Salzburg

Isaac Chun Hai Fung

Newsletter 2002 Issue 06

17^th August, 2002.

Central European Highlights C:

Salzburg

"Doe, a deer, a female deer; Ray, a drop of golden sun…." "Edelweiss, Edelweiss, Every morning you greet me…." These lovely songs from the Sounds of Music, and the memory of the beautiful scenery of green hills and blue skies seen in the film, brought me to the place of birth of W.A. Mozart --- Salzburg.

"Salzburg ist sehr schön," I was told. Yes, indeed, a small and lovely town. It only takes you half an hour to walk from one end of the old town to the other, with so many historical and cultural attractions concentrated in such a small place. The Dom (i.e. cathedral), the Residenz (i.e. the palace of the former Prince-archbishops), Mozart Geborthaus (the house where Mozart was born) and the Festival hall, a complex of three opera theatres and the focus of the world-famous Salzburg Festival (one of the largest opera festivals in Europe) and so on.

Right next to the old town, there is a hill, or I would say, a huge block of rock. Upon which there is a castle, Schloss Hohensalzburg, watching over the river and the town down in the valley. It is the largest, fully-preserved fortification in Central Europe. Located at a strategic site, it symbolises the glory and importance of the Archbishopric Principality of Salzburg once upon a time.

In the medieval period, under the feudal system, the Holy Roman Empire consisted of many different principalities and duchies. These princes and dukes controlled their own piece of land, and support the Emperor in times of trouble (in principle). They were also the one who elected the Emperor. Some of these princes were bishops of the Roman Catholic Church. They were different from the other princes, because their title and power were not hereditary. (As you know, Catholic priests do not get married.) It was the successor to the position of bishop, in this case the Archbishop of Salzburg, who was conferred the power continue to govern the Principality once the Archbishop was dead.

From the point of view of the Holy Roman Emperors in the early medieval period, who appointed some bishops as princes, this was a good political move. As these titles could not be hereditary, these principalities, unlike many other German states, would not become a possession of a family which might grow strong enough to compete with the Emperor. However, from the point of view of church historians, one could argue from hindsight that this strong connection between the Church and politics would corrupt the Christian church. Although some bishops were also good statesmen, as a Christian, I would prefer my spiritual leader not to involve in politics in this way. (Christians can involve in politics, but a dual position of bishop and prince, seems to me too much for a person.) The reign of the archbishops ended in the early 19^th century, when Napoleon conquered Salzburg. After the Vienna Congress, it was put under the direct control of the Austrian Emperor.

Salzburg is the place for fans of Mozart, if you were one. You can visit the Mozart Geburtshaus, in which you can see the violin which Mozart used when he was small, and many other things to do with him. When you visit the Residenz, you will be told that in one of those beautifully decorated rooms, Mozart gave his first public performance in front of the Archbishop, who gave him great support in later days. Mozart's operas were also the favourites of the annual Salzburg festival.

When I visited Salzburg last weekend, it was their Mozart Festival. I went to a concert by the Salzburg Festival Orchestra. It was supposed to be an open-air concert in the courtyard of the Residenz. However, it rained heavily then. It ended up taking place in one of the State Rooms of the Residenz. The concert was dedicated totally to pieces composed by Mozart. One of which is written for an alphorn and an orchestra. I did not know that there is something called alphorn before. It is a very long horn, made of wood. There are no holes on the horn. The pitch of the notes entirely depends on the control of the lips of the player. It is interesting to discover that Mozart had written a piece of music for such an Alpine instrument.

There is actually a lot more to tell. But I guess one and a half page of A4 is already more than enough.

"So long, farewell, auf Wiedersehen, goodbye …."

Table of Contents of ‘Central European Highlights’

馮儁熙

通訊二零零二年第六號

二零零二年八月十七日

中歐拔萃　丙

薩爾斯堡

"Doe, a deer, a female deer; Ray, a drop of golden sun…." "Edelweiss, Edelweiss, Every morning you greet me…."

這些來自《仙樂飄飄處處聞》（The Sound of Music）的歌曲，以及在那電影上的青山藍天的美景的記憶，帶我來到莫札特的故鄉──薩爾斯堡（Salzburg）。

聞說："Salzburg ist sehr schön"（薩爾斯堡很美）。是真的，一個多麼細小可愛的城鎮。從舊城的一端步行到另一端只需半個小時，在這麼細小的地方有很多歷史文化的景點：主教座堂（Dom），王侯大主教宮（Residenz，從前的Prince-archbishops[i]的宮殿），莫札特出生的房子（Mozart Geborthaus）以及由三個歌劇廳組成，以主持舉世馳名的薩爾斯堡歌劇節而引人注目的節日歌劇院（Festival Hall）。

舊城旁邊是一座山，也許我可以說是一塊巨型石頭。山上有一座城堡，名曰Hohensalzburg，俯瞰谷下的河與城。這是中歐最大保持完整的防禦工事。座落在一個戰略重地上，它象徵著昔日薩爾斯堡大主教王侯國[ii]（Archbishopric Principality of Salzburg）的光榮與地位。

在中世紀的封建制度下，神聖羅馬帝國由很多不同的王侯國（principalities）和公國（duchies）組成。這些王候（princes）與公爵（dukes）控制他們自己的一片土地，在危難時，他們（理論上會）支持皇帝。神聖羅馬皇帝也是由他們互選出來的。其中一些王侯是羅馬天主教會的主教，他們與別的王侯不同，因為其爵位與權力不是世襲的（如你所知，天主教的神父不可以結婚），乃是由其繼任人繼承之。以這裡為例，薩爾斯堡大主教駕崩後，繼任大主教者將接掌王侯國的權力。

對中世紀前期的神聖羅馬皇帝來說，委任一些主教為王侯，不失為政治妙著。由於爵位不是世襲，這些王侯國不像日耳曼其他諸侯國般，成為一姓的天下，以致其勢力可以強大至與皇帝抗衡的地步。然而，從教會史家的角度看，因有後見之明，我們可以說教會與政治如此緊密的連繫，會敗壞了基督教會。雖然有些主教也是好政治家，作為一個基督徒，我還是希望我的屬靈領袖不要這樣參與政治。（基督徒可以從政，但一人同時擔當主教與王侯兩職，在我看來未免太多了。）在十九世紀初，拿破崙征服薩爾斯堡，結束了大主教的統治。維也納會議後，它歸奧地利皇帝直轄。

若你是莫札特迷的話，薩爾斯堡是你必到之處。你可以參觀莫札特出生的房子，在那裡你會看到他小時候用過的小提琴，和很多其他與他有關的東西。當你參觀王候大主教宮時，在一間裝潢美輪美奐的大廳中，你將會被告之莫札特在那兒於日後給他很大幫助的大主教前作其首次公開演出。莫札特的歌劇亦是每年薩爾斯堡歌劇節的常見劇目。

當我上週末遊薩爾斯堡時，正值其莫札特節。我去了一場薩爾斯堡歌劇節管弦樂團演出的音樂會。本應是在王侯大主教宮的庭園舉行的露天音樂會，因為天下大雨的關係，改在王侯大主教宮裡其中的一個典禮廳（State room）裡進行。全場音樂會都是奏莫札特的曲目，其中有一首是寫給山笛（alphorn，譯作山號會否更好？）與管弦樂團的。我以前從未見過山笛，它是個很長的號，木製的，號身沒有孔。音符的音高全靠演奏者的嘴唇變動。發現莫札特曾為這樣一件阿爾卑斯山的樂器作曲，也真有趣。

其實還有很多東西想說，但我猜一頁半A4紙也許已經太多了。

"So long, farewell, auf Wiedersehen, goodbye …."

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