The Sonatas for two cellos or for two violas and basso continuo, together with those published a few years earlier for cello and continuo, are considered an early contribution to the genre of the cello sonata, which developed at the beginning of the 18th century in Italy, then the centre of solo cello activity. Despite his later lack of interest in instrumental music, Marcello’s early activity was perfectly in line with the great innovative ferment of Venetian music outside the sphere of opera and sacred music.
