Luigi Boccherini (1743-1805) - Music Banter Music Banter

Go Back   Music Banter > The Music Forums > Classical
Register Blogging Search Today's Posts Mark Forums Read
Welcome to Music Banter Forum! Make sure to register - it's free and very quick! You have to register before you can post and participate in our discussions with over 70,000 other registered members. After you create your free account, you will be able to customize many options, you will have the full access to over 1,100,000 posts.

Reply
 
Thread Tools Display Modes
Old 07-22-2011, 07:24 PM   #1 (permalink)
Music Addict
 
Zaqarbal's Avatar
 
Join Date: Dec 2009
Location: Spain
Posts: 824
Default Luigi Boccherini (1743-1805)

Some time ago, Vegangelica and I agreed that Boccherini deserved to have his own thread. After a titanic struggle with my own inherent giant laziness, finally I've taken the first step. Better late than never.



My fellow townsman Luigi Boccherini (Lucca, Italy, 1743 — Madrid, Spain, 1805) is an important figure in Music history. He represents a bridge between Rococo and Classicism. Even if you have no idea who Boccherini is, you've probably heard some of his music sometime. For instance, Night Music of the Streets of Madrid. At least its 5th movement. Perhaps because of this:




Boccherini composed around 30 symphonies and one opera, but he especially excelled at chamber music. These two pieces are very famous: the minuet from String Quintet in E Major, Op.11 No.5, and the fandango from Quintet no.4 (G.448):



__________________
"Lullabies for adults / crossed by the years / carry the flower of disappointment / tattooed in their gloomy melodies."

Last edited by Zaqarbal; 07-23-2011 at 05:19 PM.
Zaqarbal is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 07-24-2011, 07:46 AM   #2 (permalink)
Facilitator
 
VEGANGELICA's Avatar
 
Join Date: Jun 2009
Location: Where people kill 30 million pigs per year
Posts: 2,014
Default

I enjoy Boccherini's spirited, lively music, which often feels fresh and full of life to me, as if he has condensed a zest for living into song. Here is what I wrote about him in an earlier post:

Quote:
Originally Posted by VEGANGELICA View Post
Luigi Boccherini - an Italian man who sounds passionate and full of fire, based on his music I've heard and this story from his life:

Quote:
Luigi Boccherini - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

In 1761 Boccherini went to Madrid, where he was employed by Infante Luis Antonio of Spain, younger brother of King Charles III. There he flourished under royal patronage, until one day when the King expressed his disapproval at a passage in a new trio, and ordered Boccherini to change it. The composer, no doubt irritated with this intrusion into his art, doubled the passage instead, leading to his immediate dismissal.
Hoping to expand my knowledge of his music, I just listened to the following song by Boccherini that I'd never heard before today:

Luigi Boccherini - Rondo for duo cello and piano



And below is more of the "Night Music of the Streets of Madrid," from which you already posted the most vibrant portion, Zaqarbal...but its animated gusto made me curious to hear the rest:

Luigi Boccherini, "Musica notturna delle strade di Madrid," Opus 30 No. 6 (G. 324)
From wiki: "The Night Music of the Streets of Madrid was published years after Boccherini’s death, because, he told his publisher: 'The piece is absolutely useless, even ridiculous, outside Spain, because the audience cannot hope to understand its significance, nor the performers to play it as it should be played.' " He was wrong: the piece isn't useless.



Sadly, this is how Boccherini's life ends: "Boccherini fell on hard times following the deaths of his Spanish patron, two wives, and two daughters, and he died almost in poverty in Madrid in 1805."

But his music lives on . . .

Luigi Boccherini, playing his cello, Circa 1764-1767, artist unknown:

__________________
Quote:
Originally Posted by Neapolitan:
If a chicken was smart enough to be able to speak English and run in a geometric pattern, then I think it should be smart enough to dial 911 (999) before getting the axe, and scream to the operator, "Something must be done! Something must be done!"

Last edited by VEGANGELICA; 07-24-2011 at 07:58 AM.
VEGANGELICA is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 07-24-2011, 02:08 PM   #3 (permalink)
Music Addict
 
Join Date: Dec 2010
Location: Sweden
Posts: 73
Default

There certainly is a great amount of music to listen to.
Only his quartets and quintets for strings are over 200.
BigSwede is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 07-28-2011, 07:05 PM   #4 (permalink)
Music Addict
 
Zaqarbal's Avatar
 
Join Date: Dec 2009
Location: Spain
Posts: 824
Default

Quote:
Originally Posted by VEGANGELICA View Post
Quote:
Luigi Boccherini - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

In 1761 Boccherini went to Madrid, where he was employed by Infante Luis Antonio of Spain, younger brother of King Charles III. There he flourished under royal patronage, until one day when the King expressed his disapproval at a passage in a new trio, and ordered Boccherini to change it. The composer, no doubt irritated with this intrusion into his art, doubled the passage instead, leading to his immediate dismissal.
Well, that seems to be apocryphal. It actually refers to violinist Alexandre Boucher (the story was told by a French writer named Henri Castil-Blaze). Anyway, I've read....



....another exemplary anecdote: one time, his French editor, Pleyel, insinuated to him that he should adapt his works in order to make them more commercial. And Boccherini replied:

Quote:
"I've been writing music for the past 40 years. And I wouldn't be Boccherini if I had done it the way you suggest me."
The guy had a strong personality, that's for sure.

Regarding his supposed death in poverty, as I said at the other thread: That's what was assumed until recently. A few years ago, one of his direct descendants studied his testament and other documents, and he came to the conclusion that Boccherini had a quite decent economic level at the end of his life.

By the way, I've followed in Boccherini's footsteps (be jealous ). Three houses in which he lived (obviously, buildings have been refurbished several times since then, but they're still in use) in Madrid: from 1785 to 1787 (left) and from 1787 to 1802 (right).



Next: house where he spent his last two years and finally died (left) and St. Michael's Basilica, where he was buried until Mussolini repatriated his remains to his native Lucca in 1927.



__________________
"Lullabies for adults / crossed by the years / carry the flower of disappointment / tattooed in their gloomy melodies."
Zaqarbal is offline   Reply With Quote
Reply

Thread Tools
Display Modes



© 2003-2024 Advameg, Inc.