For someone familiar with the ticket availability...we will be in Vienna for a few nights the first week of Sept and again in mid Sept. What is our best chance of obtaining tickets for the Phil or the Opera...or if unlikely can you recommend a chamber orchestra or suitable alternative.

So sorry for the typo!

For opera/balett try www.wiener-staatsoper.at(english available)<BR>You can also buy stehplatz-tickets for 20schilling-appr 2 euro I think(<BR>For Philharmoniker www.wienerphilharmoniker.at(english available) Also try www.konzerthaus.at

You should be able to buy tickets for September now--and I strongly advise that you do this soon as good tickets do sell out quickly.

I attended 3 performances at the Volksoper last September.<BR>It presents lighter fare much of the time like Die Lustige Witwe and Die Fledermaus. But we also heard La Traviata, and Carmen is on the bill for sometimes this year. The singers are not the superstars you usually get at the Staatsoper, but the performances are very enjoyable. <BR><BR>If the soprano who sang the role of Violetta in La Traviata had not splatted the end of Sempre Libra, she would have delivered a stunning performance. The rest of her singing was as good an any.<BR>The baritone who sang Papa Germont was surprisingly good, which is to say he was tops, with a rich, melifluous voice. <BR>The Merry Widow was a great performance, with the performer who did the role of Valencienne truly outstandig. She had to lead a Can Can line in the last act as well as sing and act. She did all of it admirably.<BR>The audience loved it and cheered so wildly and stomped so loudly that she repeated it twice. She finally signalled the audience "Enough already."<BR>The trumpet players literally had a real blast playing it, too. The conductor had them stand up so we could hear them better. The Merry Widow will be on september 4,10, 13, 17 and 21.<BR>I wish I could be there. Traviata and Feldermaus are also on the September schdule. You can see it all at<BR>http://www.culturall.com/<BR>Follow the links to both operas.<BR><BR>Buying tickets via email was easy.<BR>I looked at the Spielplan on the webpage, then I emailed them with a request for tickets. The boxoffice agent responded, in English, and I sent in my credit card number. The tickets were ready and waiting for me each night when I arrived. It was painless procedure and highly effective.<BR><BR>In contrast I cannot find out from the people at the Bavarian State in Opera in Munich whether or not I have tickets for Sept 19 or not. I can't get a word out of them and neither can my German friend who lives in Munich. Emails and phone calls are like talking to a tree.<BR>

the email address is <BR>[email protected]<BR>You can see a seating plan on the web page. Pick your preferred location and ask for it. I found the second highest priced seats to be quite good.<BR>

Thanks so much for your very helpful replies.