 While well-respected and called on as an expert in many matters, he seems to have been prone to outbursts of rage, some of which involved him in brawls.He also seems to have profited well from his activities as a musician and civic leader, and evidently lived in some luxury, having a house in town as well as a country estate.Hammerschmidt wrote motets, concertos and arias, and almost all of his output is sacred vocal music in the concertato style.