Skip to main content Skip to footer site map
S52E12: Now Hear This "Boccherini: Night Music" | Clip

Boccherini’s Love Letter to Madrid

SHARE

Boccherini’s love for Madrid inspired him to write “Musica notturna delle strade di Madrid.” Scott Yoo tries his hand at playing this famously difficult piece.

TRANSCRIPT

Boccherini had brough string music to Spain, invented his quintet forms and composed over 100 works.

But he was ye to write his most famous piece.

We met Yvonne again to hear how it happened.

Buccherini had moved to Madrid.

Been there for a decade.

And of course, he fell in love with the city.

At that time, he was in the service of Infante Don Luís, the king's younger brother.

The Prince married a commoner, and the king didn't like that and sent him away.

And of course, with him, the whole court.

Boccherini included.

So probably this is the way that Boccherini ended up living in a castle like thi beautiful one that we have here.

During that time, there were plenty of castles all around, especiall throughout the Sierra de Madrid.

So Boccherini missed Madrid so much, particularly the energy of the night time and the streets of Madrid.

And he immediately started to work on a new composition titled “Musica notturna delle strade di Madrid.” I think this is the piece I read that Boccherini said that this piece is absolutely useless for anyone living outside of Spain.

The performers won't know how to play it, and the audience will have no shot at understanding it.

And I think the reason for that is it's it's so Madrid, it's so specific.

There's so many inside jokes in the piece, it seems.

That's correct.

At that time, there were hundreds of manuscripts and copies completely unauthorized.

So the problem was that perhaps for him was quite surprising to be famous because of that kind of piece and not for 100 quintets or 100 quartets and a lot of symphonies that he wrote.

He went viral before that was even a thing.

So Boccherini wrote seven movements, which are intended to be from the sunsets to curfew.

So he added some very specific instructions in Italian about how that movements had to be played.

First one...

The Ava Maria bells sounded 30 minutes approximately after the sunset every day and it creates a very, very nice and very specific atmosphere.

Wow.

Can we try?

♪♪ Does that sound like bells?

Absolutely.

Bravo.

Then we have another instruction.

♪♪ Something like that.

Bravo, that's amazing.

And there's also one very funny indication Strum the strings as a guitar.

Yeah, but there's one important detail with your fingernails using that part of the hand.

Yes.

♪♪ ♪♪ ♪♪ ♪♪