I am a fool. That is well known.

You know that I become quite powerless whenever I am obliged to write for an instrument which I cannot bear.

Music, in even the most terrible situations, must never offend the ear but always remain a source of pleasure.

I too had to work hard, so as not to have to work hard any longer.

Handel understands effect better than any of us -- when he chooses, he strikes like a thunderbolt.

The taste of death is upon my lips. I feel something that is not of this earth.

I love it when an aria fits a singer as perfectly as a suit of well-tailored clothes.