Born in Offenbach am Main, André wrote operas, symphonies, masses, and lieder, as well as an unfinished Lehrbuch der Tonsetzkunst (Textbook of the Art of Composition) in two volumes. In 1799, André purchased a large volume of Mozart's musical papers (the Mozart-Nachlass) from the composer's widow Constanze, and brought them to Offenbach. This collection contained over 270 autographs and included the operas The Marriage of Figaro and The Magic Flute, a series of string quartets and string quintets, several piano concertos, and Eine kleine Nachtmusik.