Ferdinando de' Medici, Grand Prince of Tuscany

An excellent musician himself (sometimes called "the Orpheus of princes"), he attracted top musicians to Florence and thus made it an important musical center. Through his patronage of Bartolomeo Cristofori, Ferdinando made possible the invention of the piano.

• Name — Ferdinando de' Medici • Title — Grand Prince of Tuscany • Spouse — Violante Beatrice of Bavaria • Full Name — Ferdinando de' Medici • House — Medici • Father — Cosimo III de' Medici, Grand Duke of Tuscany • Mother — Marguerite Louise d'Orléans • Born — 9 August 1663 • Birthplace — Palazzo Pitti, Florence, Tuscany • Died — 31 October 1713 • Place of death — Palazzo Pitti, Florence, Tuscany • Burial Place — Basilica of San Lorenzo, Florence

Ferdinando was born in the Palazzo Pitti to Cosimo III de' Medici and his wife Marguerite Louise d'Orléans, a granddaughter of Maria de' Medici. When Ferdinando's parents separated in 1675, his mother (who disdained her husband only slightly more than Florence did) returned to Paris, where she was supposed to be confined to a monastery in Montmartre. Ferdinando became a rebellious youth, who disagreed intensely with his father on every subject. He was placed under the care of his grandmother, Vittoria della Rovere. Ferdinando had a great affinity with his mother. He was a fine horseman, and a talented musician. He sang melodiously and played the harpsichord. He was a master in counterpoint, which he studied under Gianmaria Paliardi of Genoa, and in various bowed instruments, which he studied under Piero Salvetti. He was known for his ability to play a piece of music at sight and then repeat it flawlessly without looking at the music. Aside from music, Ferdinando's other principal delight was in intimate liaisons and affairs, often with men. These included Petrillo, a musician famous for his beauty, and Cecchino, a Venetian castrato. Ferdinando's uncle Francesco Maria de' Medici, only three years older, was a strong influence on his life. • Illustration — Anton Domenico Gabbiani, Prince Ferdinand and his musicians, 1685–90, Florence, Palatine Gallery of Palazzo Pitti In 1689 Ferdinando married Violante of Bavaria, the daughter of the elector of Bavaria Ferdinand and Adelaide of Savoy. Although she also liked music and loved Ferdinando, her feelings were not requited and the marriage was unhappy and barren. In 1696 Ferdinando sought recreation in Venice. He fell in love with a female vocalist called La Bambagia. It is presumed that during the Carnival of Venice, Ferdinando contracted syphilis. Vittoria Tarquini, called La Bombace, the wife of the concertmaster Jean-Baptiste Farinel became the mistress of Ferdinando. (She may have been a daughter of Robert Cambert and had an affair with Handel.) By 1710 his health had begun to fail, and the annual operatic productions at Pratolino under his aegis (see below) ceased. Ferdinando died in 1713, having fathered no children. His father continued to rule until 1723, and was succeeded on his death by Ferdinando's younger brother Gian Gastone, who likewise died childless. The lack of fecundity in the family ultimately led to a crisis: after Gian Gastone's death in 1737, the great powers of Europe reassigned the Grand Duchy to Francis, the husband of Maria Theresa, thus ending the independence of the Tuscan state.

Ferdinando's most permanent legacy was the result of his decision in 1688 to hire Bartolomeo Cristofori, a harpsichord builder from Padua, as his keeper of musical instruments. (Ferdinando's collection was a large one, with over 75 items). The Prince's support of Cristofori included the money and time Cristofori needed to pursue his interests as an inventor. Cristofori responded with a series of new instruments. The first two, the oval spinet (1690) and the spinettone, were probably intended for Ferdinando to play the continuo part in musical productions at Pratolino. The third instrument Cristofori invented for Ferdinando was the piano, which spread slowly at first (see Fortepiano) but ultimately became one of the most important of all musical instruments. The invention of the piano is believed to have occurred in about 1700; Cristofori built several more pianos for Ferdinando during the remainder of the Prince's lifetime.

• Illustration — Arms of the grand prince • Illustration — Grand Prince Ferdinando de Medici – Giovanni Battista Foggini (1683) Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York City • Illustration — Ferdinando II de' Medici, Grand Duke of Tuscany – Giovanni Battista Foggini (1690) National Gallery of Art, Washington, DC