Johannes Brahms
Master of symphonic and chamber music
Most quoted
"I have always been a great admirer of Bach, but I have never been able to understand why people make such a fuss about his fugues. They are very clever, but they are not beautiful."
— from Various anecdotes
"I am of the opinion that the public is usually wrong in its judgment of new works, but that after twenty or thirty years it finally corrects its own verdict."
— from Attributed
"I have never been able to understand why people make such a fuss about Beethoven's Ninth Symphony. It is a very good work, but it is not a masterpiece."
— from Various anecdotes
All quotes by Johannes Brahms (379)
I am not a 'Romantic'! Beethoven is Romantic, and I am a Classicist.
The public is like a child: you must give it what it wants, but not always.
It is not the critic who counts; it is the man who is actually in the arena.
A work of art is a world in itself.
I have the feeling that I am drifting further and further into a desert, and that I shall never again write a good work.
The true artist is not proud: he unfortunately sees that art has no limits; he feels darkly how far he is from the goal.
To achieve great things, two things are needed: a plan and not quite enough time.
The only thing of value in a composer is his individuality.
I am a severe critic of my own works.
Melody is the essence of music.
When I feel the urge to compose, I begin by appealing to the Almighty to grant me talent.
The world of ideas is not closed.
One must not be afraid of writing something that sounds like oneself.
I am but a link in the chain.
Music is the language of the soul.
A great artist is always before his time or behind it.
The folk song is the foundation of all music.
I have the misfortune of being taken for a reactionary, and I am not one at all.
The finale of my first symphony will be long and I fear not very entertaining.
Contemporaries of Johannes Brahms
Other Musics born within 50 years of Johannes Brahms (1833–1897).