You are a pro and knew it all? Here are the answers, just in case. For the others, why not a little bit more input…

1 R – 2 Q – 3 T – 4 A – 5 C – 6 D – 7 B – 8 N – 9 J – 10 M – 11 I – 12 K – 13 S – 14 O – 15 L – 16 E – 17 H – 18 P – 19 F – 20 G

1.    a theatrical work for singers and orchestra: opera. Opera started in Italy at the end of the 16th century with Peris’s lost Dafne, produced around 1597 but most textbooks cite Monteverdi’s Orfeo as the first official one, in 1607. The genre soon spread through the rest of Europe.

2.    a composition for soloist(s) and orchestra, usually in three movements: concerto. We’ll soon demystify that concept.

3.    a number in an opera, oratorio, or cantata for a single vocal soloist with orchestral accompaniment: aria.

4.    a composition for vocal soloists (usually just one or two) and orchestra, often with chorus as well and divided into several sections or movements: cantata. It can be sacred or not. Bach has written wonderful ones.

5.    a procedure in which a subject in one voice is repeated in different registers by several additional voices in succession: fugue. The term fuga was used as far back as the Middle Ages, but was initially used to refer to any kind of imitative counterpoint. It was not until the 16th century that fugal technique as it is understood today began to be seen in pieces, both instrumental and vocal. There also, Bach remains a master.

6.    instrumental music inspired by some extra-musical element – a story, a character, a landscape, a literary figure or an event: program music. The most famous example may be Berlioz’s Symphonie fantastique. (more…)

Musical vocabulary may appear at times a bit strange, at others very precise. Do you know it well? Here is a little game for you to find out. You only need to association the definitition and the term. Answers (and some explanations) in our next post.

Definitions

1.    a theatrical work for singers and orchestra
2.    a composition for soloist(s) and orchestra, usually in three movements
3.    a number in an opera, oratorio, or cantata for a single vocal soloist with orchestral accompaniment
4.    a composition for vocal soloists (usually just one or two) and orchestra, often with chorus as well and divided into several sections or movements
5.    a procedure in which a subject in one voice is repeated in different registers by several additional voices in succession
6.    instrumental music inspired by some extra-musical element – a story, a character, a landscape, a literary figure or an event
7.    art songs (as opposed to folk or popular songs) by German composers
8.    a musical form in which the principal theme alternates with a succession of subsidiary themes in the pattern of ABACADA
9.    a device used to dampen or muffle the sound
10.    a composition, often in three movements and usually written for either a single instrument or for a string or wind instrument plus piano
11.    a composition for orchestra usually lasting anywhere from about twenty to fifty minutes and often in four movements
12.    how loudly or softly the music should be played
13.    the rhythmic device of emphasizing the unstressed or weak beats instead of the normally accented strong beats
14.    the person who stands at the front of a band, orchestra, chorus or ensemble
15.    a passage in a composition for soloist and orchestra where the soloist plays completely alone, often in a virtuosic manner
16.    a group of singers who perform together, with more than one singer per part
17.    a symbol at the beginning of a line of music serving as a point of reference to indicate where all the pitches lie on the staff
18.    a method of composition in which all twelve pitches of the chromatic scale are treated equally
19.    the distance between two pitches
20.    The leader of the first violin section of an orchestra

Terms

A.    cantata
B.    lieder
C.    fugue
D.    program music
E.    choir
F.    interval
G.    concertmaster
H.    clef
I.    symphony
J.    mute
K.    dynamics
L.    cadenza
M.    sonata
N.    rondo
O.    conductor
P.    dodecaphony
Q.    concerto
R.    opera
S.    syncopation
T.    aria

a) Schumann died at 46

b) Clara was 20 when she married Schumann. After much ordeal and various menaces from Clara’s father, Friedrich Wieck, the wedding finally was held.

c) How many kids did the couple have? 8, among which Eugenie, who wrote her Memoirs and gave us much insight into the household’s daily routine, and Julie, who Brahms fell in love with. (He dedicated her Rhapsody for alto.)

d) Which finger did Schumann hurt? 4th

e) Month of Schumann’s birth (January being 1, February 2, etc.): June (6)

f) Number of pieces in Kinderszenen opus 15: 13. Schumann wrote 30 then chose 13 to include in the set.

g) Number of piano concertos composed by Schumann: only one.

h) Intermezzi opus 4

i) Schumann married 1 time, with his beloved Clara, virtuoso, composer… and mother.

Do you know Schumann well? Resolve the following equation to find out!

(a) multiplied by (b) multiplied by (c) divided bt (d) plus (e) plus (f) plus (g) minus (h) multiplied by (i) = ?

What does this number represent? (Answers revealed tomorrow.)

a) Schumann died at …
b) Clara was … when she married Schumann
c) How many kids did the couple have?
d) Which finger did Schumann hurt?
e) Month of Schumann’s birth (January being 1, February 2, etc.)
f) Number of pieces in Kinderszenen opus 15
g) Number of piano concertos composed by Schumann
h) Intermezzi opus….
i) Schumann married … time(s).

To listen to Schumann, as performed by Anton Kuerti…