This program will focus on second- and third-year German and the art and culture of Vienna and Austria. Students study at the Austro-American Institute (AAIE), which is located in the heart of Vienna, directly across the street from the Vienna State Opera House. Vienna is one of the most splendid, refined, and culturally rich cities in the world. Once the capital of a vast multinational empire, Vienna maintains its stature as a cultural center between east and west. It has been home to emperors, archbishops, crusaders, traders, scientists, philosophers, writers, and musicians who have played leading roles in the religion, politics, economics, art, literature, and technology of Europe for more than a millennium. Its wealth of palaces, churches, museums, and monuments bears witness to a city of architects, artisans, builders, and designers. While its theater productions set high standards for all German-speaking lands, Vienna's importance as part of the musical legacy of Haydn, Mozart, Beethoven, Schubert, Brahms, Mahler, and Schönberg is recognized throughout the world. Acclaimed for its Gothic and Baroque traditions, including the world-renowned Vienna Boys Choir and Spanish Riding School, Vienna also gave rise to Freud and modern psychology, Loos and modern architecture, and Wittgenstein and modern philosophy. The Austrian capital boasts magnificent libraries and archives. Anyone interested in history of Europe will want to spend time looking though the mammoth collections of books and manuscripts available to the researchers visiting Vienna.