Boccherini: Cello Concertos, Sonatas & Quintets Steven Isserlis & Orchestra of the Age of Enlightenment

• Luigi Boccherini (1743 - 1805): Cello Concerto No. 6 in D Major, G. 479:
• 1 Boccherini: Cello Concerto No. 6 in D Major, G. 479: I. Allegro 07:57
• 2 Boccherini: Cello Concerto No. 6 in D Major, G. 479: II. Adagio 05:14
• 3 Boccherini: Cello Concerto No. 6 in D Major, G. 479: III. Allegro 05:27
• Cello Sonata in C Minor, G. 2:
• 4 Boccherini: Cello Sonata in C Minor, G. 2: I. Allegro 03:47
• 5 Boccherini: Cello Sonata in C Minor, G. 2: II. Largo 03:26
• 6 Boccherini: Cello Sonata in C Minor, G. 2: III. Allegretto 01:51
• String Quintet in D Minor, G. 280:
• 7 Boccherini: String Quintet in D Minor, G. 280: I. Allegro 09:22
• 8 Boccherini: String Quintet in D Minor, G. 280: II. Andante sostenuto 06:31
• 9 Boccherini: String Quintet in D Minor, G. 280: III. Fuga. Allegro giusto 04:08
• Cello Sonata in F Major, G. 9:
• 10 Boccherini: Cello Sonata in F Major, G. 9: I. Andantino 05:25
• 11 Boccherini: Cello Sonata in F Major, G. 9: II. Adagio assai 02:44
• 12 Boccherini: Cello Sonata in F Major, G. 9: III. Tempo di minuetto amoroso 03:26
• Cello Concerto No. 2 in A Major, G. 475 "The Frog":
• 13 Boccherini: Cello Concerto No. 2 in A Major, G. 475 "The Frog": I. Allegro 05:16
• 14 Boccherini: Cello Concerto No. 2 in A Major, G. 475 "The Frog": II. Adagio 03:59
• 15 Boccherini: Cello Concerto No. 2 in A Major, G. 475 "The Frog": III. Rondo. Allegro 04:12
• String Quintet in E Major, Op. 11/5, G. 275:
• 16 Boccherini: String Quintet in E Major, Op. 11/5, G. 275: III. Minuetto – Trio – Minuetto da capo 03:33
• Total Runtime 01:16:18

Info for Boccherini: Cello Concertos, Sonatas & Quintets

‘Has there ever been a composer of more consistent elegance?’ If Steven Isserlis’s rhetorical question invites the listener to think of plausible alternatives, on the evidence of this wonderful album—an imaginative selection of Boccherini’s cello concertos and cello-centric chamber music—they are most unlikely to succeed. This is truly ‘music of the angels’, with performances to match.

Luigi Boccherini—is it just association, or does the name itself emanate a sense of magical refinement? Whichever, the music certainly conveys that impression, to an extraordinary extent; has there ever been a composer of more consistent elegance? No matter how impassioned the mood, how martial and dramatic, or how tender, Boccherini’s art is always attired in sumptuous clothing, radiating grace. Unlike his near-contemporary Joseph Haydn, Boccherini rarely seeks to shock; he prefers instead to create for his players and listeners a sphere of ideal beauty, of sophisticated sentiments—and in that he succeeded like no other. Compared to both Mozart and Haydn, he may seem somewhat innocent, almost naive; but that is a misleading impression—he is merely different. They, pursuing much of their careers at the centre of musical life in Vienna, were of this world; Boccherini, who spent more than half of his life in far-off Spain, inhabited his own, idyllic realm of the senses. In the well-known words of the French publication quoted above: ‘If God wanted to speak to man through music, he would do so through the works of Haydn; if, however, he wished to listen to music himself, he would choose the works of Boccherini.’

It is perhaps in part because of his unworldliness that Boccherini’s reputation has never really matched his achievements—even now. It is true that he has always had his fans (including, interestingly, Chopin, whose use of sonata form noticeably resembles that of Boccherini); but until surprisingly recently, the only two Boccherini works that were heard regularly in the concert hall are the ‘Minuet in F’ (actually in A, from a quintet in E), played in various arrangements, and his cello concerto in B flat—in a (for me, anyway) ghastly Victorian version that bears very little resemblance to Boccherini’s original. It is fair to say, in fact, that it is only within the last fifty years or so that any of his approximately 600 works have been heard in versions that he would have recognized—and then all too rarely. Hard to believe, but true. Even today, it can be difficult to find faithful editions of his music; but at least there are such editions now available. And what treasures have been rediscovered! ....

Steven Isserlis, cello
Maggie Cole, harpsichord
Luise Buchberger, cello
Irène Duval, violine
Jonian Ilias Kadesha, violine
Eivind Ringstad, viola
Tim Posner, cello
Orchestra of the Age of Enlightenment

Steven Isserlis
Acclaimed worldwide for his profound musicianship and technical mastery, British cellist Steven Isserlis enjoys a uniquely varied career as a soloist, chamber musician, educator, author and broadcaster. He appears with the world’s leading orchestras and conductors, and gives recitals in major musical centres. As a chamber musician he has curated concert series for prestigious venues, including London’s Wigmore Hall, New York’s 92nd St Y, and the Salzburg Festival. Unusually, he also directs chamber orchestras from the cello in classical programmes.

He has a strong interest in historical performance, working with a number of period-instrument orchestras and giving recitals with harpsichord and fortepiano. A keen exponent of contemporary music, he has given premieres of Sir John Tavener’s The protecting veil, Thomas Adès’s Lieux retrouvés, three solo cello pieces by György Kurtág, and works by Heinz Holliger and Jörg Widmann.

Steven’s wide-ranging discography includes J S Bach’s complete solo cello suites (Gramophone’s Instrumental Album of the Year), Beethoven’s complete works for cello and piano, concertos by C P E Bach and Haydn, the Elgar and Walton concertos, and the Brahms double concerto with Joshua Bell and the Academy of St Martin in the Fields.

Since 1997 Steven has been Artistic Director of the International Musicians Seminar at Prussia Cove, Cornwall. He enjoys playing for children, and has created three musical stories with the composer Anne Dudley. His two books for children, published by Faber & Faber, have been translated into many languages. His latest books are a commentary on Schumann’s Advice for Young Musicians, and a companion to the Bach suites, published to great acclaim in 2021. He has devised and written two evenings of words and music—one describing the last years of Robert Schumann, the other devoted to Marcel Proust and his salons. Steven has presented numerous radio programmes, including documentaries about two of his heroes: Robert Schumann and Harpo Marx.

Steven’s honours and awards include a CBE for services to music, the Schumann Prize of the City of Zwickau, the Piatigorsky Prize and Maestro Foundation Genius Grant in the US, the Glashütte Award in Germany, the Gold Medal awarded by the Armenian Ministry of Culture, and the Wigmore Medal.

Steven plays the ‘Marquis de Corberon’ Stradivarius of 1726, on loan from the Royal Academy of Music.

The Orchestra of the Age of Enlightenment
makes old music new. Far from being an attempt to recreate the past, it instead uses historic information to create something that’s exciting now.

Founded in 1986, the orchestra’s name refers to the common term for the explosion of science, philosophy and culture in Western Europe during the 1600s and 1700s, the Age of Enlightenment. It was the time of Isaac Newton and Voltaire, and a quest for liberty. The period also found its voice in music as composers sought more freedom in the way they worked to promote their (often socially subversive) ideas.

In performance, the OAE is a collective that’s about collaboration between brilliant musicians. As the orchestra isn’t led by any one conductor, it gives players the artistic freedom to collectively take on that role. And they do so playing instruments and using techniques from the period in which the music was written. So if they’re performing Bach they do so on the instruments that would have been familiar to the conductor himself.

Booklet for Boccherini: Cello Concertos, Sonatas & Quintets