Catch

Catch, a species of musical composition peculiar to England, written generally in three or four parts, and in the canon form. It was originally synonymous with the Round (q.v.), but the name has been appropriated to a species of it to which an absurd or humorous effect is given by the successive entries of the parts, interrupting or distorting the sense of the words into a new and unexpected meaning. They abounded in the Restoration period, when, as may be surmised, they often had a more than questionable coarseness. Hayes, Webbe, and Calcott, towards the end of last century, were fertile composers in this form. The 'Catch Club' was founded in 1761.