An applicant to the position of organist at the Sophiekirchen in Dresden, Schaffrath was not appointed but Wilhelm Friedemann Bach was. He did serve in the court of the Crown Prince Frederick (Frederick the Great) as an harpsichordist in the orchestra. From 1741, however, he was strictly the musician to the king's sister, Amalia. As a composer Schaffrath limited himself to instrumental music including symphonies, keyboard pieces, sonatas and concertos. The harpsichord sonatas were almost all fast-slow-fast settings and the opening movements were most often scored in ABA form. Many of the keyboard compositions were simple two part formulations with the left hand playing the lesser role. Schaffrath's music can be considered transitional pieces, stylistically galant between the Baroque and the Classical, characteristically melodious comprised of short phrases utilizing triplets and steady rhythms. He composed counterpoint well as found in his orchestral music but most of his music lacked an expressive fervor. ~ Keith Johnson, Rovi