Operatic History in the Twentieth Century

15 Points Per Correct Answer - No time limit  

1. In 1973 Benjamin Britten composed an opera entitled "Death in Venice". Its title is the English translation of the German novel "Der Tod in Venedig" published in 1911. Who wrote the novel? By the way, I've replaced the umlauts in some of the names by the alternate spelling (vowel plus e) because otherwise you might see strange options in Flash Quiz type. Thomas Mann Heinrich Boell Guenther Grass Guenther Wallraff

2. 1914 saw the first night of Ralph Benatzky's Singspiel "Anno 1914". The principal event of this year was of course the outbreak of World War I. At the time, this war had another name (for everyone hoped there would be never a Second World War). What was from 1914 until about 1940 the usual denomination for what later became known as the First World War? The Four Years' War The War for Democracy The War on Terror The Great War

3. In 1983 Anton Garcia Abril named a musical comedy after the artist's name adopted by Margaretha Geertruida Zelle, a Dutch exotic dancer, who was in 1917 convicted of espionage and executed by the French army. She chose as pseudonym a Malay phrase for "Eye of the Day" (or "Sun"). What was this phrase? Answer: (Two Words - Four Letters Each)

4. Friedrich Schroeder named in 1948 an operetta after a make of perfume. It is probably the only operetta called after the brand name of any consumable. What is the name of this French perfume created in 1921? The person who invented this fragrance would die in 1971. By the way, the official orthography of Chanel's perfume was altered to avoid annoying effects in Flash Quiz Mode. L'Air du Temps J'Adore Anais Anais Chanel number 5

5. In 1972, Francis Miroglio completed an opera entitled "Il faut rêver, dit Lenine" ("One Has to Dream, Says Lenin"). Lenin is in fact a pseudonym. What was the name given to Lenin at his birth? Josef Vissarionovitch Dzhugashvili Lev Davidovich Bronstein Josip Broz Vladimir Ilyitch Ulyanov

6. Jack Beeson composed in 1965 an opera named after an American woman accused of murder on her father and stepmother. What was her name? Thomas Albert composed another opera named after her (but using only her first name in the title). Maria Swanenburg Erszebeth Bathory Lizzie Borden Agatha Miller

7. In 1986, Geert van Keulen completed an opera entitled "Aan de Wannsee" ("On the Banks of the Wannsee"). This opera derives its name from the Wannsee Conference (January 20, 1942). What was the main program decided upon at this conference? The development of the atomic bomb The establishment of the United Nations The Japanese attack on Pearl Harbour The mass extermination of Jews

8. Julij Mejtus created in 1976 an opera named after a famous Soviet spy executed during World War II. What was his name? By the way, this spy predicted the German invasion in Russia to almost the exact day. Vidkun Quisling Gary Powers Julius Rosenberg Richard Sorge

9. In 1996, Kurt Vonnegut's novel "Slaughterhouse Five" inspired Hans-Jürgen von Bose to compose an opera entitled "Schlachthof Fünf" (the German translation of the novel's title). Both the novel and the opera relate the events on February 13th and 14th, 1944. Which were these events? Von Stauffenberg's attempt to murder Hitler The invasion of Normandy The tank battle near Kursk The bombing of Dresden

10. It is common knowledge that the US Air Force used two atomic bombs on Japanese cities. These bombardments are remembered in at least two classical compositions: "Threnody to the Victims of Hiroshima" by Krzysztof Penderecki and "Hibakusha Songs" by Robert Steadman. As you will surely know, the first atomic bomb was dropped on Hiroshima on August 6th, 1945. A second bomb was dropped on August 9th. What is the name of the Japanese city destroyed by the second atomic bomb? Answer: (One Word)

11. Philip Glass dedicated in 1976 an opera to a German born scientist who passed away in 1955. Who was this scientist? The opera is entitled "X on the Beach", where X represents the scientist's name. Answer: (One Word - Last Name Only)

12. 1986 saw the first night of an opera dedicated to the Negro emancipation in the United States. Anthony Davis portrays in this opera one of the militant black leaders, who was murdered in 1965. What was the pseudonym of this icon of the Black Muslims? Louis Farrakhan Rosa Parks Malcolm X Martin Luther King

13. In 1997, Michael Daugherty completed an opera entitled "Jackie O". This opera is dedicated to Jacqueline Bouvier, who obtained world fame by her two marriages. In 1968 (five years after the death of her first husband), Jacqueline married a European business tycoon. What was his name? Michael O'Leary Aristoteles Onassis Ozzy Osbourne Ronnie O'Sullivan

14. John C. Adams composed in 1987 an opera named after the first official visit of a US president to the People's Republic of China. Who was this President? Richard Milhous Nixon Lyndon Baines Johnson John Fitzgerald Kennedy Dwight David Eisenhower

15. John C. Adams was inspired in 1991 by the hijacking of an Italian ship. The Palestines who took over this ship, shocked the world in killing Leon Klinghoffer - a Jew confined to a wheelchair. Adams' opera is entitled "The Death of Klinghoffer". What was the name of the Italian ship? Achille Lauro Amerigo Vespucci Andrea Doria Antonio Vivaldi