Luigi Boccherini

Boccherini's string quartets occupy a central position in his extensive oeuvre, and next to Haydn he is certainly the most important composer of this still new genre in the 18th century. Exceptional listening experiences and light music at the highest level in exciting interpretations! D.Steppuhn in FonoForum 9/94: "Welcome repertoire enrichment in exemplary performance." Fanfare 11/94: "These are quartets that deserve a place alongside those of the three great names in classical music." Fanfare (USA) 4/92:" cpo has recorded the quartet's fresh sonority in perfect sound. Special praise goes to the 14-page text (in English, with another 14 pages in German), with highly informative biographical and musicological information. At last the course of Boccherini's life becomes comprehensible, his importance adequately assessable." Gramophone Critics Choice 12/95: "Outstanding release."

Though Luigi Boccherini composed some 30 sonatas that we know of for his primary instrument, the cello, only six were actually published during his lifetime; still fewer are performed now with any great frequency. As a performing virtuoso, many of Boccherini's compositions for cello would certainly have been for his own use and as such place high demands on the performer; the mass appeal of chamber music for people to play at home, however, ensured that not all of his sonatas (or concertos, for that matter) are primarily technical in nature. This Alba disc features five sonatas including the very popular Sonata in A major, G4, and the B flat major Sonata, which listeners will in part recognize as the doppelgänger of the famous concerto in the same key.

The most comprehensive collection of music by Luigi Boccherini ever issued, 52 CDs brimming with charm, elegance, wit and catching melodies!

The most comprehensive collection of music by Luigi Boccherini ever issued, 52 CDs brimming with charm, elegance, wit and catching melodies!

This recording follows a first collaboration between Zig-Zag Territoires and Marco Ceccato (Vivaldi sonatas), widely hailed by the press. It is devoted to two important aspects of Luigi Bocherini’s work: chamber music and the cello, of which he was a great virtuoso. The two quintets and the divertimento feature the combination of the string quartet – of which Boccherini was, in a way, the co-founder with Haydn – sometimes with the guitar, sometimes with the flute having place of honour, and always with a delightful use of those instruments’ sound capabilities. And, of course, the cello is then to the fore in the Concerto in G major, a summary of virtuosity and lyricism.

Boccherini wrote two versions of his much admired Stabat mater. The original dates from 1781 and is for solo voice; then, 20 years later, he revised it, on a larger scale, using three voices, in order (he said) to avoid the monotony of the single voice and the fatigue to the singer, and also adding a symphony movement to it. This 1801 version was published during his lifetime and in several later editions and seems to have eclipsed the earlier one altogether (which survives only in the autograph manuscript). Yet on hearing this new recording of the original I feel that it conveys the message of the work much more potently than does the more elaborate later version.

The ensemble L`Archibudelli and the cellist Anner Bylsma, together with the wonderful soprano Roberta Invernizzi, have once again recorded the exceptionally well-rehearsed Mass by Luigi Boccherini in a fantastic recording. Despite minimal use without choir and winds, the listener is captivated by the drama of each movement. Rberta Invernizzi brings out in a clear and fine voice every single twist of this interesting work and the string ensemble shines with powerful, gripping sound and wonderful slow movements. The Stabat Mater is supplemented by the String Quintet op. 42.

On this recording of Boccherini’s Arie da Concerto, the Belgian ensemble Capriola di Gioia defies the stubborn stereotyping of Boccherini as the gallant master of unsurpassable but insignificant melodies. Close listening to this marvellous music reveals a genius with a profound understanding of human psychology, and a rich harmonic palette to paint the smallest affective nuances. In these arias, Boccherini is rehabilitated as a true heir of Händel, a worthy contemporary to Haydn, and an early precursor of the belcanto of Bellini.

Il s'agit d'œuvres relativement précoces, composées avant son installation à Madrid alors qu'il était encore un musicien itinérant. Le jeune Boccherini a probablement joué ces concertos à Vienne et durant ses tournées de concerts à travers l'Europe jusqu'à son séjour à Paris en 1767–68. La critique parisienne fut peu favorable — un journaliste a rapporté son jeu comme « Aigre» et qu'il était peu applaudi — mais cela était probablement plus dû au fait que son public était peu habitué à entendre le violoncelle comme instrument soliste qu'à une quelconque lacune technique de sa part. Boccherini a été un pionnier dans l'émancipation du violoncelle du carcan de la basse continue.

This disc offers very enjoyable selection of Boccherini. The two symphonies are late works, the D major a single-movement piece of the Italian overture type, with a slow movement embedded, the C minor his most 'symphonic' work in the Viennese-classical sense of the term. Jeanne Lamon directs lively performances with this excellent Canadian group. The D major she takes rather quickly, producing that sense of tension that arises when music is pushed a little beyond its natural pace; but the effect is energetic and inspiriting (and it is marked con molto spirito). The Andantino is more relaxed, its colours happily realized.