That Glorious Song of Old Trivia Quiz

Answer: The Barber of Seville

The opera was written by Gioachino Rossini and was performed for the first time in 1816, in Rome. The aria 'Largo al factotum della cita', ('Make way for the factotum of the city' in English), is sung by Figaro, the barber of the title. It includes numerous mentions of Figaro's name and describes his popularity and highly rated, at least in his own opinion, abilities.

Answer: Hebrew slaves

The opera is based on the Old Testament of the Bible, primarily the Books of Jeremiah and Daniel, and was performed for the first time in Milan, in 1842. The chorus is sung by the Israelite prisoners, kept in captivity by their Babylonian captors. The title of the chorus is 'Va, pensiero, sull'ali dorate', meaning 'Fly, thoughts, on golden wings, as the slaves remember their homeland'.

The 'Nuns' Chorus' is from the operetta 'Casanova', while the 'Soldiers' Chorus' is from 'Faust'. The 'Pilgrims' Chorus' appears in 'Tannhauser'.

Answer: Dido

The aria is commonly known as 'Dido's Lament', and comes from Henry Purcell's opera 'Dido and Aeneas'. Dido has sent Aeneas away, and sings the aria before killing herself in her despair at his departure. The opera was one of the first to be written in English, sometime in the 1680s - the exact date is not known.

The aria is played each year at the Remembrance Day parade at the Cenotaph in London, held in November.

Answer: The Pearl Fishers

All the operas listed were composed by Bizet, with 'Carmen' probably the best known of them. 'Les Pêcheurs de Perles' received its premier in 1863. The story is set in Ceylon, now Sri Lanka, and 'Au Fond du Temple Sant', 'At the Back of the Holy Temple' in English, is a duet sung by two men, one tenor and one baritone, who are vying for the love of the same woman.

The lyrics describe her as a goddess, and the men swear to remain true friends despite the fact that only one could win her heart.

Answer: Puccini

'Nessun Dorma' is one of the few operatic arias to become known to fans of pop music, mainly thanks to Luciano Pavarotti who took it into the UK Singles Chart in 1990. It was helped by being used by the BBC as the theme tune to the FIFA World Cup and has retained its association with football ever since. 'Turandot' was first performed in 1926, two years after Puccini's death. Puccini had left the opera unfinished and it was completed by another Italian composer, Franco Alfano.

Answer: Messiah

'Messiah' was written by Handel and was based on the Bible using elements from the Old Testament, where the coming of the Messiah is foretold, before moving to the life and death of Jesus from the New Testament. It was first performed in Dublin, in 1742. Probably the best known work from the oratorio is the 'Hallelujah' chorus. 'I Know that my Redeemer Liveth' is a piece for a soprano and celebrates the resurrection of Jesus.

All the titles offered as options are the names of oratorios.

Answer: The Midsummer Marriage

Benjamin Britten was an English composer of the twentieth century who created works including orchestral pieces and song cycles, as well as operas. His writing include 'War Requiem', which features the poems of the World War I poet Wilfred Owen. Britten also wrote 'The Young Person's Guide to the Orchestra'.

He wrote fifteen operas, including 'Noye's Fludde' (1958), 'Albert Herring' (1947) and 'Billy Budd' (1951). 'The Midsummer Marriage' was written by Britten's contemporary, Michael Tippett, and was first performed in 1955.

Answer: Madame Butterfly

The first version of 'Madame Butterfly', performed in 1904, was a disaster, and Puccini rewrote it substantially before it was performed again later that year to great acclaim. Further revisions followed, with the version from 1907 being the one most often performed in modern times.

The story of the tragic Cio-Cio San, the butterfly of the title, and Pinkerton, her less than honourable American husband, is one of Puccini's best known operas. 'Un bel di vedremi' is sung by Madame Butterfly, imagining the day Pinkerton will return to her.

Answer: The Mikado

Although the setting of 'The Mikado' is Japan, the work is a satirical look at the institutions of Great Britain. The son of the Mikado, Nanki-Poo, is pretending to be a poor minstrel to pursue Yum-Yum, and sings the song in the question while in this disguise.

The opera was performed first in 1885 and is among the duo's most popular. Other songs from it are 'Three Little Maids from School' and 'On a Tree by a Willow', which is often known by the name 'Tit-willow'. The Lord High Executioner also sings about his 'little list' of people, such as politicians, who would 'never be missed' - nothing much changes there.

Answer: La donna è mobile

The aria is sung by the Duke of Mantua and describes women as being flighty and fickle, like a feather in the wind. 'Rigoletto' was performed in 1851 in Venice. The character Rigoletto is the Duke's jester and his beautiful daughter, Gilda, is the object of the Duke's affections.

'Che gelida manina' is from 'La Bohème', 'Vissi d'arte' comes from 'Tosca' while 'O mio babbino caro' is one of the arias from 'Gianni Schicchi'. All of these were written by Puccini.