The palatial 19th-century home of two prestigious organisations doubles as an event venue: notably for concerts of light classical music by the Vienna Supreme Orchestra.
- Completed in 1872
- Opened by Emperor Franz Joseph
- Central location
- Book concert tickets* for Palais Eschenbach
- Highly-rated
- See also:
- Concert venues in Vienna
- The Ringstrasse
Architects & arpeggios
(View of the building from the road)
As you might imagine, the Austrian Association of Engineers and Architects (ÖIAV) does not sound like the sort of group that would occupy just any kind of building.
Back in the early 1870s, the association built their current home close to the great Ring boulevard and just between the Kunsthistorisches Museum and Academy of Fine Arts Vienna.
Kaiser Franz Joseph himself offered the land at a favourable price.
Such a location, sponsor and occupant demands a prestigious palais projecting gravitas and representational weight. So no pressure on architect Otto Thienemann.
The outcome proved more than satisfactory, though.
(View of Eschenbachgasse 9 and 11 published around 1900 by Gerlach & Wiedling; Wien Museum Inv.-Nr. 135047/2/1; excerpt reproduced with permission under the terms of the CC0 licence)
One journalist, writing the day after the November 26th, 1872 opening described the building as (my rough translation):
…an exceptional artistic moment for Vienna
They also wrote that the latest addition to the cityscape was notable for its stylish beauty.
Thienemann delivered a kind of Palladian Neorenaissance look (unlike him, I’m not an architect so I could be way out with my technical description). And the decorative elements adorning the façade certainly project the required symbolic strength.
The building was (and still is) actually a double construction: No.9 Eschenbachgasse housing the ÖIAV and the “other half” at No.11 housing what would eventually become today’s ÖGV national business association.
Together with the great Otto Wagner, Thienemann also built one of the more notable buildings on the Graben in Vienna’s very centre: the Grabenhof.
(Entrance and sign for the ÖIAV Austrian Association of Engineers and Architects)
The Emperor attended the opening of the building that November day, rather politely entering through the ÖGV portal and exiting through the ÖIAV one.
Both parts of the Palais find their representative zenith in their ceremonial halls (Festsaal).
The ÖIAV Festsaal has beautiful wood panelling and inlaid columns. The ÖGV equivalent has a lighter marble touch with more of a southerly feel to it. Almost as if the two form a glorious spring – autumn duet.
Concerts
The two associations also offer Palais Eschenbach as an event venue. It finds regular use, for example, in highly-rated concerts given by the Vienna Supreme Orchestra.
This accomplished ensemble, together with singers and ballet dancers, delivers an evening of lighter classical pieces tailored to the needs of visitors to the city. The more famous works of Mozart and the Strauss family feature, for example.
Tickets & tips
The palais is still used by the ÖIAV and ÖGV so you cannot simply wander in and walk around. However, the public concerts obviously allow access.
(Booking service provided by Tiqets.com*, who I am an affiliate of)
(Nothing on your dates? Try some alternative concerts*)
How to get to Palais Eschenbach
The location is very central so easily walked to from the old town.
Subway: practically next door to the MuseumsQuartier subway station on the U2 (closed until September 2024, though)
Tram: just up from the Burgring stop on the Ringstrasse on the D, 71, 1 and 2 tram lines.