INSIDE GUIDE - VIENNA

The Austrian capital is truly alive with the sound of music, from raucuous jazz clubs and three-day festivals to masterful violin makers

- NORA WALLAYA

From the outside looking in, Vienna seems wrapped up in a bygone age. After all, this is a city famous for its three-month ballroom dancing season, and one where suited men and coiffed women regularly fill the city’s three internationally renowned opera houses. Beyond the Austrian capital’s ritzy reputation, though, is a city celebrating the rising stars of the contemporary live arts scene as much as the classical heavyweights. This is a city that’s as in love with its present as it is the past.

Jazz is a big deal in Vienna, a passion sparked by homegrown artists like Hans Koller and Fatty George, who rose to fame in post-war Europe and the US. At PORGY & BESS, a low-lit, crimson velvet-clad club, a stellar lineup of Austrian and international artists regularly heads the bill. At the lesser-known ZWE, meanwhile, giggoers practically stand elbow-to-elbow with musicians. As a result, the atmosphere is electric — so much so that the no-frills venue has been viewed by local musicians as a rival to New York City’s Blue Note. porgy.at zwe.cc