Letter by Matthew Hardie 1799 to William Forbes of Callendar
This letter , written in 1799 and addressed to
William Forbes of Callendar, gives a fascinating insight in to
the life of the famous Edinburgh violin maker Matthew Hardie.
It is the first known confirmation , written in Hardie’s hand
that he trained as a “cabinet maker”, switching to “musical instrument maker”
around the year 1784. The letter shows Hardie’s confidence in his
own ability as a maker “my fiddles are inferior to none of the London made ones”
but that he had fallen on hard times and was unable to sustain his
business or his family without the patronage of a wealthy benefactor.
Up to this date Hardie had relied heavily, upon repair work supplied to
him by the Edinburgh Musical Society. The letter follows closely on from
the closure of the Society. It is indicative of the hardship Hardie suffered
through much of the rest of his life but shows his determination to continue
as a violin maker by using his wealthy connections to assist him. Further
appeals followed this and it is probable that Hardie, at that time wrote to
several wealthy individuals in search of funds. It isn’t known if Forbes replied.