Claudio Monteverdi Quiz Questions and Answers
Q1. Where was Claudio Monteverdi baptized on May 15, 1567?
A. Venice
B. Florence
C. Cremona
D. Mantua
Answer: C. Cremona
Q2. In what year did Claudio Monteverdi publish his first work, the motets titled Sacrae cantiunculae for three voices?
A. 1577
B. 1582
C. 1587
D. 1592
Answer: B. 1582
Q3. Who served as Claudio Monteverdi’s primary teacher during his early studies in Cremona, providing him with a foundation in counterpoint and composition?
A. Giovanni Maria Artusi
B. Luca Marenzio
C. Marc’Antonio Ingegneri
D. Giaches de Wert
Answer: C. Marc’Antonio Ingegneri
Q4. What was the title of Monteverdi’s second publication in 1583, which consisted of spiritual madrigals?
A. Madrigali spirituali
B. Sacrae cantiunculae
C. Canzoni a tre voci
D. Il primo libro de madrigali
Answer: A. Madrigali spirituali
Q5. To whom did Monteverdi dedicate his first book of five-part madrigals, published in 1587?
A. Duke Vincenzo I Gonzaga
B. Count Marco Verita
C. Giacomo Ricardi
D. Ottavio Rinuccini
Answer: B. Count Marco Verita
Q6. Around what year did Monteverdi enter the service of the Mantuan court as a string player?
A. 1580
B. 1585
C. 1590
D. 1610
Answer: C. 1590
Q7. In what year did Monteverdi accompany Duke Vincenzo I Gonzaga on a military campaign to Hungary?
A. 1595
B. 1599
C. 1605
D. 1615
Answer: A. 1595
Q8. Who was Claudio Monteverdi’s wife, a court singer whom he married in 1599?
A. Madama Europa
B. Caterina Martinelli
C. Claudia de Cattaneis
D. Francesca Caccini
Answer: C. Claudia de Cattaneis
Q9. How many children did Monteverdi and his wife Claudia have, and what were the names of their surviving sons?
A. Two: Francesco and Giulio Cesare
B. Three: Francesco, Massimiliano, and a daughter
C. Four: including two daughters
D. One: only Francesco
Answer: B. Three: Francesco, Massimiliano, and a daughter
Q10. Following the death of Benedetto Pallavicino, in what year was Monteverdi appointed maestro di cappella at the Mantuan court?
A. 1601
B. 1606
C. 1607
D. 1613
Answer: A. 1601
Q11. What was the premiere year and setting of Monteverdi’s first opera, L’Orfeo, which is the earliest opera still widely performed today?
A. 1600, in Florence
B. 1607, in Mantua
C. 1610, in Venice
D. 1640, in Bologna
Answer: B. 1607, in Mantua
Q12. Who wrote the libretto for Monteverdi’s opera L’Orfeo?
A. Ottavio Rinuccini
B. Torquato Tasso
C. Alessandro Striggio
D. Giambattista Marino
Answer: C. Alessandro Striggio
Q13. In what year was Monteverdi’s opera L’Arianna performed, and what is the most famous surviving excerpt from it?
A. 1607; the prologue
B. 1608; Lamento d’Arianna
C. 1640; Penelope’s lament
D. 1643; the coronation scene
Answer: B. 1608; Lamento d’Arianna
Q14. What prestigious position did Monteverdi assume at the Basilica of San Marco in Venice in 1613?
A. Organist
B. Court composer
C. Maestro di cappella
D. Choirmaster in training
Answer: C. Maestro di cappella
Q15. In what year did Monteverdi publish his large-scale sacred work, the Vespro della Beata Vergine?
A. 1605
B. 1610
C. 1614
D. 1640
Answer: B. 1610
Q16. Who was the music theorist that criticized Monteverdi’s innovative harmonies in publications from 1600 and 1603?
A. Giovanni Maria Artusi
B. Marc’Antonio Ingegneri
C. Heinrich Schütz
D. Claudio Saracini
Answer: A. Giovanni Maria Artusi
Q17. Monteverdi’s brother, who also became a musician and defended the seconda pratica in print, was named:
A. Francesco
B. Massimiliano
C. Giulio Cesare
D. Baldassare
Answer: C. Giulio Cesare
Q18. In what year was Monteverdi’s sixth book of madrigals published, which includes a five-voice version of Lamento d’Arianna?
A. 1605
B. 1614
C. 1619
D. 1638
Answer: B. 1614
Q19. What innovative musical technique did Monteverdi introduce in his 1624 work Combattimento di Tancredi e Clorinda to depict warlike emotions?
A. Monody
B. Ritornello
C. Stile concitato
D. Falsobordone
Answer: C. Stile concitato
Q20. Which of Monteverdi’s sons was arrested by the Inquisition in 1627 for possessing forbidden literature, prompting Monteverdi to sell a pearl necklace for his defense?
A. Francesco
B. Giulio Cesare
C. Massimiliano
D. Baldassare
Answer: C. Massimiliano
Q21. What is the premiere year of Monteverdi’s opera Il ritorno d’Ulisse in patria?
A. 1607
B. 1640
C. 1642
D. 1643
Answer: B. 1640
Q22. Monteverdi’s final opera, L’incoronazione di Poppea, premiered in what year and location?
A. 1640, Bologna
B. 1608, Mantua
C. 1643, Venice
D. 1617, Florence
Answer: C. 1643, Venice
Q23. What collection of sacred and moral music did Monteverdi publish between 1640 and 1641, including psalms and Magnificats?
A. Vespro della Beata Vergine
B. Selva morale e spirituale
C. Messa in illo tempore
D. Madrigali guerrieri et amorosi
Answer: B. Selva morale e spirituale
Q24. In what year did Monteverdi’s eighth book of madrigals, titled Madrigali guerrieri et amorosi, appear?
A. 1614
B. 1619
C. 1638
D. 1651
Answer: C. 1638
Q25. Where was Claudio Monteverdi buried following his death on November 29, 1643?
A. Cremona Cathedral
B. Basilica of San Marco
C. Santa Maria Gloriosa dei Frari
D. Mantuan court chapel
Answer: C. Santa Maria Gloriosa dei Frari