Six cities, one orchestra and an abundance of sea and music. This is the setting for the Vienna Philharmonic Orchestra, which will be on board the Mein Schiff for a tour around the Baltic from 7 to 17 July 2010. First class guest conductors and soloists will also be taking part in the tour. Besides an anniversary concert in Königsberg further exclusive concerts are planned to be held in ports of call as well as public rehearsals on board. Operating the exclusive musical cruise is the Austrian tour operator MS6 – Travel & Music, in cooperation with TUI Cruises.
“We are pleased to be able to stage this melodious marine experience with the Vienna Philharmonic together with MS6,“ says Richard J Vogel, CEO of TUI Cruises. “The Mein Schiff provides not only optimal conditions with its full theatre infrastructure, but also an ideal setting for rest and relaxation for the musicians and guests,” he emphasizes.
The route via the cities of Tallinn, St Petersburg, Helsinki and Stockholm, all with a long tradition, is in keeping with the prominent final destination of the cruise – Königsberg. Here in the Russian city the musical journey will reach its climax in a unique anniversary concert. The city was chosen in honour of Carl Otto Ehrenfried Nicolai, the composer and founder of the Vienna Philharmonic, to celebrate his 200th birthday appropriately in the town of his birth. Other concerts are planned in the Mariinsky Theatre in St. Petersburg, in the Finlandia Hall in Helsinki as well as in the Stockholm Konserthuset. Guests on the cruise also have the opportunity to watch and listen to the orchestra on board during their public rehearsals.