Luigi Boccherini's life and works are a testament to the rich musical heritage of 18th-century Italy. Born in 1743 in Lucca, a small city in the Tuscan region, Boccherini was the eldest of seven children in a musical family.

He began his musical training at the age of six, and by the time he was ten, he was already playing the cello and composing his own music. In 1752, he moved to Naples to continue his studies, where he was exposed to the works of Domenico Scarlatti and other prominent composers.