One of the aspect of researching for my blogs that I really enjoy is the way that one piece of information leads to another, and a whole new world of possibilities opens up before my eyes. On Monday, for example, I was searching for information onLa Tempesta when I came across a song by Angelo Branduardi of the same name. I wasn’t crazy about the song itself, but the attractive melody seemed somehow familiar. A bit more digging revealed that it was originally penned in 1780 by the Lucchese composer Luigi Boccherini under the title Passa Calle, as part of the suite Musica Notturna delle Strade di Madrid.

Statue of Luigi Boccherini playing his Violoncello (cello) outside the Conservatorio Luigi Boccherini in Lucca.

So what was an 18th century composer from Lucca doing writing music about the streets of Madrid? Boccherini was born in Lucca, Tuscany, in 1743, and his father, a cellist and double bass player, sent him to study music in Rome at an early age. Later, both father and son would travel to Vienna where they were employed as court musicians at the Burgtheatre. From there, Boccherini junior moved on to Madrid, Spain, where he worked for Infante Luis Antonio, younger brother of King Charles III.

Back in those days, of course, options for making a living as an artist or musician were pretty limited, and if you didn’t want to starve it was important to find a rich patron. Very often, the only thing that those rich patrons required of their composers was ‘musical wallpaper’, and vast amounts of tedious repetitive music was churned out by some incredibly talented composers just to keep the boss happy.

It must have been tough for a composer as talented as Boccherini, and when one day the king complained about a passage in a new trio, ordering Boccherini to change it, the composer carried out the king’s orders by doubling the passage in length, and immediately getting the sack … way to go Luigi! Boccherini then accompanied Don Luis to a little town in the Gredos mountains called Arenas de San Pedro, and it was there and in the nearby town of Candeleda that he wrote many of his most beautiful pieces.

Now, everyone must surely know at least one piece by Boccherini, and it’s probably this one, played here in a version unlike anything you’ve ever heard: The Trio Elinte play Boccherini’s Minuet. But it’s also highly likely that you’ve heard Passa Calle without even knowing it, as it featured prominently in the film Master and Commander, starring Russell Crow (see video clip below).

And here’s a lovely version of the entire suite which I highly recommend you listen to: La Musica Notturna delle Strade di Madrid.

Flamenco dancer. Photo (CC) by Flavio~

Finally, the missing link, the song that led me from Monday morning’s dramatic tempest to Boccherini’s little masterpiece: La Tempesta by Angelo Branduardi. Not really my ‘cup of tea’ as I’m not a fan of modern pop versions of classical music, but interesting none the less.