Music Trivia Quiz

[mrfixit]

Ok heres a fairly easy question. In the opening of the Beethoven movie Inmortal beloved there is a mistake with the funeral scene. Can someone tell me what it is?

[Andrea]

What was Beethoven's reason for inserting trills at the end of many of his piano compositions?

In Beethoven's own words, "I do it to embarrass those Viennese pianists, some of whom are my sworn enemies!"

[Andrea]

In what ways did Beethoven's Pastoral Symphony foreshadow Berlioz' "Symphonie Fantastique"?

[Rod]

Originally posted by Andrea:
In what ways did Beethoven's Pastoral Symphony foreshadow Berlioz' "Symphonie Fantastique"?

I humbly suggest no Beethoven work could be construed as a presage to a work by Berlioz!


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"If I were but of noble birth..." - Rod Corkin

[This message has been edited by Rod (edited September 14, 2003).]

[Amalie]

Originally posted by Rod:
I humbly suggest no Beethoven work could construed as a presage to a work by Berlioz!

I have read that the the 3rd movement of Berlioz fantastique is a homage to Beethoven's Pastoral Symphony.

[Amalie]

Originally posted by Sorrano:
Unless this is a trick question I'd have to say Romeo and Juliet.

Sorry Sorrano, It was Much Ado About Nothing.

[Andrea]

Originally posted by Andrea:
In what ways did Beethoven's Pastoral Symphony foreshadow Berlioz' "Symphonie Fantastique"?

For the first time, Beethoven provided descriptions for each of the movements; also, he gave musical representation to such things in nature as a babbling brook, birds and a thunderstorm!

[Peter]

Originally posted by Andrea:
For the first time, Beethoven provided descriptions for each of the movements; also, he gave musical representation to such things in nature as a babbling brook, birds and a thunderstorm!

There are however earlier examples by other composers - There was a well known piano piece called 'The Battle of Prague' by Kotzwara littered with titles such as 'flying bullets' or 'cries of the wounded' - nor were these isolated examples, such descriptive works were common. Beethoven's model for the Pastoral symphony was a symphony by Justin Knecht 'The Musical Portait of Nature' consisting of 5 movements: 1st mov beautiful sunlit countryside, 3rd mov Storm, 5th mov 'Nature raises her voice towards heaven offering to the creator sweet and agreeable songs' - This work was actually advertised on the cover of Beethoven's 3 early Sonatas WoO47.

Here is Berlioz on the storm from Beethoven's 6th - "I despair of being able to give an idea of this prodigious movement...Listen!- listen to those rain-charged squalls of wind; to the dull grumblings of the basses; also to the keen whistling of the piccolo, which announces to us that a horrible tempest is about to break. The hurricane approaches and grows in force; an immense chromatic feature, starting from the heights....pursues its course until it gropes its way to the lowest orchestral depths...Then the trombones burst forth, the thunder of the kettledrums becomes redoubled in violence, no longer merely rain and wind, but an awful catacylsm, the universal deluge- the end of the world."

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'Man know thyself'



[This message has been edited by Peter (edited September 15, 2003).]

[urtextmeister]

What contemporary of Beethoven was a favorite composer/performer in Vienna and Paris, but died lonely and impoverished in Spain?

[Peter]

Originally posted by mrfixit:
Ok heres a fairly easy question. In the opening of the Beethoven movie Inmortal beloved there is a mistake with the funeral scene. Can someone tell me what it is?

The whole film was riddled with mistakes, but perhaps the mistake you are referring to was the music ? It's been a while since I endured the film, though they have recently shown it again on the BBC.

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'Man know thyself'

[Chaszz]

This may not be true, but it is a story that used to make the rounds and was believed to be true. When a certain composer was trying to fall asleep one night, someone downstairs played a G7 chord on the piano, without resolving it to a C. The composer tried and tried, but could not sleep until he had come downstairs and played the C chord. Who was this?

[Peter]

Originally posted by urtextmeister:
What contemporary of Beethoven was a favorite composer/performer in Vienna and Paris, but died lonely and impoverished in Spain?

I can only think of Dussek who ended up an alcoholic.

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'Man know thyself'

[Joy]

Originally posted by mrfixit:
Ok heres a fairly easy question. In the opening of the Beethoven movie Inmortal beloved there is a mistake with the funeral scene. Can someone tell me what it is?

So many mistakes, so little time! Was it the fact that the wrong people showed up at the funeral? Was his sister in law Joanna really there? I wonder!



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'Truth and beauty joined'

[Amalie]

Richard Wagner once took a fellow composer to hear one of his operas . During the overture he leaned over to his friend and said; I'm terribly sorry, old chap, but I am afriad I stole this bit from you.
His friend replied, "Don't worry, at least now someone will hear it".

Who was Wagner's stocial friend?

[spaceray]

Originally posted by Chaszz:
This may not be true, but it is a story that used to make the rounds and was believed to be true. When a certain composer was trying to fall asleep one night, someone downstairs played a G7 chord on the piano, without resolving it to a C. The composer tried and tried, but could not sleep until he had come downstairs and played the C chord. Who was this?

Bach?