ETYM Italian, from cantare to sing, from Latin cantare intens of canere to sing.
A musical setting for a religious text; SYN. oratorio.
In music, an extended work for voices, from the Italian, meaning “sung”, as opposed to sonata (“sounded”) for instruments. A cantata can be sacred or secular, sometimes uses solo voices, and usually has orchestral accompaniment. The first printed collection of sacred cantata texts dates from 1670.