Rock Riding School

For the construction of the cathedral rocks were cut out from the Moenchsberg. In 1693, Archbishop Johann Ernst von Thun decided to use this cavity in the mountain and had a riding school built in which tournaments were held. Today the Rock Riding School is a theater and one of the venues situated in the Festival District.

The "real" Trapp family sang here at a choir competition. In the motion picture, Christopher Plummer sang "Edelweiss" in the Rock Riding School while their escape was organized behind the curtain.

The Horse Pond next to the Festival Building is another sight a lot of people associate with The Sound of Music. It was built in 1695 by Austrian architect Fischer von Erlach. Before being part of the Sound of Music scenery, it served as a watering place for the Archbishop's riding stables.