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Franz Schubert was born on January 31, 1797 in a house called “Zum roten Krebs” (the Red Crab), on Nußdorferstrasse in the 9th District. Today, the house is owned by the City of Vienna, and is a museum dedicated to the brief yet prolific life of the composer. The building remains in remarkably authentic condition, and the exhibition contains some of the most well-known portraits of Schubert, by artists such as Wilhelm August Rieder, Moritz von Schwind and Leopold Kupelwieser, as well as musical scores, manuscripts, pictures and everyday objects used by the composer. The highlight may well be Schubert’s trademark glasses, which are also on display. In addition, visitors can listen to samples of the composer’s music.
For the last few months of his life, Schubert lived with his brother Ferdinand in an apartment on Kettenbrückengasse, where he died in November, 1828. Today, there is a memorial dedicated to him in the house, as well as an exhibition which focuses on the composer’s last days and includes the last handwritten letter he wrote, as well as his last musical ideas. |
