kun-TAH´-tuh
(Italian, ‘sung’)
A cantata is a narrative piece of music, for one or more voices, usually sung to an instrumental accompaniment.
Cantatas, which can be sacred or secular, usually have several movements. These distinct sections may consist of
solos, duets, arias, recitatives, or choruses.
The cantata was a popular form in the 17th and 18th centuries,
during which period Johann Sebastian Bach (1685-
1750), considered the master of the form, composed two hundred
surviving sacred cantatas.