Music is Strasbourg's forte but the city does well across the cultural spread, with several events open to the public every day of the year.

The concert and opera seasons run from October until May. The largest concerts are shown at the Palais de la Musique et des Congrès, place de Bordeaux (tel: (03) 8837 6767; website: www.strasbourgmeeting.com). Recitals and chamber music can be heard inside churches and smaller concert halls. Every year, for a weekend in September during journée du patrimoine (open house day), Strasbourg's cultural institutions allow free entry to the public. Two key cultural venues, Le Taps Scala, 96 route du Polygone, and Le Taps Gare, 13 rue du Hohwald (tel: (03) 8834 1036) work together to present a long season (Sep-Jun) of theatre, music and dance.

Tickets are available for purchase at the venue or, for larger concerts, at FNAC, place Kléber (tel: (03) 8852 2121).

Cultural activities are listed in the Dernières Nouvelles d'Alsace (website: www.dna.fr) and on the official Strasbourg website (website: www.strasbourg.fr). More information about cultural events is available from the Office du Tourisme (see Tourist Information in Sightseeing).

Music: The Opéra National du Rhin, Théâtre Municipal, 19 place Broglie (tel: (03) 8875 4800; website: www.operanationaldurhin.fr), has earned Strasbourg a worldwide reputation for classical, lyrical and contemporary music. Other prestigious organisations include the Orchestre Philharmonique de Strasbourg (tel: (03) 8815 0909; website: www.philharmonique-strasbourg.com), which performs at the Palais de la Musique et des Congrès, place de Bordeaux (tel: (03) 8837 6767; website: www.strasbourgmeeting.com), the Percussions de Strasbourg, 15 place André-Maurois (tel: (03) 8826 0709; website: www.bisbigliando.com/percussions.htm), and the Conservatoire National de Région de Strasbourg (CNR), 10 rue du Hohwald (tel: (03) 8823 7723).

Theatre: Organisations that attract international companies, actors and directors include the Théâtre National de Strasbourg (TNS), 1 avenue de la Marseillaise (tel: (03) 8824 8800; website: www.tns.fr), the Théâtre Jeune Public, 7 rue des Balayeurs (tel: (03) 8835 7010; website: www.theatre-jeune-public.com), and Le Maillon, 13 place André Maurois (tel: (03) 8827 6171/81; website: www.le-maillon.com). The Théâtre Alsacien de Strasbourg, located at the Théâtre Municipal, 19 place Broglie (tel: (03) 8875 4823; website: www.theatre-alsacien-strasbourg.com), and La Choucrouterie, 20 rue St-Louis (tel: (03) 8836 0728; website: www.choucrouterie.com), presents traditional shows and political satires in French and Alsatian. Le Kafteur, 3 rue Thiergarten (tel: (03) 8822 2203; website: www.lekafteur.com), is a café-théâtre that presents humorous sketches.

Dance: The Opéra du Rhin Ballet (website: www.opera-national-du-rhin.com) performs at the Palais de la Musique et des Congrès, place de Bordeaux (tel: (03) 8837 6767; website: www.strasbourgmeeting.com) and the Théâtre Municipal, 19 place Broglie (tel: (03) 8875 4800). Contemporary dance and jazz take place at Pôle Sud, 1 rue de Bourgogne (tel: (03) 8839 2340; website: www.pole-sud.fr).

Film: The multiplex UGC Ciné Cité, 25 route du Rhin, Neudorf, east Strasbourg (tel: 0892 700 000; website: www.ugc.fr), boasts 23 screens and seats 5,400 people, making it the largest cinema in Europe. Its sibling, the UGC Capitole, 3-5 rue du 22 Novembre (tel: 0892 700 000; website: www.ugc.fr), offers all the latest national and international films. The centrally located Pathé Vox, 17 rue des Francs Bourgeois (tel: (03) 8875 5021), has five screens. Le Star Saint Exupéry, 18 rue du 22 Novembre (tel: (03) 8822 2879; website: www.cinema-star.com), has the winning formula of film plus meal. Art house Cinéma Le Star, 27 rue Jeu des Enfants (tel: (03) 8832 4497; website: www.cinema-star.com) and Odyssée, 3 rue des Francs-Bourgeois (tel: (03) 8875 1047; website: www.cinemaodyssee.com), show films in the original language.

Literary Notes: Early literary works involving the city include the Serments de Strasbourg (842), by the brothers Charles le Chauve and Louis le Germanique, and the edifying 12th-century Hortus Deliciarum, by the nun Herrade de Landsberg. The city's association with the written word was continued by Gutenberg (1399-1468), who arrived in Strasbourg in 1434, where he developed his printing press with moveable type. Despite debtors forcing Gutenberg to flee from Strasbourg in 1444, by the end of the 15th century, printing was strongly established in the city - an integral part of the intense religious and intellectual life in Alsace.

Goëthe's stay in Strasbourg, in 1770-71, marked the start of the German renovation movement in poetry, known as Sturm und Drang (storm and stress). Up to the end of World War I, German-language literature was thriving. Notable contributors were Friedrich Lienhard, René Schickele and Jean-Hans Arp. Albert Schweitzer, the most important Alsatian figure of the 20th century, contributed with literature in dialect. In the early 1980s, Alsatian literature (in the form of songs and poetry) was rediscovered. Alsatian folklore was published in modern French. Particularly charming are the magical tales traditionally recounted on New Year's Eve.

Modern Alsatian literature is expressed in French, German and Alsatian dialect. Prominent writers and poets include Maxime Alexandre, Jean-Hans Arp, Gaston Jung, Alfred Kern, Marcel Schneider and Claude Vigee. Alsatian literature can be found at La Librairie Oberlin, 22 rue de la Division Leclerc (tel: (03) 8832 4583), and at the annual Salon du Livre, in Colmar, during November. Other highpoints on an Alsatian literary trail include the BNUS National University Library, which holds more than 3 million volumes, and the fabulous Bibliothèque Humaniste de Sélestat (humanist library) located 45km (28 miles) from Strasbourg in Sélestat. The latter boasts a rich collection of 3,000 manuscripts dating from the seventh to the 16th century and tracing the evolution from handwritten to printed work.