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Messing With Mozart

It's Mozart Year--what are you waiting for? Vienna claims he's the most famous Austrian ever (sorry, Austrians, you forgot Hitler), and what better spot to bone up on your Mozart than at Vienna's Haus Der Musik. It's a solid mix of interactive fun and need-to-know trivia, featuring displays on the man of the moment and other star Austrian composers like Beethoven and Strauss. You could be forgiven for momentarily thinking you're back in music history class, until you step into halls full of wacky sound experiments. Ever wanted to know what a cow in a cathedral sounds like?

A highlight is discovering just how difficult it is to conduct an orchestra. A clever display uses real-life video of the Vienna Philharmonic and an electronic baton. Waving your arm in a professional way gets the musicians playing harmoniously. Looks simple, but be warned: demand an uneven beat and the musicians get cranky; be totally unskilled and they'll lay their instruments down and angrily walk off stage. But don't feel alone, that's exactly what happened to us. Naturally, the six-year-old who stepped up to follow seemed to make the musos happy again. Of course, he's the next Mozart.

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