18th-Century Characters, Including Frederick the Great, Discussion Post 34

[cahn]

And including Emperor Joseph II!

from Derek Beales: Joseph II, Volume 2: Against the World, 1780 - 1790:

Joseph's alleged comment to Mozart about the Entführung, "Too many notes", has been taken as evidence of his ignorance. But he probably said something like, "Too beautiful for our ears, and monstrous many notes." It is always necessary to bear in mind, when appraising the emperor's remarks, his peculiar brand of humor or sarcasm. He was usually getting at someone. And he did not use the royal "we". The ears in question were those of the Viennese audience, whom he was mocking for their limited appreciation of Mozart's elaborate music.

(though not gonna lie, I think it is a LOT of notes)

Comments

Re: Some more Wilhelmine-Fritz correspondence

[mildred_of_midgard]

I think those letters are known to me either from "So lange wir zu zweit sind"

Yeah, figured that book whose title I can never remember was another contender. But it was my bounden duty to get these letters translated and uploaded in case there was something new to us. :)

Jews, Buddhists, Infidels and Heretics: I saw that!! I was planning to quote it, but then it was getting late and I didn't want to be ranting instead of doing the things I needed to do before bed. I figured if I linked you to it, you would pick up on that line, and lo, you did not disappoint. :)

And yeah, getting worked up about heretics in the late nineteenth century was really...something. Anti-Semitism and what I assume is Islamophobia are, alas, to be expected.

But she signs "Wilhelmine".

I was thinking of that, as Google translate relentlessly renders every "Wilhelmine" into a "Wilhelmina" in English. Lol, google.