Best in Class Trivia Quiz

Answer: Violin

Yehudi Menuhin (1916-1999) was born in New York to a Russian Jewish family and is considered one of the greatest violin virtuosi of the 20th century. He was a child prodigy; at the age of seven he made his first public presentation. He played on several continents, with partners from different musical genres. He was concerned with the organization of orchestras and festivals and with the training of young artists. In 1996 he made his last appearance as a soloist but continued his career as a conductor, which began in the 1960s.

In his long career Menuhin used famous violins. One of the valuable violins he played was manufactured in 1742 by the Italian luthier Giuseppe Antonio Guarneri. This violin, known as "The Lord Wilton Guarnerius" or "Guarneri del Gesú", was sold after Menuhin's death for US$ 6 million, the highest price paid for a violin to that date.

Answer: Drums

Eugene Bertram Krupa (1909-1973), known as Gene Krupa, was an American jazz drummer, band leader, known for his vibrant style and showmanship. Many of his performances, for example in "Sing, Sing, Sing" (1937) showed that the drummer can be an important solo in the band and not only an accompanist.

Krupa's collaboration with Slingerland drum and Zildjian cymbal manufacturers was fundamental in defining the standard band drummer's kit. "Modern Drummer", the magazine, which focuses on drummers and percussionists, in an article published in 2017, considered Gene Krupa the "founding father of the modern drumset".

Answer: Saxophone

Stanley Gayetsky (1927-1991), known as Stan Getz, and nicknamed "The Sound", was primarily an excellent tenor saxophone player. As a child he played several instruments; when he was 13 years old he got a saxophone and fell in love with it. During his life, his tenor saxophone of choice was the Selmer Mark VI.

He played with countless groups and bands. He became popular playing cool jazz, bebop and bossa nova. Stan Getz was fundamental to the introduction of bossa nova, a different samba style, in North America and with bossa nova he won many awards.

Answer: Cello

Yo-Yo Ma (1955) comes from a Chinese family with a strong musical inclination, was born in France and educated in the United States. He was a child prodigy and since he was very young played several instruments, but at the age of four he settled on the cello and began performing before audiences at age of five.

Yo-Yo Ma has an eclectic repertoire; in addition to classical music he has numerous recordings from various genres. He has performed with the best orchestras in the world, played chamber music and participated in several film tracks. Yo-Yo Ma used to play a Venetian 17th century Montagnana cello and the Davidoff Stradivarius.

Answer: Guitar

American Johnny Allen Hendrix (1942-1970), known as Jimi Hendrix, was a famous guitarist, singer and songwriter. Hendrix had a unique style, which according to some critics was due to his left-handedness. He used several types of guitars, but his favorite one was the Fender Stratocaster or "Strat". Actually, he contributed to making this guitar the best-selling electric guitar in history.

He became a legend, as did Janis Joplin and Jim Morrison; they also had a meteoric career and died very young.

Although he died more than five decades ago, he ranks first on the lists of the best guitarists until this day.

Answer: Flute

Geoffrey Winzer Gilbert (1914-1989) was born in England and had an early musical education; at 19 he became the principal flutist of the London Philharmonic Orchestra. At that time, British flute players used the traditional wooden flute. However, Gilbert realized that French flute players, who played metal flutes, produced the far wider tone-color range. Encouraged by French musicians and studying with them, he bought a Louis Lot silver flute and adapted his way of playing to the new instrument which has a more flexible and vibrant sound.

His influence on British flute players was immense and wooden flutes were quickly replaced by metal ones.

Answer: Clarinet

Benjamin David Goodman (1909-1986), known as Benny Goodman, was one of the most popular American clarinetists, jazz musicians and band leaders. He created a musical style with a strong and dancing rhythm which influenced other great musicians. The peak of his fame occurred in the 1930s, having been nicknamed the "King of Swing".

Benny Goodman has to be remembered as a great clarinetist and also for helping to break the color barrier in music: in his band the members had to be good no matter the race or color - this occurred in a period of great racial discrimination. Furthermore, he is acclaimed for taking jazz out of marginality and making it a musical genre for all. On January 16, 1938, Goodman's band made history as one of the first jazz performances at the Carnegie Hall in New York. During the latter part of his career, Goodman played a clarinet, crafted, in 1967, by the legendary Parisian windmaker Buffet Crampon.

Answer: Organ

Charles-Marie Jean Albert Widor (1844-1937), known as Charlie-Marie Widor, was a French organist, composer and teacher. At the age of 19, with the help of the famous organ builder Aristide Cavaillé-Coll, Widor went to Brussels to improve his organ technique and composition. At 25, Widor was nominated as the "provisional" organist of Church of Saint-Sulpice in Paris, a very important position for an organist in France. There, he stayed for almost 64 years.

The organ at Saint-Sulpice was a masterpiece by Cavaillé-Coll; the instrument's spectacular capabilities were an inspiration to Widor. Although he composed music for various instruments and ensembles, his works played regularly until today are the ten organ symphonies and three symphonies for organ and orchestra. His work made a great contribution to the organ music repertoire. Widor was among the leading organ recitalists of his time, having performed in several countries and participated in inaugural concerts of many of Cavaillé-Coll's greatest instruments, notably at the Notre-Dame de Paris.

Answer: Harp

The American harpist Yolanda Kondonassis (1963) is celebrated as one of the world's leading solo harpists. She made her debut at age 18 with the New York Philharmonic and conductor Zubin Mehta; since then she has been performing solo and recital concerts around the world.

The chamber musician Kondonassis has collaborated with countless musicians such as violinists, pianists, guitarists, etc. She is also an author, composer, arranger and up to 2020 had published four books about her art. In addition, she has done an intense job in order to preserve the environment. In 2012, she published her first children's book named "Our House is Round: A Kid's Book About Why Protecting Our Earth Matters" as a way of drawing children's attention to environmental problems.

Answer: Sitar

Ravi Shankar (1920-2012), born Robindro Shaunkor Chowdhury, whose name is preceded by the title Pandit, which means Master, was an Indian sitar player and composer. He became known for a distinctive playing style, and was considered one of the best sitar players of the second half of the 20th century. His work and his association with other musicians, especially with Yehudi Menuhin and The Beatles' guitarist George Harrison, helped to popularize Shankar and the use of sitar and other Indian instruments in pop music in the 1960s.

In 1961, the Indian instrument maker Nodu Mullick made for Ravi Shankar four sitars, one of which was donated to the British Museum after his death.