I've Heard That Song Before Trivia Quiz

Answer: So Deep Is The Night

Based on Chopin's Piano Etude in E Major, Opus 10, "Tristesse", "So Deep Is The Night" was recorded by Ken Dodd in 1964.

Ken Dodd is best known as a comedian, but he has made many records in his long career, and "Tears", recorded in 1965, is in the top 20 of the most sold songs in the UK.

Answer: Tchaikovsky

"Nut Rocker" was based on "March of the Wooden Soldiers" from Tchaikovsky's ballet "The Nutcracker". Their follow up record was "Apple Knocker" based on "William Tell Overture" by Rossini, but neither this, nor "Dawn Cracker", taken from a Grieg piece, were as popular and 1963 saw their last UK record releases.

Answer: Borodin

"Kismet", written in 1953 includes such wonderful songs as "And This Is My Beloved" and "Stranger in Paradise". All the themes are taken from music by Alexander Borodin, especially "Polotsvian Dances" and "Prince Igor".

Answer: Going Home

In addition to the 1922 Paul Robeson song, this theme has also been used in a British TV advertisement for Hovis bread.

The symphony was composed by Dvorak in 1893 whilst on a visit to the United States. It was commissioned by the New York Philharmonic Orchestra and had its premier at Carnegie Hall in December 1893. It is probably Dvorak's best known and most popular piece.

Answer: Carmen

George Bizet's opera "Carmen" was re-made as "Carmen Jones", first, in 1943, as a musical, and then, in 1954, as a film. The setting was changed to African-American, Oscar Hammerstein ll wrote the lyrics, but, apart from some re-orchestration, Bizet's score was unchanged. The film starred Harry Belafonte and Dorothy Dandridge.

Answer: Louis Clark

"Hooked on Classics" took short, well known, extracts of classical pieces and played them over a continuous beat, the beat being the means of linking all the pieces together. The first album made Number Ten on the Billboard Hot 100 in 1981/82. Louis Clark produced two more "Hooked On Classics" albums in 1982 and 1983, as well as themed recordings such as "Hooked on Swing" and "Hooked on Baroque".

Answer: Nessun Dorma

Neil Sedaka is a prolific singer/songwriter. On his "Classically Sedaka" CD he puts new, romantic, words to much loved classical themes by Beethoven, Rachmaninov, Tchaikovsky, Puccini, and others.

"Nessun Dorma" became known to a host of non opera fans thanks to the Football World Cup of 1990, held in Rome. Not only was it the BBC TV theme for the tournament, but this was also the year the first of the famous "Three Tenors" concerts was held.

Answer: It's Now Or Never

"It's Now Or Never" was recorded in 1960 and has sold some 25 million copies worldwide making it Elvis's biggest international hit single. Based on the Italian standard "O Sole Mio", which has been recorded by such greats as Gigli, Caruso, and Pavarotti, it was something of a departure from his earlier recordings, and did prove that Elvis could actually sing.

Answer: The Barber of Seville

Louis Prima started with a New Orleans style jazz band, but was more than happy to move with the times and changing musical tastes, and from jazz went to a swing combo and from there to a 1940s big band. In the 1950s he had a Vegas style lounge act and in the 1960s a pop-rock band. "The Bigger The Figure" was recorded in 1952.

Answer: Minuet in G Major

Recorded in 1965 "A Lover's Concerto" made number two on the Billboard Hot 100. The melody is Based on Bach's "Minuet in G Major" but with a change from 3/4 time to 4/4 time.

In recent years there has been debate as to whether or not "Minuet in G Major" was actually written by Bach or by Christian Petzold. The music was contained in a book of sheet music kept by Bach's wife, Anna Magdalena, and it was thought that all of the music in it was Bach's, however some works, including "Minuet in G Major" are not in Bach's handwriting.