Definition of "pasticcio" [pas•tic•ci•o]

• A work or style produced by borrowing fragments, ingredients, or motifs from various sources; a potpourri. (noun)

American Heritage(R) Dictionary of the English Language, Fifth Edition. Copyright (c) 2011 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.

• "The term pasticcio (pastry, in Italian) was sometimes used pejoratively until the second half of the 18th century, when the genre gained respect."
• "Piecing together scores from hit numbers taken from various pre-existing sources was common practice in 18th-century opera The Beggar's Opera is one extant example of a genre known as pasticcio or pastiche, which survives today in the form of "jukebox" shows, and Sams makes no apology for resorting to it."
• "Mozart Piano Concerto No. 1 in F major (KV 37) was completed in April of 1767, when Mozart was 11 years old. This concerto is a "pasticcio" arrangement for piano and orchestra by Mozart and his dad, based on works by other composers."