"Vienna - the european capital of music " a Vienna Travel Page by Fam_Stoica

Vienna is well-known for its cultural life; between the 18th and the 19th centuries it was the musical capital of the world and the home of many famous composers, including Haydn, Mozart, Beethoven, Brahms, Schubert, Bruckner, Mahler, and Berg. Franz von Suppy supplied early models for Viennese operetta and Johann Strauss the Younger brought the form to a high romantic level. Today, Vienna remains a city of strong musical heritage and is the seat of the Vienna Philharmonic Orchestra (the New Year Concert is a major event) at the Vienna State Opera.

A short history (from Microsoft Encarta Encyclopedia) : "The site of Vienna was once home to a Celtic village, and from the 1st century BC to the 5th century AD, it was a stronghold of the Roman Empire. Vienna grew into a trading hub and staging area for the Crusades during the 12th century. A century later, the royal Habsburg family of Germany gained control of the region, and the city served as the core of their empire for many centuries. Although Vienna endured many armed threats during these years, only Napoleon Bonaparte succeeded in occupying Vienna, and then only briefly in the early 19th century. In 1938 Adolf Hitler declared the Anschluss, and the Nazis annexed Austria. As a result, Austria became a province of Germany, and Vienna served as the administrative center from 1938 until 1945. After the war, Allied troops occupied the city for ten years."