Frederick the Great

Biography

Frederick the Great, King of Prussia, appears in the text as a notable patron of the harpsichord maker Burckhardt Tschudi (Burkat Shudi). Shudi presented him with one of his harpsichords as the defender of the Protestant faith after Frederick's victory at the Battle of Prague, receiving in return a ring bearing Frederick's portrait. In 1776 Frederick commanded two harpsichords built for the New Palais at Potsdam, and on another occasion ordered a harpsichord from Shudi at a cost of $1,000. The harpsichord Shudi built for Frederick was later played upon, in Shudi's London house, by the young Mozart, linking Frederick's patronage to one of the most celebrated instruments associated with the firm. Frederick the Great purchased seven of Gottfried Silbermann's Christofori-copy pianofortes at 700 thalers (about $500) apiece—a price Dolge notes was likely several times the instruments' actual cost.

Highlights

• Purchased seven Silbermann pianofortes at 700 thalers apiece
• Received a Shudi harpsichord as a gift after his victory at the Battle of Prague, given in recognition of him as defender of the Protestant faith, and gave Shudi a portrait ring in return
• Commanded two harpsichords built for the New Palais at Potsdam in 1776, and separately ordered another from Shudi at a cost of $1,000
• The harpsichord Tschudi built for him was later practiced upon by Mozart

Source

Alfred Dolge, Pianos and Their Makers, Vol. I (1911), p. 244.

Public domain.