Operatic History – the Fifteenth Century

15 Points Per Correct Answer - No time limit  

1. Sultan Bayezid I (1347-1403) was a fierce opponent of the Byzantine Empire. But his military efforts against the Byzantines were diverted by a Mongol strategist. Who was this Mongol King, who defeated Sultan Bayezid I at Ankara in 1402? Georg Friedrich Handel composed an opera on this Mongol King in 1724. Genghis Khan Ogedei Kublai Khan Timur Lenk

2. Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky completed an opera named “Orleanskaja Deva” (“The Lady of Orleans”) in 1881. Who was this famous French girl, executed in 1431? Answer: (Two words in the French orthography, three in the English orthography)

3. Adalbert Gyrowetz named an opera completed in 1806 after the mistress of Charles VII of France. She was born in 1420 and died in 1450. This mistress also gave her name to a creamy white soup. Who was she? Answer: (Two Words - this woman is always named with her first and last name)

4. Manoles Kalomoires commemorated the last Byzantine Emperor in his 1962 opera. What were the name, ordinal number and surname of this Emperor? Basil II Bulgaroctonos Constantine XI Palaeologus Leo III the Isaurian John II Komnenos

5. In 1957, Sem Dresden named an opera after a French poet (1431-1464). Who was this poet, who published “Le petit testament” (“The Little Testament”) and “Le grand testament” (“The Grand Testament”)? Chretien de Troyes Francois Villon Francois Rabelais Francois-Marie Arouet

6. In this question, we’re looking for a woman born in 1457. She succeeded her father Charles the Bold in 1477 and married Maximilian I of Austria. She died in 1482. Pavel Ivanovic Blaramberg dedicated an opera to her. Who was this duchess? Margaret of Parma Joan of Castile Mary of Burgundy Isabella of Portugal

7. The “drama per musica” (musical drama) “La rosa bianca e la rosa rossa” (“The White Rose and the Red Rose”, 1813) by Johann Simon Mayr refers of course to the English Wars of the Roses. This was a civil war fought between two noble families whose coat of arms showed a white or a red rose. Which family had the *white* rose on its escutcheon? Tudor York Lancaster Windsor

8. The year 1492 was marked by two very important events. One of these events was the Spanish recapture of the last city held by Moorish people. Which was this city? Juan Arrieta Correra named an opera after this event. And classical musical buffs will also recite the song made famous by José Carreras. Aranjuez Cordoba Valencia Granada

9. Darius Milhaud dedicated an opera to the explorer who became world famous in 1492. This Genoese adventurer obtained permission from the Spanish King Ferdinand and Queen Isabella to equip three ships for a voyage to the East Indies. Who was this adventurer? Answer: (Two Words - English orthography)

10. Giacomo Meyerbeer’s opera “L’Africaine” contains a character based upon Vasco da Gama, the first Portuguese navigator to reach India by rounding Cape of Good Hope. True False