composers

Test your ballet knowledge!

1. Who composed The Firebird and Rite of Spring?

a) Rimsky-Korsakov

b) Stravinsky

c) Holst

d) Mahler

2. Renowned multidisciplinary artist Solange Knowles recently composed and premiered a score for a ballet. She collaborated with choreographer Gianna Riesen on this commission. Which company premiered this piece? 

a) Royal New Zealand Ballet

b) American Ballet Theatre

c) San Francisco Ballet

d) New York City Ballet

3. Tchaikovsky’s Swan Lake isn’t the only swan-themed music used for a ballet. The Swan written by French composer Camille Saint-Saëns is the well recognized song danced to for the Dying Swan, and comes from a larger musical suite. What is the title of the musical suite which The Swan appears in? (source- classicfm.com)

a) Peter and the Wolf

b) Carnival of the Animals

c) Grand Canyon Suite

d) Water Music

4. Tchaikovsky discovered and kept a relatively unknown unique instrument a secret until it was used for the Sugar Plum Fairy Variation in the premiere of The Nutcracker. What is this instrument, still used today to create the magical sounds of this variation? (source- kusc.org) 

a) Celesta

b) Xylophone

c) Theremin

d) Harpsichord

5. Who composed the ballet score for Sylvia? 

a) Tchaikovsky

b) Stravinsky

c) Delibes

d) Prokofiev

6. Justin Peck has worked with many present-day songwriters and musicians for his new works. Which artist did he work with for his 2012 piece, Year of the Rabbit? 

a) M83

b) Sufjan Stevens

c) Caroline Shaw

d) Bryce Dessner

Answers

1. Answer- B

2. Answer- D 

Ballet fun fact! The piece was titled “Play Time” and premiered on September 29, 2022 at NYCB’s Fall Fashion Gala. From an article in Essence: “Knowles is, stunningly, only the second black woman to ever write a score for the NYCB. The first, Lido Pimienta, composed “sky to hold” for the company in 2021.” “As a musician, visual artist, and dancer, Knowles is an embodiment of the spirit of the NYCB, its multidisciplinary ethos, and its willingness to challenge convention, the delights of dreams and play. The end result is magical and buoyant, making so much sense that you wonder what took so long for it to happen.” (source- essence.com) 

3. Answer- B

Ballet fun fact! While it doesn't feature swans (it does have a duck though!), Peter and the Wolf is also often performed as a ballet, using music composed by Prokofiev. The last two are works not commonly used as ballet music but are still popular compositions- Grand Canyon Suite is composed by Ferde Grofé, and Water Music is composed by George Frideric Handel. 

4. Answer- A 

Ballet Fun Fact! According to kusc.org, the celesta is “a keyboard instrument where the hammers strike orchestral bells. Nowadays, the celesta is a standard instrument to find in the symphony hall as well as pop and film music. It’s the instrument behind Hedwig’s Theme from Harry Potter as well as the introduction to Won’t You Be My Neighbor from Mr. Rodgers’ Neighborhood.” 

5. Answer- C

6. Answer- B

Ballet fun fact! Although Peck has worked with all these artists, Year of the Rabbit is set to Sufjan Steven’s compositions (pitchfork.com). Peck used M83’s music for Hurry Up, We’re Dreaming (source-sfballet.org), Bryce Dessner’s music for Murder Ballades (ladanceproject.org), and Caroline Shaw’s compositions for Partita (nycballet.com)