Classical Gaffes Trivia Quiz

Answer: Beethoven composed "Pictures at an Exhibition."

Ludwig van Beethoven composed many masterpieces during his career, including "Moonlight Sonata", "Fur Elise" and the "Ninth Symphony." Beethoven was born in Bonn, but he spent many years of his life in Vienna; Beethoven's opera "Fidelio" made its debut there circa 1805. Beethoven's "Third Symphony", also known as "Eroica", was completed in 1804.

However, Beethoven did not compose "Pictures at an Exhibition." The Russian composer Modest Mussorgsky wrote this famous piece of music in 1874.

Answer: Mozart's father knew virtually nothing about classical music.

Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart was born in Salzburg, Austria, and was baptized as an infant by officials of the Roman Catholic Church. Mozart would eventually compose several pieces of religious work for the Catholics. It would be wrong to say that Mozart's father, Leopold, knew nothing about classical music.

In fact, Leopold was a fairly accomplished musician and composer. He played the violin well and was the author of a textbook called "The Violin School", a book which was used in the training of violinists. Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart composed his masterpiece "The Marriage of Figaro" circa 1785.

Answer: Grieg was born in Stockholm, Sweden.

Edvard Grieg was born not in Sweden, but in the neighboring country of Norway. He was born in Bergen, Norway, in June 1843. Grieg was proud of his Norwegian heritage and wrote several pieces of music based on Norway's folk traditions. Grieg is mostly remembered today for his "Piano Concerto in A Minor" and for his work with Ibsen on the "Peer Gynt" project, circa 1875- "In the Hall of the Mountain King" came from this collaboration.

Answer: An oboe played the role of the Cat.

Sergei Prokofiev was born in Ukraine (at that time, part of the Russian Empire) in 1891. He composed "Peter and the Wolf" in 1936. Peter's encounter with a big grey wolf was told by the use of various musical instruments. String instruments played the role of Peter, the protagonist of Prokofiev's creation.

The role of the sly cat in the story was played with a clarinet, not an oboe. The role of the unfortunate duck was played by an oboe; the duck was swallowed alive by the ferocious wolf (French horns) but was eventually rescued by some hunters.

Answer: Elgar was a member of the Anglican Church.

Sir Edward Elgar was born in the English West Midlands in June 1857. Elgar was a member of the Roman Catholic Church; he taught the violin and played the organ at St. George's Catholic Church in Worcester, England. Elgar composed the religious piece "The Dream of Gerontius" in the early 1900s.

He was knighted by King Edward VII in 1904. In the U.S., Elgar is best remembered for his "Pomp and Circumstance Marches"; this music is played at virtually every high school and university graduation ceremony.

Answer: Sousa composed extensively for the U.S. Air Force

John Philip Sousa, born in Washington, is probably the most patriotic composer in the history of the USA. The "March King" wrote extensively for the U.S. Marine Corps and conducted the Marine Corps Band from 1880 to 1892. Perhaps his most famous piece is the "Stars and Stripes Forever", which he composed circa 1896. Sousa played his music for several U.S. presidents, including James Garfield (1881) and Benjamin Harrison (1889). Sousa had already passed away before the United States Air Force was created in 1947.

The Air Force's signature song "Into The Wild Blue Yonder" was written by Captain Robert M. Crawford in 1939.

Answer: Tchaikovsky composed "Flight of the Bumblebee."

Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky was born in Votkinsk, Russia, in 1840. Tchaikovsky is a giant among classical music composers with such masterpieces as "The 1812 Overture", "Swan Lake" and "The Nutcracker Suite." However, he did not compose "Flight of the Bumblebee." This popular piece was composed by Nikolai Rimsky-Korsakoff circa 1900.

Answer: Strauss was killed in a duel.

Johann Strauss II was born in Austria in 1825. He is known as the "Waltz King" for his hundreds of compositions in that musical genre. Perhaps Strauss' most famous piece of music is "The Blue Danube", written in 1866. Strauss' opera "Ritter Pasman" debuted in 1892. Strauss was evidently a good friend of the German composer Johannes Brahms (1833-1897). Strauss, however, did not die in a duel; he succumbed to pneumonia and passed away in June 1899.

Answer: Verdi never wrote any operas based upon Shakespeare's works.

Giuseppe Verdi, born in Italy, wrote dozens of successful operas during his career. "Aida" is perhaps Verdi's most famous opera, but operas such as "Rigoletto" and "Il Travatore" are also widely performed today. Verdi put several of William Shakespeare's plays to music, including "Macbeth" and "Othello." In addition, Verdi's opera "Falstaff" was based on Shakespeare's "Merry Wives of Windsor" and scenes from "Henry IV." Verdi's "Requiem", composed for a Catholic funeral mass, debuted in 1874.

Answer: Liszt composed "Rhapsody In Blue."

Hungarian-born composer Franz Liszt was proud of his heritage and composed a series of about 20 piano pieces which were entitled "The Hungarian Rhapsodies." His "Hungarian Rhapsody No. 2" was completed circa 1874. Liszt was an outstanding concert pianist who performed throughout Europe for several years.

However, Liszt did not compose "Rhapsody in Blue." This famous piece of music was written by the American composer George Gershwin in 1924. Liszt's daughter Cosima married German composer Richard Wagner in 1870; it was Wagner's second marriage.