Richard Strauss Quotes & Sayings

Never look encouragingly at the brass, except with a brief glance to give an important cue. — Richard Strauss

Never let the horns and woodwinds out of your sight; if you can hear them at all, they are too loud. — Richard Strauss

Never look at the trombones, you'll just encourage them. — Richard Strauss

I may not be a first-rate composer, but I am a first-class second-rate composer. — Richard Strauss

The most perfect melodic shapes are found in Mozart; he has the lightness of touch which is the true objective ... Listen to the remarkable expansion of a Mozart melody, to Cherubino's 'Voi che sapete', for instance. You think it is coming to an end, but it goes farther, even farther. — Richard Strauss

Never look at the brass - it only encourages them. — Richard Strauss

He'd be better off shoveling snow. — Richard Strauss

Bear in mind that you are not making music for your own pleasure, but for the pleasure of your audience. — Richard Strauss

I want to be able to depict in music a glass of beer so accurately that every listener can tell whether it is a Pilsner or a Kulmbacher. — Richard Strauss

The human voice is the most beautiful instrument of all, but it is the most difficult to play. — Richard Strauss

Don't perspire while conducting - only the audience should get warm. — Richard Strauss

Must one become seventy years old to recognize that one's greatest strength lies in creating musical kitsch? — Richard Strauss

The aria, after all, is the soul of opera. — Richard Strauss

If you think that the brass is not blowing loud enough, mute it by a couple of degrees. — Richard Strauss

Never look at the trombones. You'll only encourage them. — Richard Strauss

Ideas, like young wine, should be put in storage and taken up again only after they have been allowed to ferment and to ripen. — Richard Strauss

I shall never be converted, and I shall remain true to my old religion of the classics until my life's end. — Richard Strauss

On conducting: If you can just barely hear the French horns on stage, the balance is perfect. — Richard Strauss