Divertimento
Light multi-movement instrumental music for social occasions, no solemnity required
Related
A divertimento is multi-movement instrumental music written in the eighteenth century for court meals and outdoor gatherings, with flexible forces: strings, winds or a mixed small ensemble. Mozart left a great many, their movements short, their melodies bright, often with dances and marches.
It shares the movement plan of a symphony but carries a lighter tone: it seeks pleasure for an occasion rather than dramatic conflict. The blurred line between some Haydn and Mozart quartets and divertimenti shows that light and serious music had not yet separated.
Listen first for forces and occasion: chamber music for a string quartet, or an outdoor ensemble with winds and percussion. Do not bring the expectations of a symphony — the aim is to keep a stretch of time pleasant.
Sources
- 嬉游曲的宫廷社交功能与莫扎特作品，参 The New Grove Dictionary of Music and Musicians, "Divertimento"；本文为原创表述
Used for fact-checking only; all prose is original.