229. Oldies, But Goodies

Work for string quartet by Boccherini performed by Musicians from Ravinia's Steans Institute on May 3, 2015 and work for solo piano by Bach performed by Jean-Frédéric Neuburger on April 2, 2008.Luigi Boccherini: String Quintet in E MajorJ.S. Bach: Italian Concerto in F MajorWhat is the single most famous piece of chamber music from the Baroque era? It’s hard to argue that the prize goes to the first work on this podcast, Boccherini’s String Quintet in E Major, Op. 11, No. 5, particularly the third-movement minuet. With its flirtatious turns and lilting, syncopated arpeggios, you will recognize the tune the moment it begins. The quintet comes to a close with a rondo that gives each player a moment in the sun. We’ll hear it all performed by musicians from the Ravinia Festival’s Steans Music Institute. Then, we have an arguably more famous composer, with an arguably less famous piece: Bach’s Italian Concerto in F Major, played on piano by Jean-Frédéric Neuburger. This piece is curious animal: a concerto for solo piano, without any orchestra or other ensemble. In a way, it is a concerto for a pianist and himself—at times, the music conjures the heft of a full ensemble, with richly voiced chords, while at others it clearly takes a more soloistic tack, with elaborate counterpoint.