the Palais in the 1820s by Joseph Kornhäusel, that section became connected to the Hofburg as well. Redoute Wing Empress Maria Theresia had a 17th-century opera house converted into the dance and concert halls now known as the Redoutensäle, which consists of a small and a large hall. Together with a number of smaller antechambers they form the Redoute Wing. The original plans were drawn up by , while the external façades are the work of Nicolò Pacassi and . The Redoutensäle soon became the setting for the cultivated style of baroque entertainment. The name is derived from the French word "redoute", meaning an elegant masked ball, and such balls were also held there. The audience was treated to music by Joseph Haydn and Nicolo Paganini and Franz Liszt. The premiere of Beethoven's 8th Symphony took place there in 1814. The well known saying "The Congress dances" derives from the balls held in the Redoutensaele in the framework of the Congress of Vienna in 1814/15. Johann Strauss served as musical director to the court for the balls held here. Over the centuries, various modification has been made the balls in line with changing tastes. On 27 November 1992 the whole wing with the Redoutensäle was seriously damaged by fire. The reconstruction and restoration work lasted five years. While the smaller Kleiner Redoutensaal was faithfully restored, for the interior of the larger Grosser Redoutensaal a design competition was held, which was won by the Austrian artist Josef Mikl. He created a number of oil paintings based on literary quotations taken from Ferdinand Raimund, Johann Nepomuk Nestroy and Elias Canetti. His 404 m2 ceiling painting incorporates 34 handwritten verses of Karl Kraus' poem "Youth", albeit in a form not visible to the viewer. The Redoutensäle reopened in 1998 in the framework of the first Austrian Presidency of the Council of the European Union and became since then part of the Hofburg Congress Centre. Restoration of the roof of the wing gave an opportunity to convert the original loft space into a new amenity called the Rooftop Foyer (Dachfoyer). The architect Manfred Wehdorn designed a modern interior, completed with a spherical structure for secure conferences and panoramic windows. Besides the roof, he also converted the former courtyard between the Hall of Festivals and the southwest wing of the Swiss courtyard to another space. By 2017 the wing was renovated to house the National