Hear, Again? Trivia Quiz

Answer: Variations

A composition using the variations style typically consists of three main sections - a literal quotation of the original theme, played in the original instrumentation, a development section that takes the theme and develops from there, initially usually sticking close to the original but straying further as the work develops and finally, a last movement in which the original theme is rediscovered, often in a magnified and glorified version.

This last movement is often a fugue or rondo, using a secondary theme by the variations composer as a starting point and developing that until the original theme re-emerges, often contrasted with and overshadowing the secondary theme. Two very typical examples of variations sets are Johannes Brahms's "Variations on a Theme by Joseph Haydn" op. 56a and Max Reger's "Variations and Fugue on a Theme by Mozart"

Answer: Academic Festival Overture, op. 80

Brahms (1833-1897) quite often used and acknowledged material from other composers as well as traditional and folk sources in his works. "The Academic Festival Overture" op. 80 was a musical way of saying "thank you" to the University of Breslau which had awarded him an honorary doctorate in 1879.

This overture is completely based on traditional student drinking songs, including "Fuchslied", "Alt Heidelberg", "Wir hatten gebauet ein stattliches Haus" and culminating in the triumphant "Gaudeamus Igitur".

In a single movement lasting approximately ten minutes, Brahms evolves and intertwines these songs into an orchestral expression of joy and triumph and the work is quite often performed at European university graduation ceremonies where it takes the same place as Elgar's "Pomp and Circumstances" march has in American ceremonies.

Answer: Ein' Feste Burg ist Unser Gott

Jakob Ludwig Felix Mendelssohn Bartholdy (1809-1847) was of Jewish descent but raised non-religiously and later converted to the Lutheran church. Mendelssohn's Fifth Symphony, the "Reformation Symphony", was originally written to honor the 300th anniversary of the Augsburg Confession in June 1830, but a streak of ill health in the first half of 1830 and anti-semitic sentiments in Berlin where Mendelssohn was still seen as Jewish led to his work not being considered for the celebrations although it was essentially finished in May. Mendelssohn ultimately took two more years to revise and refine the symphony before giving it just one public performance. Still dissatisfied with the work, he refused to publish it and it was only in 1868, long after his death, that this symphony was finally printed as his 5th symphony (even though it was the second one finished) and performed again.

It is still one of his least performed works.

Answer: The Young Person's Guide to the Orchestra

Originally commissioned for a 1946 educational documentary on the various instruments of the orchestra, "The Young Person's Guide to the Orchestra" has been composed to not only highlight the instruments of the classical symphonic orchestra for a learner, but also to be a viable concert piece to be performed without narration.

The work introduces the Purcell theme, repeats it four times - once for each of the four main sections of the orchestra - and then develops into variations highlighting the abilities of each orchestral instrument.

The fugue finale reassembles the orchestra in the same order it was originally presented before returning the original theme in a triumphant, augmented finale. The narrated version is usually billed as "The Young Person's Guide to the Orchestra" while most recordings and performances without narration use the "Variations and Fugue" title.

Answer: 1st Symphony "Titan", 3rd movement

Gustav Mahler (1860-1911) has been a rather prolific writer of symphonies for large romantic orchestra, ultimately completing nine symphonies plus the "Song of the Earth" cycle which essentially was a symphony as well. A tenth symphony was left unfinished but as an advanced draft and various performing versions of this draft have been reconstructed.

In his first symphony, originally comprising five movements but later revised to four, the penultimate movement is a parody of a funeral procession using the "Frère Jacques" theme as the main melody of the funeral march.

The first introduction of this theme appears as a rare solo for double bass and later in the movement, much of the melody is carried by the oboes and clarinets, giving the entire piece a rather surreal feeling.

Answer: Ludwig van Beethoven's 9th

In the grand finale of Beethoven's 9th, before the world famous "Ode to Joy" part, Beethoven at first musically rejects and rips apart the themes and emotions from the first three movements of his work in a cataclysmic piece of orchestral chaos set at "presto" speed, before, from this chaos, the simple and clear melody line of the "Ode to Joy" emerges.

Answer: A witches' sabbath

Berlioz's "Symphonie Fantastique" is a story told in music. Its five movements are musical images, themed around a young, creative artist who plunges into despair because of a love he cannot have. The music first shows us the young artist alone, haunted by the beauty he cannot possess. Next the artist is shown at a glorious ball where his love is always twirling away from him. Third, in a romantic pastoral scene where a happy end almost becomes tangible before being whisked away again.

Then, in an opium-induced fantasy of the young lover being led to the guillotine for having murdered his love and finally, the witches' sabbath where she, as one of the witches, passes the ultimate hellish judgement over him.

The "Dies Irae", somber and final, makes this judgement permanent and eternal.

Answer: Alban Berg

Alban Berg (1885-1935) composed his Violin Concerto as a commission by Louis Krasner, but partially also intended it as a requiem for Manon Gropius, the 18-year-old daughter of Alma Mahler, who had succumbed to polio. The work makes highly intelligent use of a specially designed twelve-tone row to be able to integrate literal quotes from the "Es ist genug" ("It is enough") Bach choral and an Austrian folk piece ("Ländler").

In essence, Berg uses the melody line of these quoted works in a prominent fashion and has the other instruments play the "extraneous" notes from the twelve-tone row around them.

The resulting concerto is one of the most harmonious twelve-tone works ever written and anyone wishing to listen to some twelve-tone music without having to study it in detail to understand it should consider this work as one of the most accessible specimens of the genre.

Answer: "Willow" (1988)

The melodious and easily remembered Willow's theme from the movie of the same name is nothing else but the main theme of the first movement of Robert Schumann's third symphony. Horner rhythmically altered the theme to take it from a grandiose, flowing, slow one to a lively, fast and inspiring one, but the melody and underlying harmonies are exactly the same as in the original.

The result speaks for itself and is a work of art in its own right, yet I do consider it a bit sneaky to take the core theme of a major composition from a past work (even if it is in the public domain) without so much as giving credit.

Interestingly, few professional reviewers ever caught on to this little sleight of ear, but some attentive soundtrack fans found out nonetheless.

Answer: Niccolò Paganini

"Variations" was the result of a bet between Andrew Lloyd Webber and his younger brother Julian, a renowned classical cellist. The famous Paganini caprice for violin - itself a collection of variations - was chosen as the basis of this work designed to highlight Julian's cello abilities in a sound environment quite unlike the typical classical setting, but still using classical composition techniques.

The album reached number 2 in the UK album charts in 1978 and a version for violoncello and orchestra, closer to the traditional setting of a cello concerto, was later released as well.

The Paganini piece has spawned over 30 acknowledged derivative works and is thus probably one of the most quoted classical compositions.