Arrive in Munich and make your way to the hotel. Renaissance Tours or your travel agent can assist with your flights and other travel arrangements, including travel insurance (a condition of travel), private hotel transfer, or accommodation before or after the tour.

At 18:00, join your tour leader Antony Ernst and fellow travellers for a welcome briefing at the hotel, followed by dinner.

(D)

After breakfast, attend a talk by Antony before walking to the Cuvilliés Theatre located inside the Residenz Palace for a private, guided tour. Designed by François de Cuvilliés in 1751, this masterpiece of Bavarian Rococo architecture hosted the 1781 world premiere of Mozart’s Idomeneo.

After lunch at a local restaurant, enjoy the remainder of the afternoon at leisure.

In the early evening, walk to the Nationaltheater for a performance by the Bavarian State Opera of Tannhäuser, conducted by Nathalie Stutzmann and directed by Romeo Castellucci, featuring acclaimed German tenor Jonas Kaufmann in the lead role, Norwegian soprano Elisabeth Teige as Elisabeth, Russian mezzo-soprano Ekaterina Gubanova as Venus, and Canadian bass John Relyea as Hermann.

(BL)

This morning, embark on a Wagner-themed walking tour and discover locations that shaped the composer’s legacy. Stroll down Brienner Straße to see where he used to live, followed by a guided backstage tour of the Nationaltheater, the historic venue where his masterpieces Tristan und Isolde and Die Walküre held their world premieres. Stop by the Richard Wagner Statue on Prinzregentenplatz nearby the Prinzregententheater. This democratic venue realised Wagner’s dream of an amphitheatre with completely uninterrupted stage views.

Return to the hotel for an afternoon at leisure.

In the evening, enjoy dinner at a local restaurant.

(BD)

Check out of the hotel and depart Munich for Nuremberg, where the preserved medieval old town provides the concrete physical setting for Wagner’s Die Meistersinger von Nürnberg. On arrival, a short walking tour of the historic centre traces the specific fourteenth-century structures and guild landmarks integrated into the opera’s narrative.

Then, continue to Bayreuth, the historic centre of the Wagnerian festival tradition and home to the famous Festspielhaus, the opera house designed by the composer himself.

(B)

This morning, enjoy a private, guided tour of the Festspielhaus Bayreuth. Explore Wagner’s vision of a democratic amphitheatre and the famous hidden orchestra pit, known as the mystischer Abgrund (mystic gulf), which completely conceals the musicians from the audience and blends their sounds perfectly with the singer’s voices.

Continue to Haus Wahnfried, Wagner’s erstwhile villa, final resting place and now a museum, and explore vestiges of the composer’s personal life, including historic manuscripts.

After lunch at a local restaurant, walk to the Margravial Opera House, a UNESCO World Heritage site, whose large stage capacity originally drew Wagner to Bayreuth, ultimately prompting him to design his own contrasting venue nearby.

The evening is at leisure.

(BL)

After breakfast, depart Bayreuth for Munich, arriving in the early afternoon.

Following an early dinner, attend a performance at the Herkulessaal Theatre by the Bavarian Radio Symphony Orchestra under the baton of acclaimed conductor Sir Simon Rattle, featuring celebrated French violist Antoine Tamestit.

PROGRAM:
Francesco Filidei – Viola concerto
Beethoven – Symphony No. 3 in E-flat major, op. 55 (‘Eroica’)

(BD)

Begin the day with a guided tour of the Lenbachhaus Museum, home to the world’s largest collection of Der Blaue Reiter (The Blue Rider) masterpieces by Wassily Kandinsky and Franz Marc.

Afterwards, enjoy lunch at a nearby restaurant followed by the rest of the afternoon at leisure.

This evening, attend a performance at the Isarphilharmonie Concert Hall by the Munich Philharmonic Orchestra under the baton of Colombian conductor Andrés Orozco-Estrada and chorus master Andreas Hermann.

PROGRAM:
Helena Munktell – Valborgsmessoeld, Symphonic Poem, op. 24
Richard Strauss – Macbeth, op. 23
Felix Mendelssohn Bartholdy – Die erste Walpurgisnacht (“The First Walpurgis Night”), op. 60

(BL)

After breakfast, depart Munich for Vienna stopping for lunch en route. Arrive in Vienna in the afternoon and enjoy the remainder of the day at leisure. Vienna played an important role in Wagner’s career, and he frequently visited the city to conduct his own works and where he also composed parts of Die Meistersinger von Nürnberg.

(BL)

After a talk by Antony in the morning, enjoy the remainder of the morning and afternoon at leisure to relax or to explore Vienna at your own pace.

In the evening, walk to the Vienna State Opera and delight in Wagner’s Die Meistersinger von Nürnberg, directed by Keith Warner and conducted by Axel Kober, featuring acclaimed German baritone Michael Volle as Hans Sachs, American tenor Eric Cutler as Walther von Stolzing, German bass Christof Fischesser as Veit Pogner and German baritone Michael Nagy as Sixtus Beckmesser.

(B)

After breakfast, enjoy a private, guided tour of the Liechtenstein City Palace, a baroque palace with rare art collections. As Vienna’s first major High Baroque building, it features monumental staircases, opulent Neo-Rococo state rooms and intricate Thonet parquet floors.

In the mid-afternoon, walk to the glittering Musikverein Concert Hall to attend a performance by the Staatskapelle Orchestra Berlin under the baton of acclaimed conductor Christian Thielemann, featuring Finnish soprano Camilla Nylund.

PROGRAM:
Franz Liszt – Symphonic Poem No. 7 in C major (Festival Sounds)
Richard Strauss – Three Hymns by Friedrich Hölderlin, op. 71 (Drei Hymnen)
Franz Liszt – Symphonic Poem No. 4 (Orpheus), Symphonic Poem No. 3 (Les Préludes)

After the performance, enjoy dinner at a local restaurant.

(BD)

In the early morning, transfer to Vienna airport for a flight to Leipzig, where Wagner was born on 22 May 1813.

Upon arrival in Leipzig, drive to the Oper Leipzig for a private, guided tour. This institution premiered his first complete opera, Die Feen (The Fairies), in 1888 and is also the first theatre outside of Bayreuth to stage Wagner’s “Ring” in 1878.

Continue to the hotel for lunch and then enjoy the remainder of the afternoon and evening at leisure.

(BL)

This morning, attend a talk by Antony before walking to the Mendelssohn Haus, the final residence of composer Felix Mendelssohn Bartholdy. The museum showcases his original living quarters and furniture, and provides a comprehensive historical overview of his legacy as the co-founder of Germany’s first music conservatory.

After lunch at a nearby restaurant, enjoy the remainder of the afternoon at leisure.

In the evening, attend a concert by the Gewandhaus Orchestra and witness the acclaimed piano virtuoso Lang Lang perform under the baton of conductor Andris Nelsons.

PROGRAM:
Jörg Widmann – Overture to B-A-C-H (based on sketches from Beethoven)
Ludwig van Beethoven – Piano Concerto No. 4 in G major, op. 58
Ludwig van Beethoven – Symphony No. 7 in A major, op. 92

(BL)

In the morning, travel to Dresden and enjoy a guided tour of the Semperoper, the opera house that shaped Wagner’s early career as Royal Court Music Director. Here, Wagner conducted the world premieres of his masterworks, Der fliegende Holländer and Tannhäuser.

Continue to the Lohengrin House in Graupa, a village located just south-east of Dresden. On a private, guided tour, explore the farmhouse where Wagner spent the summer of 1846 composing the musical draft for his opera Lohengrin.

Return to Leipzig in the late-afternoon for an evening at leisure.

(B)

This morning, transfer to Weimar, the historic epicentre of German Enlightenment, serving as the home where Goethe and Schiller forged a literary revolution. Bach composed his early masterpieces here and it was also here where the democratic Weimar Republic was born.

Enjoy a private, guided tour of the Franz Liszt Haus, where the composer lived seasonally from 1869 until his death in 1886. The upper floor preserves Liszt’s authentic music salon and study.

Later, visit the Deutsches National Theatre, a historic venue that hosted the world premiere of Wagner’s Lohengrin under the baton of Franz Liszt in 1850. Beyond its musical heritage, it also served as the landmark political assembly site where the first democratic constitution of the Weimar Republic was drafted and adopted in 1919.

Return to Leipzig in the late-afternoon and enjoy the evening at leisure.

(B)

Begin the day with a talk by Antony before walking to the Bach Museum. Enjoy a private, guided tour and marvel at the extensive collection of original manuscripts and instruments dedicated to the composer’s life. Across the square, visit the historic St. Thomas Church, where Bach served as Cantor for 27 years and directed the famous boys’ choir.

The afternoon is at leisure to relax or to further explore Leipzig at your own pace.

In the evening, walk to the Oper Leipzig and attend a performance of Wagner’s Tristan and Isolde by the Gewandhaus Orchestra. Directed by Enrico Lübbe and conducted by Ivan Repušić, the production features a stellar cast with English soprano Catherine Foster as Isolde, Swedish tenor Daniel Johansson as Tristan and German mezzo-soprano Ulrike Schneider as Brangäne.

(B)

After a morning at leisure, join Antony and fellow travellers for a special farewell lunch before the final performance of the tour at the Oper Leipzig, Wagner’s Der fliegende Holländer. The production is directed by Michiel Dijkema and conducted by Ivan Repušić. The role of Mary is sung by German mezzo-soprano Ulrike Schneider, while the Dutchman is sung by either Latvian bass-baritone Egils Silins or American bass-baritone Jordan Shanahan (cast to be confirmed).

(BL)

Tour arrangements conclude after breakfast. Renaissance Tours or your travel agent can assist you with your travel arrangements, including extra nights’ accommodation either before or after the tour, a private airport transfer and travel insurance (a condition of travel).

(B)