I am at Cannabich’s every day, and mamma went with me there to-day.  He is a very different man from what he formerly was, [footnote:  Mozart had been at his house, when a boy, with his father.] and the whole orchestra say the same.  He is very fond of me.  He has a daughter who plays the piano very nicely, and in order to make him still more friendly towards me I am working just now at a sonata for her, which is finished all but the Rondo.  When I had completed the first allegro and andante, I took it to him myself and played it over; you can’t think what applause this sonata receives.  There chanced to be some of the musicians there at the moment—­young Danner, Lang, who plays the French horn, and the hautboy-player, whose name I forget, but who plays remarkably well, and has a pleasing delicate tone [Ramm].  I made him a present of a concerto for the hautboy; it is being copied in Cannabich’s room.  The man is wild with delight.  I played him the concerto to-day at Cannabich’s, and though known to be mine it pleased very much.  No one said that it was not well composed, because people here don’t understand these things.  They ought to apply to the Archbishop; he would soon put them on the right scent. [Footnote:  The Archbishop never was satisfied with any of the compositions that Mozart wrote for his concerts, but invariably had some fault to find with them.] I played all my six sonatas to-day at Cannabich’s.  Herr Kapellmeister Holzbauer went with me to-day to Count Savioli’s.  Cannabich was there at the time.  Herr Holzbauer said to the Count in Italian that I wished to have the honor of playing before his Serene Highness the Elector.  “I was here fifteen years ago,” said I, “but now I am older and more advanced, and I may say in music also”—­“Oh!” said the Count, “you are”—­I have no idea whom he took me for, as Cannabich interrupted him, but I affected not to hear, and entered into conversation with the others.  Still I observed that he was speaking of me very earnestly.  The Count then said to me, “I hear that you play the piano very tolerably?” I bowed.

I must now tell you about the music here.  On Saturday, All-Saints’ day, I attended high mass.  The orchestra is very good and numerous.  On each side ten or eleven violins, four tenors, two hautboys, two flutes, and two clarionets, two corni, four violoncellos, four bassoons, and four double basses, besides trumpets and kettle-drums.  This should give fine music, but I would not venture to produce one of my masses here.  Why?  From their being short?  No, everything is liked short.  From their church style?  By no means; but solely because now in Mannheim, under present circumstances, it is necessary to write chiefly for the instruments, for nothing can possibly be conceived worse than the voices here.  Six soprani, six alti, six tenori, and six bassi, to twenty violins and twelve bassi, are in the same proportion as 0 to 1.  Is it not