Leopold Mozart's Madame Wynne: Look to the lady

Musical Times, Spring 2001 by Jenkins, John S

JOHN S. JENKINS traces the shadowy career of a versatile eighteenth-century harpsichordist turned singer

ON 14 September 1768 Leopold Mozart wrote from Vienna to his friend Lorenz Hagenauer giving him information about a certain Madame Wynne who had recently been performing in a concert in Salzburg. The importance of this letter is that it brings to our attention a little remembered eighteenth-century musical prodigy, whom Charles Burney called the best harpsichordist ever to be heard in London1, and it links her more clearly than any other source to that extraordinary London-Venetian family, the Wynnes.

Leopold Mozart writes:2

I know Countess von Rosenberg and her sisterin-law [Madame Wynne]. The Countess does not belong to the most select aristocracy, for she is the sister of a wealthy gentleman of private means, a Mr Wynne, a London acquaintance of mine, whose name I will show you on my list. The brother of this Mr Wynne fell in love with a German lady, Cronemann by name, the same who has been singing at Salzburg. Her father was a musician in Holland, and her father's brother with several sons is still in Amsterdam. One son is a musician in the service of Prince Conti in Paris and came to see us with Schobert.3 The mother of this singer attached herself to an Italian Kapellmeister, Paradies, who after the death of her husband, took entire charge of the children. When I was in London he married off this one to Mr Wynne and another to Signor Paulo Mazingi [sic], a London violinist.4

Pietro Domenico Paradies (1707-91) had arrived in London from Venice in 1746. A composer of operas and keyboard music, he quickly established himself as a teacher, and under his guidance the little daughter of Frau Cronemann became a musical prodigy. She is first recorded as playing on the harpsichord `several lessons by Scarlatti and other great masters and also a concerto of Mr Handel's' at the New Theatre, Haymarket, on 10 April 1749, when her age is stated to be five-and-a-half years. She had by this time assumed the name of Cassandra Frederick and was living in Soho with her widowed mother. The notice in the General Advertiser states that tickets could be obtained from Mrs Frederick in Wardour Street, Soho, near Meard's Court. Frau Cronemann may have taken the name Frederick from her late husband's family first name of Friedrich; she was possibly the Mrs Frederica who, according to the General Advertiser, sang for her benefit performance in the pasticio opera L'incostanza delusa at the New Theatre, Haymarket, on 6 April 1745.

On 29 March 1750 her daughter, Cassandra Frederick, still described as a scholar of Mr Paradies, had a benefit concert at Hickford's room, Brewer Street, at which she played `several lessons of Scarlatti and other great masters, also two concertos of Mr Handel's'. She seems to have come to the attention of Handel at this time because a letter dated 14 April 1750 from the Earl of Chesterfield to his godson Solomon Dayrolles at The Hague appears to refer to her when the Earl states 'I could not refuse this recommendation of a virtuoso to a virtuoso. This girl is a real prodigy ... Even the great Handel has designed to recommend her.'5

The following year she travelled to Bristol where, according to the Bristol Weekly Intelligencer, on 29 November 1751, there was a benefit concert of vocal and instrumental music for Miss Cassandra Frederica, 'a child of eight years of age' at the Assembly-Room, St Augustine'sBack, in which she performed on the harpsichord 'a Concerto of Mr Rameau, the first Concerto of Mr Handell, and several Lessons from the Great Masters'. The notice stated that the vocal parts were performed by 'Seigniora Frederica', which seems to indicate that her mother also took part.

We next hear of Cassandra Frederick, not as a keyboard player, but now as a soprano herself. On 31 December 1757 the Earl of Shaftesbury wrote 'l saw Mr Handel the other day, who is pretty well and has just finished the composing of several new songs for Frederica his new singer, from whom he has great expectations. She is the girl who was celebrated a few years since for playing on the harpsichord at eight years old'.6 She made her first appearance as a singer for Handel at the opening of the oratorio season on 10 February 1758 at Covent Garden in The triumph of time and truth and for whom the composer had added the five new arias. However, Mrs Delany, who attended Cassandra's debut, said `the performers are the same as last year only there is a new woman instead of Passarini who is so frightened that I cannot say whether she sings well or ill'.7 This was followed on 22 February by the role of Daniel in the oratorio Belshazzar. She had now become a regular member of Handel's cast of singers because a week later she took the part of Storge in Jephtha also at Covent Garden, and the following day there is an entry in the diary of John Baker, a barrister in Middle Temple, which states that she was at Handel's house in Brook Street rehearsing with John Beard, Giulia Frasi and Isabella Young in the oratorio Judas Maccabeus.8 On 27 April she sang in the annual performance of Messiah at Handel's favourite charity The Foundling Hospital for which, according to a financial statement issued by the Hospital, she was paid four guineas.9 The more famous Giulia Frasi received six guineas but John Beard took no fee.