Dr. Norbert Linz
Historically, during Fasching the lower classes were allowed to wear
costumes and masks and to mimic aristocracy and heads of church and
state without fear of retribution for mockery. When things got out of
hand, the custom was forbidden, for a while anyway.
Historically, during Fasching the lower classes were allowed to wear
costumes and masks and to mimic aristocracy and heads of church and
state without fear of retribution for mockery. When things got out of
hand, the custom was forbidden, for a while anyway.
Even Empress Maria Theresia (1717-1780) decreed at one point that
masks would no longer be allowed in the streets; whereupon the
revelry was moved indoors. This was the beginning of the splendid
balls, for which Vienna has become so famous and the real business of
Fasching is, first and last, dancing, but it is also a season of
jollification for the entire city.
The Vienna Opera Ball
His Majesty did not approve. Emperor Franz Josef refused the request
by the artists of the Imperial Opera House to hold a ball in
"their" magnificent premises on the Ring Boulevard, which
had been completed in 1869. Thus the first Court Opera Ball took
place in the Musikverein, another magnificent and recently completed
building and the home today of the Vienna Philharmonic Orchestra,
which gives concerts and holds its own ball there. The
permission of the sovereign to hold a "soirée" in
the new opera house was not granted until 1877 - with the proviso
that there be no dancing! But the Viennese found a way around it as
the evening drew on. As the Wiener Fremdenblatt reported:
"(&ldots;) it was very difficult at first but the Viennese
spirit held firm, (&ldots;) after midnight the first real dance took
place in the ballroom of our opera house".
The
Viennese craze for dancing had prevailed. After the legendary balls
during the Vienna Congress in 1814/15, vast circles of the population
had been bitten by the bug. The number of balls arranged by artists,
including events in the Redoutensäle of the imperial Hofburg,
increased. Johann Strauss and his waltzes became so well known that
in 1835 he was appointed Court Ball Music Director. Johann Strauss
junior was even more popular than his father: the Viennese called him
the "Waltz King". His most popular waltz, "The Blue
Danube", was written in 1867 and has become a kind of national
anthem. Needless to say, no ball would be complete today without it.
The decline of the Habsburg monarchy in 1918 did not affect the
holding of imperial balls at the Opera House for very long. Three
years later, the invitation "Alles Walzer" ("Everybody
Waltz") was to be heard again. However, Hitler did away with the
Vienna Opera Ball, its designation since 1935, and it was not until
February 1956 that the tradition was resumed in the rebuilt State
Opera House. Since then the Opera Ball has been an act of state:
every year Parliament declares the event the official "Ball of
the Republic".
As in the days of Emperor Franz Josef: To the sound of a fanfare, the
head of state and the Austrian government appear in full regalia in
the middle loge of the State Opera House, the very loge that used to
be reserved for the Emperor. The 5,000 guests - women in evening
dress, men exclusively in tails - stand while the Austrian and
European national anthems are played. A festive sight and one that is
firmly rooted in the tradition of the Opera Ball and other balls held
during the season.
Glittering Events in
Vienna's Ball Season
More than 300 balls take place in the Austrian capital every year,
each attracting anything between 200 and 5,500 guests. What other
European city can match this tradition? Given these numbers, slick
organization is required, especially for the prestigious balls. They
all take place in accordance with traditional rules. First there is a
ball committee, often chaired by women - experienced managers who are
the soul of the ball. Then there is an honorary committee including
high-ranking personalities. The high-profile balls are normally under
the patronage of the Federal President. All names appear in the
invitation, a pamphlet that also gives the date and venue, dress
code, program and, of course, the admission charge. The loges at the
Opera Ball are extremely expensive but despite their price - EUR
17,000 - they are highly sought after. The other prestigious balls,
such as those held in Hofburg palace, are somewhat less costly.
One coercive feature of Viennese ball culture is dress. In this
regard the high-brow balls are uncompromising: evening gowns for the
ladies and tuxedos for the gentlemen. For the Opera Ball even this is
not enough - here, it's tails or not at all. It is surprising to see
how many young guests are willing to bow to these rules. A tradition
dating from the first half of the 19th century is the
"Damenspende", a token gift presented to the ladies. In the
days of the monarchy this might have been an elaborately crafted
bijou such as a mother-of-pearl fan. These days it could be an
elegant watch, confectionery, a CD or even, as in the early days, an
artistically designed dance card, on which gentleman used to reserve
a dance. In the era of gender equality, some balls also have a
"Herrenspende" for men.
Ceremony at Traditional Balls
The main ceremonial feature of all traditional balls is the opening
by the young ladies' and gentlemen's "committee". The girls
opening a ball for the first time are called debutantes. This debut
is part of the ritual of entering into adulthood - the introduction
into society - which dates back to the days of the monarchy. Dressed
in a long white robe with a coronet in their hair, long white gloves
and a small bouquet in their right hand, they proceed onto the dance
floor arm in arm with their tuxedoed escorts to the music of the
"Fächer-Polonaise" by Carl Michael Ziehrer, former
chief conductor of the imperial court, which is played at practically
all opening ceremonies. At the end of this solemn ritual comes a
waltz - with the pairs turning anticlockwise. This is not as easy as
it might sound and is perhaps one of the reasons why dance schools
are so well attended. In Vienna alone there are over 30 of them. It
is the schools that organize the opening ceremony - after having
taught their students the necessary steps and held several rehearsals
to inaugurate them into the secrets of the special choreography that
they have devised. Great importance is attached to the aesthetic
precision of the figures, even among debutantes - after all, who
wants to dance out of line? At all prestigious balls the opening
ceremony ends with a military-sounding "Alles Walzer" from
the director of the dance school organizing the ball, inviting all of
the guests onto the dance floor - this time to waltz in a clockwise
direction &ldots;
The Opera Ball decor is unique. Hundreds of palms and lilacs are to
be found on the magnificent staircase and in the foyer of the State
Opera House. The ballroom is also adorned with thousands of flowers.
It's hard to believe that it was the scene of an opera performance a
couple of evenings previously. As soon as the curtain goes down on
the final act, over 300 workers start to convert the opera house for
the ball. The seats in the stalls are removed. A dance floor is laid
over the orchestra pit at stage height. Instead of the wings, loges
are erected on three levels in line with the loges in the auditorium.
Within 13 hours the opera theater is thus transformed into a
harmonious, uniform and festive golden ballroom.
The Opera Ball is probably one of the most famous and elegant balls
in the world. Live TV broadcasts have increased awareness of it even
further. It has no shortage of imitators: from Istanbul and Tokyo to
San Francisco. But only in Prague and Budapest do these balls
actually take place in the opera house. Even here the old ties from
the days of the monarchy can be felt. Although the other prestigious
balls in Vienna are not quite as well known, each of them has an
unmistakable profile and a tradition in some cases that goes back
over 100 years.
Philharmonic Ball,
Bonbon Ball and Coffeehouse Owners' Ball
One of the most high-profile balls is, of course, the Ball of the
Vienna Philharmonic. This world-renowned orchestra holds its ball in
the Golden Hall of the Musikverein, one of the world's most imposing
concert halls, familiar to TV viewers all over the globe as the venue
of the New Year's Day Concert. The Vienna Philharmonic itself plays
only for the opening of the ball. The entrance of the guests of honor
is accompanied by a festive fanfare composed specially for this ball
by Richard Strauss. But then the Philharmonic players leave the stage
to other musicians - after all it is their ball and they no doubt
wish to dance themselves. This is an evening for members, friends and
patrons and is sold out long in advance.
In the closing phase of the ball season the traditional balls follow
one another in close succession. The sequence is mostly unchanged
from year to year, with the last Thursday in Fasching (carnival)
reserved immutably for the Opera Ball. This is followed the next day
by the Bonbon Ball, then the Lawyers' Ball (Juristen-Ball) on
Saturday and finally the Rudolfina Redoute on the last Monday of Fasching.
The Bonbon Ball is the only Fasching event to take place in the
Konzerthaus, home of the Vienna Symphony Orchestra. Up to 4,000
guests can dance in the four concert halls. A jury elects a Miss
Bonbon from the female guests, and her weight in confectioneries is
then donated to charity. Here, too, there are the debutantes in white
but the dress code is not generally as strict.
The same cannot be said of the distinguished Coffeehouse Owners'
Ball. This ball is highly appreciated by the local population because
of its typically Viennese ambiance and is virtually regarded as a
smaller version of the Opera Ball. It is the only ball to use all the
ballrooms in the Hofburg, including the refurbished Redoutensäle
and the elegant roof foyer with its view over nighttime Vienna. It is
also the largest prestigious ball in the Vienna carnival calendar
with over 5,500 guests. The opening program is comparable with the
Opera Ball: the debutantes are just as festively dressed and the
Vienna State Opera Ballet accompanied by the Opera Ball orchestra
also performs. Every year an internationally renowned show band is
invited. Altogether there are six orchestras playing, not to mention
the smaller musical groups.
Whereas the Coffeehouse Owners' Ball has been in existence since only
1956, the Lawyers' Ball (Juristen-Ball), which takes place in Hofburg
palace on the Saturday before Ash Wednesday, can look back on a
tradition almost 200 years old. This classically elegant ball is
opened, as one would expect, by the Austrian Minister of Justice and
attracts lawyers and jurists from all over the world. Many
international organizations arrange meetings to coincide with the
ball. The highlight at midnight, as at other prestigious balls, is
the quadrille, which has been danced since the 19th century. The most
popular is the Fledermaus quadrille by Johann Strauss. The steps to
this jaunty pair and group dance are fairly complicated and are
explained in advance by the dance master. Not infrequently, however,
the mad dash through the passages between the rows of dancers ends in
good-humored chaos. At all events, it's one way of giving renewed
energy to tired dancers, who will need it, since the ball never ends
before 4 am.
Johann Strauss Ball and
Rudolfina Redoute
The Johann Strauss Ball was held for the first time in 2002. It is
remarkable that the Waltz King, whose music dominates Vienna's
Fasching scene so completely, had never had a ball devoted to him
before. As befits this famous figure, the young ball has all the
classic insignia: from the opening with the State Opera Ballet to the
quadrille and, of course, a midnight show. Were the famous composer
to attend the ball today, he would surely accept the fact that his
music - brand new in the 19th century - now shares the limelight with
more contemporary rhythms.
The last of the great traditional balls is the Rudolfina Redoute at
Hofburg palace on the last Monday of Fasching. It is organized by the
Catholic couleur-wearing fraternity Rudolfina, named for Duke Rudolf
IV, who founded Vienna University in 1365. Ball tradition does not go
back this far, but it nevertheless has its roots in the monarchy. The
Redoute is the only surviving masked ball of the many that used to
take place. Masks are no longer compulsory, but nevertheless serve as
a reminder of the original Fasching custom. Gentlemen dress in tails
or tuxedo and, if they are members of the fraternity, their colored
caps and ribbons. The ladies are in evening wear with a mask to cover
their eyes, as in the operetta "Fledermaus". These masks,
decorated with feathers or sequins, often match the evening dress and
give the ladies a most mysterious allure. This in turn gives them the
right for the whole evening to ladies' choice - until the demasking
quadrille at midnight. After that both the gentlemen and the ladies
have the right to choose their partners until the ball ends at 5 am.
The closing of the ball is also a traditional affair. The lights in
the ballroom are dimmed and the orchestra plays Ferdinand Raimund's
song Brüderlein fein, musst nicht gar so traurig sein and the
surviving revelers step out onto the dance floor for the last time.
Typically, they will then go on for a spicy goulash soup at a nearby
café, which during the ball season opens at 5 am!
Rainbow Ball and Life Ball
A slightly alternative but no less festive three-four time is danced
by Vienna's gay and lesbian scene. At the glitzy Rainbow Ball, which
has been held since 1998 in the historical setting of Parkhotel
Schönbrunn, lesbians, gays and transsexuals also celebrate the
traditional entry of the ladies' and gentlemen's "committee"
and the hectic midnight quadrille. The exceptional feature of this
event is the eye-catching and creatively designed costumes that are
worn for the occasion: from classically elegant to freestyle and
sixties outfits. The Rosenball at Palais Auersperg has also become a
glamorous highpoint of the gay community season. The dress code is
simple: anything that attracts attention.
There are two charity events that have become part and parcel of the
Vienna ball season. One is the Vienna Refugee Ball, which has been
held during Fasching since 1995. Under the patronage of the Mayor of
Vienna, it offers a wide range of multicultural music in the setting
of Vienna's City Hall. The proceeds help to finance accommodation for
refugees at Wiener Integrationshaus. The Life Ball is two years
older. Taking place in May, it supports various AIDS organizations.
It is Austria's most important fashion event and takes place in and
around City Hall. Highpoint of the evening is a fashion show by
renowned designers - outdoors before an audience of more than 40,000,
featuring top models and also international celebrities. Thereafter
entertainment in all its forms is put on throughout City Hall: live
appearances by international stars, performances, dance floors and a
vast array of food. The Life Ball is an opulent and open-hearted
celebration of life, and what better backcloth could there be than a
vibrant city like Vienna!
All Good Things Must End (officially
that is)
The
official Ball season and Fasching come to an end with Ash
Wednesday
the beginning of the 40 days of Lent, However there are balls for
months to come and you have a chance to waltz into the month of June.
Article Author: Dr. Norbert Linz
