Well, I did get a few replies after all. The winner is Else Kramer, who answered more correctly than any one else who entered. Here are the correct answers: The Quiz: 1. Johann Sebastian Bach was not only a prolific composer, but was prolific also in populating Thuringia. How many children did Ole JSB sire? 20 2. Name two works in the standard orchestral repertoire (excluding the Rite of Spring) that have movements in 5/4 time. Holst: Mars from the Planets Tchaikovsky: Symphony number 6. (and it is NOT in 10/8 as someone tried to one up me despite Mr. Feshkens' attempt to one-up me. =) 3. Peter Tchailovsky, Benjamin Britten and Aaron Copland all posessed this personality trait. What was it? They were homosexual. 4. Carlo Gesualdo was a famous and revolutionary composer in the late 16th century. For what crime was he equally in-famous? For murdering his wife and her lover. 5. This work, according to legend, convinced the Council of Trent *not* to ban the use of polyphonic music in the church. What was the piece and who wrote it? Palestrina, Missa Papae Marcelli. 6. Who composed an opera based on the legend above? Pfitzner. 7. Beethoven's fifth symphony is unique because of an orchestrational 'first.' What two instruments did Beethoven introduce into the symphony orchestra for the first time in his fifth symphony? Piccolo, trombones 8. Who was J.S. Bach's immediate predecessor in Leipzig? Johann Kuhnau 9. What early 20th century German composer committed suicide rather than fight in Hitler's army? Hugo Distler 10. What twentieth century composer wrote a solo sonata for every instrument in the orchestra? Paul Hindemith 11. In 1913, Pierre Monteux conducted the premier of a controversial work. The performance so stirred the audience that a riot broke out in the theatre. What was the work and who was the composer? Le Sacre du Printemps, Stravinsky (I corrected the spelling of the conductor's name. thanks Len!) 12. Throughout his career, a recurring theme appears in the stage and vocal works of Benjamin Britten. What is this theme? (not a melody, rather a situation) There were a number of acceptable answers, but the correct one is the concept of lost innocence. 13. Who was the librettist for Don Giovanni, Cosi fan Tutte and Le Nozze de Figaro? Da Ponte 14. Until recently, this composer's music was not played in the state of Israel. Who was it? Richard Wagner 15. This famous organist and composer collapsed and died at the console during mass. Who was he? Louis Vierne 16. Name the members of "les Six." Milhaud, Poulenc, Honegger, Auric, Durey, Tailleferre 17. This composer is thought to have composed the first complete setting of the ordinary of the mass. Who was he and what was the work in question? Guillaume de Machaut, Messe de Nostra Dame 18. Orlando di Lasso wrote only one work in the Chromatic style that was exemplified by Gesualdo. What was this work? Prophetiae Sibyllarum 19. What British church-related law prompted Handel to compose his many oratorios. Operas were banned during Lent. 20. This symphony was subtitled "An artist's response to just criticism." What was the work and who composed it? Shostakovich, Symphony Number 5. 21. Name the conductor who succeeded Willem Mengelberg at the helm of the Concertgebouw orchestra of Amsterdam. Edward van Beinum 22. This conductor was reknowned for his interpretations of Bruckner, but fell in with the Nazi regime, and was thus banned from conducting after the war. He died around the age of forty before his career could resume. Who is he? Oswald Kabasta 23. This famous singer's philosophy was "Never sing louder than lovely." Who was she? English soprano, Isobel Baillie 24. In the fifties, Hollywood made a film about a famous singer who was stricken with polio, but went on to resume her career. What was the film, who was the singer and what other famous soprano did the real singing for the actress playing the role? Interrupted Melody, Marjorie Lawrence, and Eileen Farrell, in that order. 25. Who is alleged to have said, "Tenor is not a fach, it's a disease." Sir Thomas Beecham 26. Berlioz composed the first piece of "acid rock" as it were. What is the work and under the influence of what drug was it supposedly composed? Symphonie Fantastique, opium. 27. Copland, Diamond, Barber, Glass, and Rorem all studied with this famous French pedagogue. Who was she? Nadia Boulanger 28. This lady made many recordings of harpsichord music at her home in Connecticut. She played a huge role in the revival of the harpsichord as a solo instrument. Who was she? Wanda Landowska 29. How many instruments does it take to play a baroque trio sonata? Four 30. This famous medieval work made fun of the ruling classes and the church, portraying the pope as a Jackass. What was the work, and what composer is attributed to have composed or compiled it? The Roman du Fauvel, Philippe de Vitry. Else, please send me your address and I shall send you your prize. Another quiz later. Kevin Sutton