Page 6 - GC July-Aug 2022

Visiting Vienna – a City of Culture

by Daniel Schwarz
ecently my wife Louise and I
Rspent a glorious week in Vien-
na (Wien), Austria enjoying the mu-
sic, art, architecture, amazing foods,
wines, exquisite cakes (Sacher
Tort), and pastries. On the top of our
bucket list to do in Vienna was to
see and hear the world famous Wie-
ner Philharmoniker Orchestra in
their home concert hall, the historic
Musikverein. This is also the loca-
tion of the TV televised and narrat-
ed New Year’s Concert each year
showcasing the orchestra, and the
music of the Strauss family of Vien-
nese composers. This facility, is in
the center of the old town, and is German places you should know:
architecturally, acoustically, and
just beautifully impressive. St. Mary Magdalene Church /
The orchestra performs in the
1,800 seat Grosser Musikvereins- Antioch Baptist Church
saal (large concert Hall), where we
were able to get terrific tickets, 4th by Martin Ederer Rev. John Pfluger served a
n the aftermath of the awful and
row center. In order to get these long pastorate from 1916-
tickets we became Mitglieder der Itragic shootings at Tops Market 1949, making his name
on Jefferson Ave., Antioch Baptist
Gesellschaft der Musikfreunde in synonymous with St. Mary
Wien (Member supporters of the Church became a prominent center
of community gatherings – and sad- Magdalene parish during its
Vienna music organizations, which
included the Musikverein). Classical ly, of funerals. This story hit home most prosperous years.
for me in several ways. First, I knew
music concerts, opera, and ballet are
so very popular in Vienna, and most how much Tops was a neighbor- church. Pewholders were the parish-
hood gathering place from members ioners who paid pew rent, a tradition
of Europe, that to get good seats, or
any seats for performances, season- emeritus of the music friend’s orga- ein choir, directed by Johannes of our congregation at St. Ann the German immigrants had brought
al subscriptions or membership are nization of Vienna). He has con- Prinz) added their beautiful voices Church. This Tops was especially with them from Germany. Some-
required. ducted every major orchestra in to the orchestra in the third move- well-known around the neighbor- times parishes in Germany went so
The concert that we heard was Vienna, and worldwide. The pro- ment. hood for some of the best fried far as to assign seats by name plates
conducted by the famous Maestro gram began with Trois Noctures, During the Pause (intermis- chicken. to pewholders. The much more
Riccardo Muti. He is the Ehrenmit- Symphonisches Triptchon Für Or- sion), where Sekt (champagne) I had family connections to An- practical American Catholics sim-
glied der Gesellschaft der Musikfre- chester und Frauenchor by Claude flowed like water, finger sandwich- tioch’s previous incarnation, St. ply numbered the pews and made
unde in Wien (musical director Debussy (1862-1918). The Damen es and amazing looking pastries Mary Magdalene Church. My moth- seat assignments from there. Buben-
des Singvereins (Ladies Musikver- were enjoyed, ended when the er’s parents – immigrants both – got heim laid the cornerstone for the
chimes were heard to return to our married there in the late 1910s. As new church designed by George
seats. The program continued with the story went, the priest had ripped Setter later in 1906. In 1907 the
Symphonie fantastique, op. 14, by through the wedding so quickly that completed church was dedicated.
Hector Berlioz (1803-1869), with my grandparents often wondered if Built of Medina sandstone at the
the magnificent five movements of the marriage sacrament actually had base and yellow brick above that,
musical gems, from instrumental time to “take.” the new church had twin towers,
solos to grand walls of orchestra A good several years ago I each 125 feet high, and a pillarless
sound, under the baton of Maestro stopped at Antioch for a visit before nave, a much-touted feature reflect-
Muti. Sunday services began. After a ner- ing new suspended ceiling technolo-
The adjacent photo shows Mae- vous caretaker wondered why I was gies. Leo P. Frohe made the
stro Muti smiling at the audience sightseeing in an African American windows. Rochester’s Albert Prent-
with the musicians and choir stand- church, we got talking. I remarked iss Ward, a student of artist James
ing, accepting the appreciative ap- with some surprise that the win- Whistler, executed the murals.
plause. In Europe, standing ovations dows, the murals and even a Catho- Rev. John Pfluger served a long
after even the best performances is lic crucifix were all still there from pastorate from 1916-1949, making
rare, but the applause for this con- the church’s Catholic days. I’ll nev- his name synonymous with St.
cert did not stop. Even after the er forget his response: “You can’t Mary Magdalene parish during its
orchestra was off stage, the audi- do too much to the place without most prosperous years. All that had
ence coaxed Maestro Muti back out ruining it.” I remember wishing that changed by the late 1960s. St. Mary
on the stage for several grand ap- others – Catholics among them – Magdalene, like many of the inner-
plauses, and a standing ovation. would take that same advice. He city parishes, faced the demograph-
The other photo shows the lit up clearly had a heart for the place and ic shifts taking place as the neigh-
its history. borhood transformed from German
exterior of the magnificent Musikv-
erein building after the concert. Anyhow, the German Catholic to African American.
story: St. Mary Magdalene Church St. Mary Magdalene got a new
This concert of the Wiener Philhar-
moniker, conducted by Maestro was founded in 1899, after German look after a March windstorm in
Muti, in their home grand concert Catholics in the growing Parade 1964 damaged the copper cupolas
hall was certainly an experience of neighborhood north of Genesee on St. Mary Magdalene’s steeples.
a life time for us. Street and east of Humboldt Park- This was the same windstorm that
way had petitioned the diocese for a had damaged the steeples of St. Ann
parish. By then the Parade had be- on Broadway. St. Mary
come a flourishing neighborhood. Magdalene’s elaborate original cu-
Bishop James Quigley finally polas had to be removed, and were
approved the new parish and ap- replaced with shorter, less elaborate
pointed Rev. James Bubenheim as cupolas. The 1964 storm damage
St. Mary Magdalene’s first pastor. may well have been an ominous
Bubenheim celebrated his first par- warning about St. Mary
ish Mass on the second floor of the Magdalene’s future.
Ignaz Woeppel grocery store at E. By the mid-1970s the parish was
Utica and Fillmore. As word spread in trouble. The school was demol-
about the new parish, it grew. Soon ished in 1976. October 14, 1978
Bubenheim needed the lower floor witnessed the church’s final Mass
as well. and the parish was suppressed. St.
By the end of October 1899, the Mary Magdalene was one of the
Tours available by new parish broke ground for a brick first parishes to get closed in the
combination church/school building inner city. Obviously, more closings
appointment designed by Carl Schmill. The fin- followed in the coming decades. In
ished building was dedicated March early 1979, the Antioch Baptist
157 East Street, Buffalo 18, 1900. The 3-story building Church purchased St. Mary
New York 14207 housed the church on the first floor, Magdalene, and has very success-
the school on the second, and an fully maintained the building ever
More Information: auditorium on the third floor. Two since.
bells were added in 1901.
Call 716.481.2350
In June 1906 the pewholders of
the parish proposed building a new