Mozart: the man and the artist, as revealed in his own words by Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart
page 63 of 126 (50%)
page 63 of 126 (50%)
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change in those countries." In a preceding letter he had written:
"For some time I have been practicing myself daily in the French language, and I have also taken three lessons in English. In three months I hope to be able to read and understand English books fairly well.") 118. "The two of us played a sonata that I had composed for the occasion, and which had a success. This sonata I shall send you by Herr von Daubrawaick, who said that he would feel proud to have it in his trunk; his son, who is a Salzburger, told me this. When the father went he said, quite loud, 'I am proud to be your countryman. You are doing great honor to Salzburg; I hope that times will so change that we can have you amongst us, and then do not forget me.' I answered: 'My fatherland has always the first claim on me.' " (Vienna, November 24, 1781, to his father. Mozart is speaking of a concert which he had given. The sonata is the small one in D major (Kochel, No. 381). Mozart often made merry over the Salzburgians; he called them stupid and envious.) 119. "Thoroughly convinced that I was talking to a German, I gave free rein to my tongue,--a thing which one is so seldom permitted to do that after such an outpouring of the heart it would be allowable to get a bit fuddled without risk of hurting one's health." (Vienna, March 21, 1785, to Anton Klein.) |
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