A Symphony by any other name Trivia Quiz

Answer: Beethoven

This work, the first of Beethoven's symphonies of what is called his "Second Period", is formally designated as Symphony number 3 in in E-flat Major, Opus 55. It was first performed in 1805 in Vienna. The title means "for a hero" and was originally dedicated to Napoleon whom Beethoven considered to be a great populist and anti-monarchical figure.

When he learned that Napoleon had declared himself Emperor, he angrily tore Napoleon's name from the dedication page.

Answer: Dvorak

Antonin Dvorak, a Czech composer, spent three years in America (1892-1895) as Director of the National Conservatory of Music of America in New York City, and during that became fascinated by the local music of blacks and native Americans. In 1893 his "New World Symphony", technically known as Symphony number 9 in E minor, Opus 95, was first performed in Carnegie Hall to a huge and popular reception.

It has become one of the most popular and most often performed symphonies in the classical repertoire.

Answer: Berlioz

This symphony was first performed in Paris in 1830, and has the formal title of "Fantastical Symphony: an episode in the life of an artist in five parts, Opus 14" (English translation). It is a programme symphony, that is each section relates to a common theme, in this case the miseries of a highly imaginative young artist suffering hopelessly from unrequited love and under the influence of opium.

Answer: Haydn

Haydn's symphony number 45 in F-sharp minor was first performed in 1772 at Eszterhaza, the summer home of his patron Prince Esterhazy in Hungary. Haydn told a story in his old age that the musicians had been so long separated from their wives and families that they wanted to return home to the Prince's capital of Eisenstadt. Haydn's method to communicate their distress was that during the final movement each musician in turn would stop playing, blow out the candle lighting their music stand, and vanish (hence the symphony's nickname).

At the end only two violins were left, one played by Haydn. The Prince moved his court back to Eisenstadt the next day.

Answer: Mahler

Symphony number 2 by Gustav Mahler was first performed in 1895 in Berlin. It is a programme symphony exploring the meaning of life and the question of life after death. It would become one of Mahler's most popular works and one of the longest symphonies in the classical repertoire, lasting nearly ninety minutes. Like Beethoven's Ninth Symphony, it ends with a choral movement set to the words of a German poet, Klopstock, in his hymn "The Resurrection".

Answer: Tchaikovsky

Symphony number 6 in B minor, Opus 74 was first performed in St Petersburg in 1893, nine days before the composer's death. The title in Russian doesn't mean "arousing pity", but rather "emotional" or perhaps even "depressing". Some have connected the title with Tchaikovsky's known depressive state of mind or homosexual angst, and seen the work as a sort of suicide note, but this is not proven. An unusual feature of the symphony is that the adagio ("slow movement") comes at the end leaving the listener with a sense of deep and profound sadness.

Answer: Mendelssohn

From 1829 to 1831 Mendelssohn was on a grand tour of Europe, a journey that produced his third symphony, the "Scottish", and this work, Symphony number 4 in A major, Opus 90. It was based on his experiences in Italy which he found to be a happy, sunny, and jolly place.

This is an "upbeat' symphony throughout, and its infectious opening movement was used as the recurrent theme in the 1979 movie, "Breaking Away".

Answer: Mozart

Mozart did not himself give the nickname "Jupiter" to his Symphony number 41 in C major, K.441, but it was coined by the composer and impresario, Johann Peter Solomon, some time after Mozart's death in 1791. The date of the first performance is unknown and may not have been performed in the composer's lifetime.

It shows Mozart at his very best and deserves to be named after the king of Roman gods. It ranks as one of the most popular classical symphonies in the concert and recording repertoire.

Answer: Vaughan Williams

Vaughan Williams himself gave the nickname "Sinfonia Antartica" to his seventh symphony. Notice the Italian title with the Italian spelling of "Antarctica". It is based on the music that Vaughan Williams wrote for the film "Scott of the Antarctic" (1947), the story of Scott's ill-fated expedition to reach the South Pole first.

The symphony had its premiere in Manchester in 1953. Each of the five movements is prefaced by a quotation from poetry, the Bible, or in the last movement from Sir Robert Scott's own diary.

In addition to the orchestra there is a wordless three-part female chorus and soprano who sing in the opening and final sections.

Answer: Schubert

The nickname "Great" was originally given to Schubert's Symphony number 9 in C major, D. 944 to distinguish it from his symphony number 6, also in C major and called the "Little". Schubert wrote the work in the mid-1820s, but it is not known whether it was performed publicly before his death in 1828.

It is now considered to be one of the "great" examples of the classical symphony, full of memorable tunes and taking nearly an hour to perform. Unusual about the work is the prominence given to the trombones who usually had a lesser role in a classical symphony.