Mozart’s home city of Salzburg is centre stage this Friday, as the year-long celebrations marking the 250th birthday of the great composer get a flying start in Austria before going global.

From Paris to Tokyo, London to New York, gala concerts are taking place tonight that have been sold out for months, and Salzburg itself is expecting a 20 percent jump in tourism this year for the jamboree of special events. While some may find the flood of Mozart memorabilia a bit much, the composer did leave behind 600 musical works – a far better way to remember and enjoy him today.

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