Music: The Big One

WELL, this is the big one, Elizabeth (as Fred Sanford used to say). (Note to the very young or unschooled: He was a TV-sitcom character.) For many years, this city has been preparing for 2006, the 250th anniversary of Mozart’s birth. And Salzburg, of course, is the little guy’s hometown.

The city gained other worldwide fame last century, when Rodgers & Hammerstein penned The Sound of Music. (It is set here, as you know.) But Mozart is unquestionably the main deal. His bust greets you at the airport, which is, in fact, called the W. A. Mozart Airport. (I don’t think his descendants get royalties.) And Mozart never stops looking at you, wherever you go in the city. You never stop looking at him, either.

About the Author

Jay Nordlinger

Jay Nordlinger was a senior editor of National Review and a book fellow at National Review Institute.

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WELL, this is the big one, Elizabeth (as Fred Sanford used to say). (Note to the very young or unschooled: He was a TV-sitcom character.) For many years, this city has been preparing for 2006, the 250th anniversary of Mozart’s birth. And Salzburg, of course, is the little guy’s hometown.

The city gained other worldwide fame last century, when Rodgers & Hammerstein penned The Sound of Music. (It is set here, as you know.) But Mozart is unquestionably the main deal. His bust greets you at the airport, which is, in fact, called the W. A. Mozart Airport. (I don’t think his descendants get royalties.) And Mozart never stops looking at you, wherever you go in the city. You never stop looking at him, either.