“How many concertos, symphonies and other pieces can we listen to today where we experience the majesty of the music, through noble passages full of dignity; but before we realize it, Hanswurst [the Harlequin of the “commedia dell’arte” in the German language] jumps into the middle, and with his jokes begs our indulgence, all the more so if the previous sentiment was of the most serious nature.”

Johann Adam Hiller, Wöchentliche Nachrichten und Anmerkungen die Musik betreffend, 1766-70