Directly after God in heaven comes a Papa.

My dear sister! I’m amazed to discover that you can compose so delightfully. In a word, your Lied is beautiful. You must compose more often.

A man of ordinary talent will always be ordinary, whether he travels or not; but a man of superior talent (which I cannot deny myself to be without being impious) will go to pieces if he remains forever in the same place.

Music must never offend the ear, but must please the listener, or, in other words, must never cease to be music.

One must not make oneself cheap here - that is a cardinal point - or else one is done. Whoever is most impertinent has the best chance.

Music is my life and my life is music.

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