Wednesday, April 30, 2008

The Thursday Quiz XXXV

The Thursday Quiz!

The Thursday Quiz is an "Is It or Isn't It" game. From the list of twelve items, your job is to determine whether each IS or ISN'T a true example of the week's category.

Remember always that you should never clap until the whole piece is finished. Also:
No research, Googling, Wikiing, or use of reference books. The Thursday
Quiz is a POP quiz. Violators will find themselves on the cutting room floor.
This Week's Category will hit you like the crash of symbols and the blare of trumpets!

Famous Symphonies

Some of the following are genuine pieces of classical music. Some of them are not. Which are which?

1. Beethoven's 6th ("Pastoral")
2. Beethoven's 8th ("Eroica")
3. Beethoven's 12th ("Tragic")
4. Brahm's 9th ("Eternal")
5. Dvorak's 3rd ("New World")
6. Haydn's 94th ("Surprise")
7. Mahler's 1st ("Titan")
8. Mendelsohn's 28th ("Dutch")
9. Mozart's 6th ("Prague")
10. Mozart's 41st ("Jupiter")
11. Schumann's 3rd ("Unfinished")
12. Tchaikovsky's 6th ("Pathetique")

Express the sublime and glorious by posting your answers in the comments.

20 comments:

fingerstothebone said...

I keep waiting for you to do another Thursday quiz in which I actually know something. A girl must wait a long time sometimes. I'm still waiting.

1. yes
2. yes
3. no
4. no
5. yes
6. no
7. yes
8. no
9. yes
10. no
11. no
12. yes

What the heck...Publish My Comment

Anonymous said...

1 / is
2 / isn't
3 / isn't
4 / is
5 / is
6 / isn't
7 / is
8 / isn't
9 / isn't
10 / is
11 / is
12 / is

I suppose a true aficianado would question whether some of the real pieces are "genuine".

Karin said...

How can it be that I know none of these? How can it be that I persist in answering?

1. is
2. is
3. isn't
4. is
5. is
6. isn't
7. isn't
8. isn't
9. isn't
10. is
11. is
12. isn't

That was "Pathetique".

Cartophiliac said...

1. true
2. true
3. false
4. false
5. true
6. true
7. false
8. false
9. false
10. false
11. true
12. true

The whole thing is pathetic

The Calico Cat said...

HA HA HA - I get here in time to play & all I can say is that you at least have real composers. (I could probably cheat my way through this one easy enough, but...)

Unknown said...

1. is
2. isn't
3. isn't
4. isn't
5. isn't
6. is
7. is
8. isn't. there's just no way he wrote that many.
9. isn't-- 38.
10. is
11. er... isn't? isn't it Schubert? not very certain of this one.
12. is!

d said...

oh, i'm gonna suck it all to hell and back on this one.

1y 2n 3n 4y 5y 6n 7n 8y 9y 10n 11y 12n

jovaliquilts said...

Here goes:
3) No
4), 7), & 8) ?

The rest I'm saying YES to. Don't know whether the numbers and titles match, but I'm going to assume you wouldn't trick us on that level. Would you???

Anonymous said...

I refuse to participate in a quiz represented only by dead white males. Fight the power.

Elizabeth said...

Hm. This will be hard because I never remember which numbers go with which names. Here are my twelve(-tone) semieducated guesses:

1. Yes, in that there was a sixth symphony and a "pastoral" one. Hope they synch.
2. Yes, for the same reason as above.
3. No. The roster stops at 9, though I think there are rumors of bits of #10 out there.
4. No, that doesn't sound familiar. And I am not sure he wrote nine.
5. Yes (w/caveats as #1 and #2).
6. Wow. He wrote a "surprise" symphony, and he wrote lots of symphonies, but 94? Oh, okay, yes.
7. Yes. ?. Yes. I'm not all that into Mahler.
8. Mmmmmmm ... No. And it's "Mendelssohn" with two Ss. Sssss.
9. Again, "prague" yes, 6, yes, so saying "yes" under the caveat law.
10. Yes for sure. Whew!
11. No? No, yes. No, no. "No" is my final answer.
12. Yes.

Going to get major heckling from sister and nephew if I don't make a respectable showing on this one. Though I will note that *I* am not the one who was once a music major ...

Anonymous said...

Too bad this isn't an open-CD-shelf quiz.
1 yes
2 sounds good. yes
3 no. tragic he didn't write twelve.
4 I'm saying no.
5 you wouldn't be too maliciously trickster with the numbers, would you? yes.
6 oh, I'm awake! yes.
7 now I'm lost. ugh. yes.
8 I've never heard of Mendelsohn's 28th. Or his first, for that matter. no.
9 Well, someone has a Prague, maybe it's Mozart, but could it possibly be his sixth? I'm saying no.
10 yes, she said confidently
11 uh, yes
12 yes!

DrSchnell said...

1. yes
2. Hmmm. I think that was an earlier one. So, no.
3. No such creature.
4. I don't think Brahms ever got that high. Numberwise, anyway.
5. Wrong number (it's the 9th)
6. Oh, hell. How about yes? On a side note, it seems that if anybody writes that many symphonies, there's almost certainly some quality control issues. I think there should be a statutory limit on symphonies at 9. Once you hit that, start writing some damned cello concertos.
7. Yes, indeed. Great piece, which I believe Michael5000 witnessed me playing in the KU orchestra for.
8. Never heard of it, so I'll say no.
9. Again, never heard of it, so I'll say no.
10. Yes
11. I think the unfinished was the 8th, and he finished one after it.
12. Yes indeedy.

DrSchnell said...

Oh yeah, and upon looking through this again, a double no for number 11, since it was Schubert that never finished the symphony, not Schumann. And even if it had been, it would have been #8. So does a double negative make it a positive??

McGuff said...

Music to soothe the savage beast: 1,2,5,6,7,10,12.

Submitted by WWAN from side of the road near Brenham TX (between Austin and Houston) because I CANNOT miss another TQ. Attempted to email answers to M5K (PDA can read blog but can't post comments) but couldn't remember M5's email address quite right.

Had you received an emergency entry submitted by email, would it have counted? Wondering.

Anonymous said...

I would not know here if there were tricks involved.

I will be answering from the guessing couch this evening.

1. is
2. isn't
3. isn't
4. is
5. is
6. is
7. is
8. isn't
9. isn't
10. is
11. is
12. is

rosegirl said...

1. IS Beethoven's 6th ("Pastoral")
2. IS Beethoven's 8th ("Eroica")
3. IS Beethoven's 12th ("Tragic")
4. IS Brahm's 9th ("Eternal")
5. IS Dvorak's 3rd ("New World")
6. NOT Haydn's 94th ("Surprise")
7. IS Mahler's 1st ("Titan")
8. NOT Mendelsohn's 28th ("Dutch")
9. NOT Mozart's 6th ("Prague")
10. IS Mozart's 41st ("Jupiter")
11. NOT Schumann's 3rd ("Unfinished")
12. IS Tchaikovsky's 6th ("Pathetique")

Michael5000 said...

And the answers are...

But before we even start, let me remind you that most symphonies are identified by numbers, so mismatching numbers and nicknames, whilst certainly tricksy, is by no means weasely.

Now then:

1. Beethoven's 6th ("Pastoral") -- Mmm... Pastoral... Yes.

2. Beethoven's 8th ("Eroica") -- No. The Eroica is #3.

3. Beethoven's 12th ("Tragic") -- And Beethoven stopped at 9 (with a few sketches for a tenth). No.

4. Brahm's 9th ("Eternal"). -- No. Brahms stopped at four. Also, his name is "Brahms," not "Brahm."

5. Dvorak's 3rd ("New World") --The "New World" was the 5th during the early 1900s, but is now comfortably the 9th. Either way, No.

6. Haydn's 94th ("Surprise") -- Yes.

7. Mahler's 1st ("Titan") -- Yes.

8. Mendelsohn's 28th ("Dutch") -- Mendelssohn's 3rd is the "Scottish" and his 4th is the "Italian," but he stopped at five. Even if you count some juvenile efforts, he doesn't get to the 20s. Also, his name has two S's.

9. Mozart's 6th ("Prague") -- Nah. That's the 38th.

10. Mozart's 41st ("Jupiter") -- Yes.

11. Schumann's 3rd ("Unfinished") -- Nope, that's Schubert's 8th.

12. Tchaikovsky's 6th ("Pathetique") -- Yes (sniffle).

Michael5000 said...

And da winners are!

The TQXXXV Gold Star goes to Becky, who returns to the winners circle after a long drought going all the way back to her twin Golds at TQXVI & XVII! With three Golds in her trophy case, she joins the tie for most career Gold Stars.

The Silver Star goes to DrSchnell; it's his fourth.

The Blue goes to Phineas, checking in late in the day with 10/12 to box out several people who had 9/12. It's the third Blue Star in his trophy case.

Well done to all competitors, especially the guessers!

Michael5000 said...


@fingers: I'm surprised that an opera girl like you isn't confident with the symphonies. That's like a marathon runner who can't walk.

@Critical Bill: A strong statement. I am ashamed.

@Elizabeth: For the record, I feel you made a respectable showing. And, your score was higher than your sister's and nephew's COMBINED. Just sayin...

@DrSchnell: I'm OK with the 9-symphony limit, with exceptions for Mozart and especially for Haydn. I've never heard a Haydn symphony I didn't like, and there are freaking 104 of them.

@Phineas: Haven't seen an Email, but likely would have counted it. The next few quizzes will have an Email option anyway, as it turns out.

@Boo: Keep that guessing couch -- you did pretty well.

@rosegirl: Welcome to the show!

Unknown said...

Represent! Thanks, hombre. I heart symphonies. In fact, I think you should do a "104 days of Haydn" Festival.