Quotes by Gustav Mahler

Tradition is not the worship of ashes, but the preservation of fire.

The point is not to take the worlds opinion as a guiding star but to go ones way in life and working unerringly, neither depressed by failure nor seduced by applause.

With the coming of spring, I am calm again.

Spring wont let me stay in this house any longer! I must get out and breathe the air deeply again.

If a composer could say what he had to say in words he would not bother trying to say it in music.

In its beginnings, music was merely chamber music, meant to be listened to in a small space by a small audience.

The real art of conducting consists in transitions.

Beauty and fullness of tone can be achieved by having the whole orchestra play with high clarinets and a carefully selected number of piccolos.

The impressions of the spriritual experiences gave my future life its form and content.