Gustav Holst Trivia

1. "Mars - The Bringer of War" is the first movement of "The Planets". How many movements are there in total?

From Quiz Mars - The Bringer of War

Answer: Seven

Written between 1914 and 1916, the seven movements represent each known planet in the solar system, with the exclusion of Earth. Earth is not included as it cannot be observed by astronomers unless they travel into space. Space travel was, of course, completely unknown at the time the work was composed.

From Quiz Gustav Holst

Answer: Cheltenham

Holst's birthplace, Cheltenham, is in Gloucestershire County, the same county his friend and fellow composer Ralph Vaughn Williams was born in.

From Quiz Mars - The Bringer of War

Answer: I Vow to Thee My Country

In 1921 Holst adapted part of "Jupiter" to create "I Vow To Thee My Country". It is most commonly heard on Armistice Day. Princess Diana asked for it to be sung at her wedding, and it was also sung at her funeral. "I vow to thee, my country, all earthly things above, Entire and whole and perfect, the service of my love; The love that asks no question, the love that stands the test, That lays upon the altar the dearest and the best; The love that never falters, the love that pays the price, The love that makes undaunted the final sacrifice."

From Quiz Gustav Holst

Answer: Swedish

BION, the von Holsts were a musical family from Sweden, despite the German-sounding "von"!

From Quiz Mars - The Bringer of War

Answer: Old age

Old age and death have been associated with Saturn since ancient times. In an astrological chart Saturn can also indicate a domineering father, as well as intense feelings of isolation and loneliness. Those who have accepted Saturn's limitation and restrictions will go into old age with dignity.

From Quiz Gustav Holst

Answer: bassoon

Holst also studied violin as a boy, but never learned the bassoon.

From Quiz Mars - The Bringer of War

Answer: Uranus

Uranus governs the mysteries of life. All the things we cannot see or understand, hence "The Magician". It is also the first planet in our solar system that was not known to ancient man. It is such a vast distance from Earth, approximately 2.87 billion kilometres, that it can barely be seen with the naked eye. It was discovered in 1781 by William Herschel.

From Quiz Gustav Holst

Answer: Neuritis

Holst also suffered asthma as a boy, but trombone playing cured it. However, the neuritis in his right arm stopped his performing, as it dogged him all his life. (he was set on composing, anyway!)

From Quiz Mars - The Bringer of War

Answer: It hadn't been discovered at the time the work was written

Pluto was not discovered until 1930, some years after "The Planets" was written. Holst never expressed any interest in writing an extra movement to incorporate the newly discovered planet. In 2006 the definition of what constitutes a planet was re-examined with the result that Pluto was downgraded to a dwarf planet.

From Quiz Gustav Holst

Answer: Grieg

Despite an early influence by Wagner, Holst's favorite was Norway's Edvard Grieg.

From Quiz Mars - The Bringer of War

Answer: Hermes

Mercury is the planet that moves most swiftly across the sky, so Greek astronomers named it Hermes after the swift messenger of the gods. The Romans took the name of their equivalent messenger, hence Mercury as we know it today.

From Quiz Gustav Holst

Answer: Sanskrit

Fascinated by Hindu philosophy, Holst studied Sanskrit so he could read Hindu texts in their original language.

From Quiz Mars - The Bringer of War

Answer: Love

Venus was the Roman goddess of love and beauty. It appears in the sky just before dawn or just before sunset and because of this is also known as the "Morning Star" and "Evening Star". Because the astrological influences of Venus are concerned with harmony in relationships, "The Bringer of Peace" is a very apt sub-title.

From Quiz Gustav Holst

Answer: St. Paul's

For most of his adult life, Holst taught music at St. Paul's, a girl's school in the Hammersmith district of London. He paid tribute to the school and the area in his "St. Paul's Suite" for strings and "Hammersmith" Prelude and Scherzo for military band.

From Quiz Mars - The Bringer of War

Answer: Fade-out

Today fade out is a commonplace recording technique, but in the early 1900s it was unheard of. Holst had the female choir placed in a separate room adjacent to the stage, and at the end of the movement the door to the room is slowly closed, so the voices become fainter and fainter until they fade away completely.

From Quiz Gustav Holst

Answer: 1918

World War One still raged when Holst premiered his symphonic suite, a breakthrough in British orchestral music (and still one of my all-time favorites.)

From Quiz Mars - The Bringer of War

Answer: astrological

"The Planets" is written from an astrological viewpoint. Each sub-title is the attribute of the planet in astrology rather than mythology, although there is a degree of crossover between the two.

From Quiz Mars - The Bringer of War

Answer: Thaxted

Holst first came to Thaxted in 1913 when he rented a cottage for weekends and holidays. He subsequently lived in the village and surrounding area on and off for the rest of his life. Much of "The Planets" was written in the first house he rented in Thaxted. In 1916 he and the local vicar established a Whitsun Music Festival, but this ceased in 1918. In 1980 it was restarted as a two month festival during June and July, and is now an established annual event attracting top class performers.

From Quiz Gustav Holst

Answer: thirteen

His best-known operas are "Savriti", inspired by his Hindu studies, "At The Boar's Head", inspired by Shakespeare's Falstaff plays, "The Tale of the Wandering Scholar" and "The Perfect Fool". But Holst also penned nine earlier works: "Landsdown Castle", "Ianthe", "The Revoke", "The Idea", the operas for children "Cinderella", "he Magic Mirror" and "The Youth's Choice", another Hindu-influnced opera "Sita" and the parody "Opera As She Wrote".

From Quiz Gustav Holst

Answer: Keats

Holst set some poems of Keats' to music in his Choral Symphony, including a ravishing setting of the immortal "Ode To A Grecian Urn".

From Quiz Gustav Holst

Answer: Hardy

Thomas Hardy's description of Egdon Heath in his "Return of the Native" was the basis of Holst's unforgettable rhapsody "Egdon Heath".

From Quiz Gustav Holst

Answer: Betelguese

"Betelguese" was one of Holst's many songs.

From Quiz Gustav Holst

Answer: Boult

Sir Adrian Boult conducted the debut of "The Planets" and other works of Holst, as well as those of Vaughn Williams and other British composers.

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