The Decline of the Cantata and Cultivation of the Cantatille

Abstract Some reasons for the decline of the cantata were suggested in the first chapter, where it was pointed out that as the Italian-inspired form arose partly as a reaction against Lully’s courtly and insular art, it was to be expected that when the warm enthusiasm for Italian music which flooded into France after his death had cooled a little, the cultivation of the cantata should somewhat abate. Lacking those balletic and choral elements so dear to French audiences, the form was almost bound to lose its popularity, especially when the tragédie-lyrique was infused with new life by Rameau in 1733. It is, indeed, from about this time onwards that a sharp decrease in the composition of relatively large-scale and dramatic cantatas is noticeable.