"There are and will be thousands of princes; there is only one Beethoven."

"O, you men who think or say that I am malevolent, stubborn, or misanthropic, how greatly do you wrong me."

"I have never thought of writing for renown and glory. What I have in my heart must out; that is why I write."

"Ah how could I possibly admit such an infirmity in the one sense which should have been more perfect in me than in others[?]"

"My mind is so full of music that I could easily compose a new opera every day."