A small baroque courtyard named after Arturo Toscanini, tucked behind the Kollegienkirche and connecting to the backstage of the Felsenreitschule: one of the Altstadt's least-visited spaces and one of its more layered ones.
The Story
Toscaninihof is accessible from Universitatsplatz through a passage between the Kollegienkirche and the Festival district. Most visitors pass the entrance without registering it. The courtyard opens behind the baroque church facade, surrounded by the old stone of the Mönchsberg cliff face, with a staircase rising along the right wall.
The name comes from Arturo Toscanini. The conductor made his Salzburg Festival debut in 1934 and became one of the central figures in its early history, drawing international attention and lending the Festival a musical credibility that helped establish it as the preeminent summer festival in Europe. The Salzburg mayor wrote to Toscanini in 1934 to announce the honor; the courtyard was formally named in 1937. Then Toscanini left and never returned. His departure in 1937, in protest at the political direction of the Festival under pressure from the Nazi-aligned Austrian government, was the principled act that the name in retrospect memorializes. The name survived the 1938 annexation intact.
The staircase on the right wall of the courtyard connects to the stage entrance of the Felsenreitschule. It is also a filming location. The "I Have Confidence" sequence from The Sound of Music (1965) was shot on these stairs, not on the nearby Winkler Terrace as sometimes cited. During Festival season the courtyard functions as a backstage threshold. Outside it, the access is practical and quiet.
In 2007 a Stephan Balkenhol sculpture, "Frau im Fels" (Woman in the Rock), was installed in a niche in the cliff face as part of the Salzburg Foundation's Walk of Modern Art. The 140 cm wooden figure is half-hidden in the stone, watching the courtyard from the rock. It is the fifth stop on the Walk of Modern Art route.
Visiting
Enter Toscaninihof from Universitatsplatz, through the passage between the Kollegienkirche and the cliff. The courtyard is always accessible, free. Look for the Balkenhol sculpture in the cliff face niche on the left as you enter. The staircase on the right leads toward the Felsenreitschule stage entrance. During Festival season (July-August) this area becomes active; outside season it is genuinely quiet. Combine with Universitatsplatz and Hofstallgasse for a complete circuit of the Festival precinct.