Gala concert · Dresden Zwinger
Live classical music in the Wallpavillon, the Baroque pavilion of Augustus the Strong's Zwinger.
Likely to sell out: a chamber orchestra in a Baroque pavilion, with a differently named programme from one date to the next.
The Zwinger
Augustus the Strong commissioned Matthäus Daniel Pöppelmann in 1709 to build an orangery for his collection of rare southern plants. It grew into a garden and a festival ground, and the wedding festivities of 1719 inaugurated it. Its festival role lives on: music and theatre events still take place in it.
Dresden's court orchestra dates from 1548, Heinrich Schütz worked at the Saxon court from 1615, and the city's opera house staged premieres by Wagner and Richard Strauss. A concert in the Zwinger is a small piece of that tradition, played by a chamber-sized ensemble.
The organiser names a programme for every date: Vivaldi's Four Seasons, Mozart's Eine kleine Nachtmusik, waltzes, opera highlights, Peer Gynt, and festive music in Advent and at Christmas. Compare two or three dates before you choose.
The programmes
The calendar gives each date a named programme. These are the styles the organiser lists, with a line on the music behind each, so you can pick the evening that suits your ear.
What is played on your date is set by its calendar entry. Programmes change with the date, and no piece is promised in advance.
Vivaldi
Four violin concertos, published in Amsterdam in 1725 and printed with sonnets that describe each season. Dresden's own court orchestra had a link to Vivaldi: its violinist Johann Georg Pisendel studied with him in Venice in 1716.
Mozart
A serenade for strings that Mozart completed in Vienna on 10 August 1787. It was not published until about 1827, and nobody knows when it was first played. The organiser builds a programme around it.
Vienna
Waltzes, polkas and familiar Viennese melodies, in a programme the German calendar calls Walzerträume.
Opera
Dramatic operatic melodies, from Carmen to Cavalleria rusticana as the organiser puts it. Choose it if you want voices and big tunes in a small room.
Grieg
Edvard Grieg wrote this incidental music for Ibsen's play in 1875, and it was first heard in Christiania in 1876. Grieg later drew two suites from it, which hold Morning Mood and In the Hall of the Mountain King.
Seasons
The organiser lists Advent concerts, a festive Christmas concert, Winter Dreams and a New Year's Eve gala, alongside concerts for children. Winter dates carry the festive programmes.
The pavilion
The Wallpavillon belongs to a complex that was commissioned, finished, rebuilt and finished again. These dates come from the timeline of the state palace administration.
Augustus the Strong commissions Matthäus Daniel Pöppelmann to build an orangery for his collection of rare southern plants. The Wallpavillon belongs to the project.
The Wallpavillon is built. In 1719 the Zwinger is inaugurated with festivities for the wedding of Friedrich August II and Archduchess Maria Josepha.
The Zwinger buildings are finished. Balthasar Permoser made the figure decoration, and Dresden's most valuable collections move in.
Gottfried Semper's gallery building closes the Elbe side of the courtyard.
The bombing of Dresden totally destroys the Zwinger.
Reconstruction under Hubert Ermisch, Arthur Frenzel and Max Zimmermann brings the Zwinger back.
Dresden in pictures
The Wallpavillon in daylight, the courtyard, the Crown Gate at night, the Nymphs' Bath, the Semperoper at dusk and the dome of the Frauenkirche.
Two ways to hear Dresden's music
Concerts and music in Dresden
The first card opens the Zwinger gala concert. The second is a separate listing: a guided tour of the Semperoper, Dresden's opera house. It is a tour, not a performance. Further Dresden activities sit in the rail below.
A chamber orchestra in the Baroque Wallpavillon, with a differently named programme for each date and a choice of seat from the fourth row to the back.
See dates ↗A 45-minute guided tour of Dresden's opera house, led by a live guide in English or German. It is a visit to the building, not a performance.
See dates ↗More to book in Dresden
Plan the evening
The Zwinger, the music and the evening: guides
Which concert, and how to book How to book the gala concert in the Dresden Zwinger's Wallpavillon: what the ticket is, which programme to pick, how to choose a seat and what to compare.
Read the guide → Getting there, getting in The practical guide to the Dresden Zwinger concert: finding the Wallpavillon, getting there, doors, dress, heat, photos, stairs, access and children.
Read the guide →FAQ
About 90 minutes including an interval, as the organiser puts it. The booking page lists a duration of 1.5 hours and shows the start time for each date.
In the Wallpavillon of the Dresden Zwinger, at Theaterplatz in Dresden's old town. The hall cannot be reached by car, and you walk up to it from the square.
No. Each date has its own named programme, such as Vivaldi's Four Seasons, waltzes or opera highlights. The calendar entry for your date names it.
Yes. The category on this ticket lets you pick a seat from the fourth row to the back.
No. Neither the hall nor its toilets are wheelchair accessible or barrier-free, and the toilets are up a flight of stairs. The organiser asks you to contact it before booking.
No. The museums in the Zwinger are separate visits with their own tickets and hours. This ticket is for the concert.
No, not in summer. The booking page says this is because the Wallpavillon is a protected monument, and some guests mention heat on warm days.
Yes. GetYourGuide cancels free of charge until 24 hours ahead of the performance, and you may reserve now and pay later.
Fares appear in US dollars per adult; the booking site shows them in your own currency.