The Marriage of Figaro, 28th April, 1786

Only those who have never practised a commitment to their ideas can suppose that the pursuit of composition does not require a seriousness of purpose, a resolve to finish what has been started or a particular energy that if lacking or in small supply will prevent that person from completing their work. Such a person could NOT be my brother - nor it seems Salieri, the Emperor’s court composer. They are both pursuers in their different ways.
‘Le Nozze di Figaro’ will have its first performance tonight and friends have informed Papa that Salieri and his friends ‘will move heaven and earth to down his opera.’ The cause of this sabotage? Jealousy. N.