Dance Me to the End of Love Trivia Quiz

Answer: Donna Summer

Donna Summer's disco classic, "Last Dance," was released in 1978 as part of the "Thank God It's Friday" movie's soundtrack.
Written by Paul Jabara, the melody starts softly, as an emotional ballad, but it soon explodes into an upbeat, dynamic dance anthem, highlighting Summer's powerful vocals and signature style.
"Last Dance" became one of the artist's most iconic hits, earning her an Academy Award and a Golden Globe for Best Original Song.

Answer: Camille Saint Saens

Camille Saint-Saëns' 1894 "Danse Macabre" is a symphonic poem vividly depicting the legend of Death summoning the dead at midnight on Halloween to dance till sunrise when they are driven back to their graves by the rooster's crowing.
The piece starts with a solo violin known as the "Devil's Interval." The music gradually builds up and mimics rattling bones and spinning spirits while the xylophone plays the role of dancing skeletons. The music becomes more intense until a gentle harp signals the break of dawn and the end of the ghostly dance.

Answer: The Drifters

"Save the Last Dance for Me" by The Drifters was released in 1960. It has a nostalgic melody with melancholic lyrics regarding a man who watches his lover dance with others but asks her to reserve the last dance for him.
Ben E. King, with his smooth and soulful baritone, sings the song in a deeply romantic and emotional way. The song is also poignant because co-writer Doc Pomus had polio and used a wheelchair.
"Save the Last Dance for Me" ranks among The Drifters' all-time favorites, having been recorded by Dolly Parton, the DeFranco Family, and Michael Bublé, to mention just a few, over the years.

Answer: Manos Hadjidakis

"Dance of the Dogs" is a composition by renowned Greek composer Manos Hadjidakis, winner of an Academy Award for Best Original Song for the film "Never on Sunday." As a composer, he is well-known for combining classical, folk, and contemporary elements in his compositions.
This piece is from his album "Reflections," a deeply expressive album released in 1970. "Dance of the Dogs" is a light, playful piece with surreal and symbolic elements, indicative of Hadjidakis' style.

Answer: Bruce Springsteen

Bruce Springsteen's "Dancing in the Dark" has secured a place in the American popular music scene not only with its powerful lyrics and high-energy rock feel but also with the iconic music video where a young Courtney Cox is pulled onstage to dance with the singer.
The song was released in 1984 as the lead single from Springsteen's album "Born in the U.S.A."
It is an energetic upbeat piece whose lyrics talk about frustration, longing, and the desire for change. One of Springsteen's biggest successes, the song earned him a Grammy and reached number two on the Billboard Hot 100.

Answer: Elton John

"Tiny Dancer" is a collaboration between Elton John, who composed the music, and his long-time lyricist Bernie Taupin, from the 1971 album "Madman Across the Water."
At the time, both were living and touring in the United States, and Bernie Taupin was in a relationship with Maxine Feibelman, an American seamstress who traveled with them and worked on Elton John's elaborate costumes. They got married in 1971 and divorced in 1976.
While it was initially believed that the song was written specifically for her, Bernie Taupin later admitted that the lyrics portrayed California women in general - celebrating their free spirit, hipness, graceful movements, and colorful clothing.

Answer: Sting

Sting wrote "They Dance Alone" as a protest song to be included in his 1987 album "Nothing Like the Sun."
The song is about the "Cueca Sola," a dance performed by Chilean women - mothers, wives, and daughters - who lost their loved ones during the brutal military dictatorship of Augusto Pinochet (1973-1990).
The "Cueca," Chile's national dance, was traditionally danced by couples. In the wake of thousands being disappeared and killed under Pinochet's rule, bereaved women danced alone holding photographs of missing loved ones in a silent but powerful action of protest and resistance.
The song uses both Spanish and English lyrics with a melancholic tune expressing sadness and sympathy.

Answer: Sergei Prokofiev

Sergei Prokofiev wrote "Dance of the Knights" in 1935 for his ballet "Romeo and Juliet".
It is a dramatic and dark orchestral piece with a march-like rhythm and heavy, brash orchestration. The threatening strings and the blaring brass create tension, reflecting the Montagues vs. Capulets feud.
This well-known and characteristic piece has been used in film, television, and popular culture, including the theme for BBC's "The Apprentice."

Answer: ABBA

"Dancing Queen" is a song by Swedish band ABBA, included in their 1976 album "Arrival." It was written by Benny Andersson and Björn Ulvaeus, in the Europop sound that characterized the music of the 1970s and most of the music of ABBA.
As one of the greatest disco-pop recordings of all time, it captures the excitement and exhilaration of dancing under the lights while celebrating the freedom and energy of youth.
To this day, "Dancing Queen" remains an ageless party anthem at weddings, parties, and celebrations.

Answer: Pyotr Ilych Tchaikovsky

Tchaikovsky's "Dance of the Reed Flutes" (or Danse des Mirlitons or Dance of the Reed Pipes or Dance of the Marzipan or Dance of the Shepherdesses) is a delicate, airy passage from "The Nutcracker" ballet, heard in Act II as part of the "Divertissement" movement.
The flutes give it a delicate, airy texture, very different and lighter from the more dramatic parts of "The Nutcracker".
The mirliton is a simple wind instrument (similar to a kazoo) of the 16th and 17th centuries and, also, a French-creole pear-shaped fruit, like a cucumber.