The Cantata - Cantatas Cantata comes from the Italian word cantare, which means "to sing." In its early form, cantatas referred to a music piece that is meant to be sung. However, as with any musical form, the cantata has evolved through the years. Early cantatas were in the Italian language and were written in sacred (church cantata) or secular (chamber cantata) styles. 17th century composers for the cantata include Pietro Antonio Cesti, Giacomo Carissimi, Giovanni Legrenzi, Luigi Rossi, Alessandro Stradella, Mario Savioni and Alessandro Scarlatti; the most prominent composer of cantatas during that period. Before long, the cantata was making its way to Germany courtesy of Johann Hasse; one of Scarlatti's students. Johann Sebastian Bach is perhaps the most prominent composer of cantatas. Through the years, the cantata form has evolved and is no longer restricted to solo voice or voices; it now encompasses choruses and orchestras. The Structure of A Cantata
Cantata Historical context[edit] The term originated in the early 17th century simultaneously with opera and oratorio. Prior to that all "cultured" music was vocal. With the rise of instrumental music the term appeared, while the instrumental art became sufficiently developed to be embodied in sonatas. From the beginning of the 17th century until late in the 18th, the cantata for one or two solo voices with accompaniment of basso continuo (and perhaps a few solo instruments) was a principal form of Italian vocal chamber music.[2] A cantata consisted first of a declamatory narrative or scene in recitative, held together by a primitive aria repeated at intervals. Differences from other musical forms[edit] The Italian solo cantata tended, when on a large scale, to become indistinguishable from a scene in an opera, in the same way the church cantata, solo or choral, is indistinguishable from a small oratorio or portion of an oratorio. Baroque[edit] Classical and romantic period[edit] References[edit]