Hector Berlioz

Music French 1803 – 1869 98 quotes

Pioneer of program music with Symphonie Fantastique, Berlioz innovated orchestration, quipping that time is the best author, but also the worst publisher.

Quotes by Hector Berlioz

The soul of music is in its silence.

Essay 1865

Fame is a vapor, popularity an accident, riches take wings, only one thing endures—character.

Personal reflection 1845

Rome is the city of the soul.

Letter 1831

A composer should write as one speaks.

Memoirs 1828

The artist must be a solitary soul.

Essay 1855

Passion is the fire that forges genius.

Letter 1835

Why should I deny that I cannot keep silent about my own work? It is my child.

Interview 1844

Music is the poetry of the air.

Aphorism 1826

The conductor is the high priest of music.

Criticism 1852

Life without music is like a body without a soul.

Personal reflection 1860

Genius is nothing but a greater aptitude for patience.

Letter 1830

The piano is the king of instruments.

Essay 1840

Revolution in music is inevitable.

Speech 1829

My heart is a lonely hunter.

Memoirs 1850

Symphonies are landscapes of the soul.

Aphorism 1830

Criticism is the art of knowing how little we know.

Witty remark 1845

The muse visits only the prepared mind.

Letter 1825

Opera is the excess of music.

Criticism 1855

In art, as in love, instinct is enough.

Essay 1835

The score is the map, but the performance is the journey.

Interview 1860