cassation
An 18th-century multi-movement work for outdoor performance, similar to a serenade or divertimento
In Depth
The cassation was a light orchestral or chamber work designed for open-air entertainment, processions, or casual social events. The term may derive from the German Gasse (street) or from the Latin cassare (to dismiss), possibly because the final movement served as a farewell. Mozart wrote several cassations in his youth, and the form shares many characteristics with the divertimento and serenade. The genre did not survive the Classical period.
The distinction between cassation, divertimento, and serenade in 18th-century Salzburg was so blurred that even Mozart used the terms somewhat interchangeably.