DICTIONARY OF MUSIC - El Atril

106 FREDERICK FREE REED
' ' Susanna ; she sang in ' ' Theodora
in 1750, in
'Jeplitlia' In 1752, in 'Joshua' at Oxford in
1756, and in the ' Triumph of Time and Trutli
in 1757. She did not, meanwhile, sever her
connection with the stage, but appeared in 1750
in Cianipi's ' Adriano in Siria' and Pergolesi's
' Serva Pailrona. ' In
1 755 Frasi was called upon,
in conse(juence of the imlisposition of Mingotti,
to perform her part in Jommelli's ' Andromaca,'
as she had been twice in ' Riccimero, ' the jjreceding
season. Smith's ' ' Fairies in this year owed
its success principally to Guadagni and Frasi.
At her house Dr. Burney at that time ' attended
her as her master.' In 1758 she appeared in
' Issipile '
by G. Cocchi. She sang also in the
City at both the Swan and Castle concerts.
Dr. Burney relates, that ' when Frasi told him
[Handel], that she should study hard, and was
going to learn Thorough-Base, in order to accompany
herself: Handel, who well knew how
little tills pleasing singer was addicted to application
and diligence, said, "Oh—vaat may ve
not e.xpect " '
! There is a portrait of Frasi, in
mezzotint (folio), in which she is turned to the
left, singing from a sheet of music held in both
hands, on which is engraved a song beginning
with the words ' Voi amaute che vedete.' It has
neither name nor date, and is very rare. .J. M.
FREDERICK the Great (Friedrich II.),
King of Prussia, a distinguished amateur, born
at Berlin, .Jan. 24, 1712, died at Sans-Souci
near Potsdam, Aug. 17, 1786. He pjassionately
admired German music while detesting that of
Italy and especially of France, which was the
more remarkable from his well-known love of
French literature. He said on one occasion, ' la
musiqne fran^aise ne vaut rien. ' His first musi-
cal instructor when Crown Prince was (5ottlob
Hayn, the Cathedral organist, for whom he
always retained a regard, and who presented
him with a composition every year on his birthday.
In 1728 he began to learn the flute from
Quantz, who was a strict master, while Frederick
was a docile pupil, [(^uantz.] He was afterwards,
however, compelled to study in secret,
as his father, Frederick William I., considered
music an effeminate pastime, and declined to
allow him instructors or musicians of any kind.
He was therefore driven to engage musical
servants, and often played duets with his valet
Fredersdorf, until he was able in 1734 to have
a private band at his own castle of Reinsliurg.
On his accession to the throne in 1740 he established
a court band at Berlin, and sent Graun
to Italy to engage singers. [Graun.] He also
had designs made for a new opera-house, which
was opened Dec. 7, 1742. An amusing account
of his dilficulties with Barberina the ballet dancer
will be found in Carlyle (Bk. xiv. chap. 8).
His expenditure on music was lavish, though it
has been exaggerated. Quantz's salary amounted
to 2000 thalers, besides 25 ducats for each of his
compositions for flute solo, and 100 ducats for
every flute he made for the king. According
to Reichardt, Frederick practised perseveringly,
playing the flute four times a day. It is in
one of these eager practisings that Gerome has
represented him in an admirable picture. Quantz
died in 1773 while composing his 300th concerto
for the king, who comi)leted the work. Frederick's
execution of an Adagio is said by Fasch
[see Zelter's biography of Fasch] to have been
masterly, but in quick movements he betrayed
a want of practice, and in matter of time his
playing was so impulsive and irregular, that to
accompany him was an art in itself. In later
years he again took up the clavier, not having
sufficient breath, it is stated, for the flute. He
invited Sebastian Bach to Potsdam, and the visit,
of which Forkel gives an account, and the result
of wdiich was Bach's Miisikalisches Oj)fer, took
place on May ^ 7 , 1 7 4 7. He particularly admired
Silbermann's pianofortes, and bought all he
could hear of. He was also a composer. The
Hohenfriedberg March was nominally by him,
as well as a march inserted in Lessing's jjlay,
'Minna von Barnhelm.' He .also composed a
'Sinfonia' for 'Galatea ed Acide' and portions
of an opera ' II Re pastore '
; an Aria for ' II
trionfo della fedelta ' ; another for Graun's
' Coriolano ' (of which he wrote the libretto)
and added fioritnre for Hubert the singer to
an air in Hasse's 'Cleofile.' In 1835 a search
was instituted by King Frederick William III.,
and 120 pieces composed by Frederick the
Great were found ;
these were edited by Spitta,
and pnljlished in 1889 by Breitkopf uml Hartel.
He had an eye to the improvement of the singing
in the public schools, and an official decree
of his, dated Oct. 18, 1746, contains the follow-
' ing passage ; Having received many complaints
of the decline in the art of singing, and the
neglect of it in our gynmasiums and schools, His
Majesty commands that the young people in all
publicschools and gymnasiums shall be exercised
more ililigently therein, and to that end shall
have singing-lessons tliree times a week'—a command
which has doubtless materially contributed
to the prevalence of music in Germany. (See
Friedrich d. 0. cds Kenner nnd Dili;(lant . . ,
by C. F. Muller, Potsdam, 1847. [W. Kothe's
Friedrich der Grosse cds M}isilrr, etc. (Leipzig,
1869), Spitta's essay on the edited \\'orks, and
G. Thouret's Frieclrichs des Grossen Verhdliniss
zur Musik (1895). See list of compositions in
the Qitel]rn-Le:cikon.)'\ F. G.
FREE REED. Organ stops of the Free-reed
class are more frequently made by continental
than by English artists. The sonnd-jirodncing
part of a pipe of this species is formed thus :—
surface of metal or wood has a vertical opening
made through it as a passage for the wind :
in
front of this a strip or tongue of metal—in some
^ [See Spitta's J. S. Barh, Kncl. tr., iii. 2.'tl, .19 correcting the dwte
April, given in the first efliti