Did Boccherini ever write a piece of music that was less than delightful? If he did, it wasn’t a cello sonata–at least on the evidence of this disc. We don’t know for sure how many of these sonatas he wrote: Gérard, Boccherini’s Köchel, listed 34, and more recent discoveries bring the total to 42. In this second volume of what presumably will be a complete set, Michal Kaňka, the cellist of the renowned Pražák Quartet, plays six, and he plays them beautifully, with a warm, singing tone and an elegance that bespeaks Boccherini’s galant style. This isn’t the deepest music you’ll ever hear for cello, but it is endlessly varied and chock-full of lovely melodies. Perhaps it’s best taken a couple of sonatas at a time; you don’t want to overdose on sweets. Kaňka plays a modern instrument in the modern style though not with excessive warmth or Romantic swoonings. But if you absolutely must have supposedly authentic period performance practice, you’re out of luck here. What you do get is a set of affectionate performances, with sprightly rhythms and technical finesse, surely enough to satisfy all but zealots.
Kaňka is successful too in conveying the huge variety Boccherini found within the limits of the style of his period, his patrons’ preferences, and his own inclinations. In a Sony Vivarte CD that only overlaps one of the sonatas (G.15), Anner Bylsma plays with a light touch and energetic rhythms so period fans have a place to go, even if it’s a chillier zone. Kaňka is joined by harpsichordist Jaroslav Tûma and second cellist Petr Hejný, both of whom provide fine support. The music goes down smoothly, with the occasional mournful note to break the placid surface. The G major (G.5) begins with a charming march, the first movement of the A major (G.4) is a tuneful pleasure, the Largo of G.13 is a mournfully elegant lament, the sprightly Minuetto of G.18 is like a remembrance of a ghostly dance, and so it goes, on and on, with precious delights tripping over each other, movement by movement.
