The Ode for St. Cecilia's Day is a Cantata (i.e. a vocal composition with an instrumental accompaniment and a choir), this work is on a smaller scale than the Oratorio and derives from the italian "cantata da camera"(Secular cantata or Ode) and "Cantata da Chiesa" (for one solo voice, duets and trios. Note that J.S. Bach larger cantatas are simply called oratorios, and it is also the case for G.F.Haendel.
Ode for St. Cecilia's Day (HWV 76) was written in 1739, and the premiere was on 22th Nov. 1739 at the Theatre in Lincoln's Inn Fields, London.it is the setting of a poem from John Dryden (1631-1700). The central idea of the work is contained in the first solo: "From Harmony, from heavenly Harmony,This universal frame began." And then the second idea: Music arouses noble passions: "What passion cannot raise and quell?".
