Boccherini: String Trios, Op. 34

Album review

It was probably his 91 string quartets, his 110 quintets with two cellos, his 12 quintets with two violas, 3 quintets for double bass and 6 string sextets composed from 1771 to 1795 that earned Boccherini his place in history. But the musician also experimented with other combinations, including twelve quintets with piano and no fewer than 42 string trios. It is these trios, much-overlooked by today's musicians and music lovers, which are brought together by the La Retirata ensemble, who use instruments and styles of play as they were in Boccherini's day. Specifically, the record covers two of the Op 35, written in 1781 and published the following year. In those days, Boccherini was a composer in the employ of the Infante Luis de Borbón, whom he had followed to a sort of retreat twenty-five leagues from Madrid (the Infante was having an affair with a lady of the lower nobility, which was impermissible at the Spanish court); he would stay there until 1785 when, one after the other, both the composer's wife and then the Infante died, whereupon he returned to Madrid.

The maturity of these works bears witness to the great instrumental art that Boccherini had developed over decades, his inexhaustible melodic inspiration, his harmonic daring and the inexpressible charm of his language, which defies classification. We note that the cello, far from being confined to bass parts, is often given a semi-concertante role, accompanied by two violins: a bravura piece of writing that demonstrates beyond all doubt that the composer was one of the greatest cellists of his time. The La Retirata ensemble, rather than restricting itself to standard versions (too often full of errors, approximations and inappropriate editorial additions), has preferred here to base itself on the oldest manuscripts available: an excellent initiative. © SM/Qobuz