Sohn Un ballo in maschera, Quadrille op.272
1:22:27 > 1:22:31APPLAUSE
1:22:31 > 1:22:33The Masked Ball Quadrille - Riccardo Muti conducting
1:22:33 > 1:22:40the Vienna Philharmonic.
1:22:40 > 1:22:422018 will the mark the centenary of the end
1:22:42 > 1:22:45of the Austro-Hungarian Empire.
1:22:45 > 1:22:48In November that year, Karl, the last emperor,
1:22:48 > 1:22:52renounced his participation in affairs of state and left Vienna.
1:22:52 > 1:22:55A convoy of seven vehicles set off from the Schonbrunn Palace
1:22:55 > 1:22:58in the dead of night, carrying the Emperor and his family
1:22:58 > 1:23:06to Schloss Eckartsau, a hunting lodge in Lower Austria.
1:23:06 > 1:23:08The Lodge was close the to the Hungarian border -
1:23:08 > 1:23:11for a brief moment Karl thought he might be able to maintain
1:23:11 > 1:23:12sovereignty over Hungary at least.
1:23:12 > 1:23:15But just two days after he arrived, a delegation arrived from Budapest,
1:23:15 > 1:23:18demanding he make a formal abdication as King of Hungary.
1:23:18 > 1:23:22We go to Schoss Eckartsau now, with dancers from Vienna State Ballet,
1:23:22 > 1:23:25and Strauss' great waltz Roses from the South.
1:23:25 > 1:23:29Premiered here in the Golden Hall in 1880.
1:23:29 > 1:23:33Johann Strauss, Sohn Rosen aus dem Suden, Walzer, op.388
1:33:43 > 1:33:47APPLAUSE
1:33:57 > 1:34:01Strauss' waltz Roses from the South.
1:34:01 > 1:34:05Dancers of Vienna State Ballet at Schloss Eckartsau
1:34:05 > 1:34:07where the deposed last Austro-Hungarian Emperor, Karl,
1:34:07 > 1:34:10spent four months before he went into exile in Switzerland.
1:34:10 > 1:34:15This year the centenary of the end of the Austro-Hungarian empire.
1:34:15 > 1:34:16Viennese high spirits to finish the publically billed
1:34:16 > 1:34:19element of this concert.
1:34:24 > 1:34:26MUSIC: Josef Strauss - Eingesendet, Polka schnell op.240
1:36:06 > 1:36:11APPLAUSE
1:36:11 > 1:36:15Letters to the Editor by Jozef Strauss.
1:36:19 > 1:36:33Riccardo Muti conducting the Vienna Philharmonic.
1:36:35 > 1:36:37As I said earlier, something reassuringly familiar
1:36:37 > 1:36:39about this annual event, much has changed since
1:36:39 > 1:36:41we were here last year. A new president"s in office
1:36:41 > 1:36:46in the US and France, in Liberia and Zimbabwe,
1:36:46 > 1:36:49an election in Britain we were not expecting 12 months ago,
1:36:49 > 1:36:51and major political change here in Austria as well.
1:36:51 > 1:36:53Turbulent times globally, but as the world moves on,
1:36:53 > 1:36:57what is clear is that for many of us there is a pleasing sense
1:36:57 > 1:36:59of continuity about this concert, the way it offers the perfect
1:36:59 > 1:37:02opportunity to reflect on times past, and consider the new year that
1:37:02 > 1:37:05lies invitingly ahead of us with resolutions to break aplenty.
1:37:15 > 1:37:21Riccardo Muti returns to the platform and brings the orchestra to
1:37:21 > 1:37:23their feet.
1:37:44 > 1:37:45MUSIC: Johann Strauss -
1:37:45 > 1:37:46Sohn Unter Donner und Blitz, Polka schnell op.324
1:40:24 > 1:40:29APPLAUSE
1:40:30 > 1:40:32The Thunder and Lightening Polka by Johann Strauss -
1:40:32 > 1:40:37Riccardo Muti conducting the Vienna Philharmonic.
1:40:48 > 1:40:50An Italian maestro and many links with Italy,
1:40:50 > 1:40:54which Strauss toured in 1874.
1:40:54 > 1:41:02He played in cities including Venice, Milan and Florence. He
1:41:02 > 1:41:06played in such a manner that washes away all internal and external
1:41:06 > 1:41:10cares.
1:41:10 > 1:41:13Back home, Viennese papers raved about the success of the tour.
1:41:13 > 1:41:14"Strauss creates near fanatical reactions in Italy",
1:41:14 > 1:41:25ran one headline.
1:41:29 > 1:41:32Is the Blue Danube, Strauss' masterpiece.
1:41:33 > 1:41:35The relationship with Italy two way.
1:41:35 > 1:41:40The Strauss family championing Italian opera.
1:41:55 > 1:41:57APPLAUSE
1:41:59 > 1:42:02LAUGHTER
1:42:03 > 1:42:07APPLAUSE
1:42:21 > 1:42:23HE SPEAKS IN GERMAN
1:42:24 > 1:42:28APPLAUSE
1:42:46 > 1:42:51MUSIC: Johann Strauss -
1:42:51 > 1:42:53Sohn An der schonen blauen Donau.
1:53:30 > 1:53:35APPLAUSE
1:53:35 > 1:53:38Riccardo Muti conducting the Vienna Philharmonic.
1:53:38 > 1:53:43The Blue Danube.
1:53:43 > 1:53:47As broadcast at midnight last night on Austrian television,
1:53:47 > 1:53:50along with the sound of the Pummerin bell, literally the boomer bell
1:53:50 > 1:53:52of St Stephens Cathedral at nearly 45,000 pounds in weight,
1:53:52 > 1:54:02cast behind by Ottoman invaders.
1:54:18 > 1:54:21Also on TV, Dinner for One, that 20 minute English sketch,
1:54:21 > 1:54:23almost unknown in England, but a staple part of new year
1:54:23 > 1:54:25in German speaking lands and countries across Northern
1:54:25 > 1:54:32Europe.
1:58:07 > 1:58:09The March, composed by Johann Strauss Sr and dedicated
1:58:09 > 1:58:19to Field Marshal Joseph Radetzky.
1:58:25 > 1:58:27Now the orchestra get to enjoy their New Year's Day.
1:58:27 > 1:58:30They will be in the Golden Hall in a fortnight when the 77th
1:58:30 > 1:58:35Vienna Philharmonic Hall.
1:58:35 > 1:58:42As for the audience, now something of a bunfight.
1:58:42 > 1:58:45Same procedure as last year, same procedure as every year,
1:58:45 > 1:58:48we will do it all again in 2019.
1:58:48 > 1:58:52But there is 2018 to enjoy first.
1:58:52 > 1:58:56Goodbye from Vienna and happy New Year.