George Gershwin Quiz Questions and Answers
Q1. In what year was George Gershwin born?
A. 1896
B. 1898
C. 1900
D. 1902
Answer: B. 1898
Q2. What was George Gershwin’s birth name?
A. Jacob Gershwine
B. Morris Gershwin
C. Ira Gershwin
D. Arthur Gershwin
Answer: A. Jacob Gershwine
Q3. Where was George Gershwin born?
A. Manhattan, New York
B. Brooklyn, New York
C. Chicago, Illinois
D. Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
Answer: B. Brooklyn, New York
Q4. What was the nationality of George Gershwin’s parents before immigrating to the United States?
A. German
B. Italian
C. Russian
D. Polish
Answer: C. Russian
Q5. Who was George Gershwin’s older brother and frequent collaborator?
A. Arthur
B. Ira
C. Frances
D. Morris
Answer: B. Ira
Q6. At what age did George Gershwin first show a strong interest in music?
A. 6
B. 8
C. 10
D. 12
Answer: C. 10
Q7. What event sparked George Gershwin’s passion for music at age 10?
A. Hearing a piano recital
B. Listening to a violin performance by a friend
C. Attending a Broadway show
D. Watching a street band
Answer: B. Listening to a violin performance by a friend
Q8. What was the first instrument George Gershwin played extensively in his family?
A. Violin
B. Clarinet
C. Piano
D. Trumpet
Answer: C. Piano
Q9. In what year did George Gershwin begin his music career as a song plugger?
A. 1910
B. 1913
C. 1916
D. 1919
Answer: B. 1913
Q10. What company did George Gershwin work for as a song plugger in Tin Pan Alley?
A. Jerome H. Remick and Company
B. Aeolian Company
C. Standard Music Rolls
D. William Daly Music
Answer: A. Jerome H. Remick and Company
Q11. What was George Gershwin’s first published song in 1916?
A. Swanee
B. Rialto Ripples
C. When You Want ‘Em, You Can’t Get ‘Em
D. Fascinating Rhythm
Answer: C. When You Want ‘Em, You Can’t Get ‘Em
Q12. Which 1919 song became George Gershwin’s first major national hit, popularized by Al Jolson?
A. Oh, Lady Be Good!
B. Swanee
C. Embraceable You
D. I Got Rhythm
Answer: B. Swanee
Q13. Who wrote the lyrics for George Gershwin’s hit song “Swanee”?
A. Ira Gershwin
B. Buddy DeSylva
C. Irving Caesar
D. DuBose Heyward
Answer: C. Irving Caesar
Q14. In what year was George Gershwin’s ragtime piece “Rialto Ripples” published?
A. 1916
B. 1917
C. 1919
D. 1921
Answer: B. 1917
Q15. What was George Gershwin’s first Broadway song, featured in The Passing Show of 1916?
A. Making of a Girl
B. Blue Monday
C. Piccadilly to Broadway
D. For Goodness’ Sake
Answer: A. Making of a Girl
Q16. Which experimental one-act jazz opera did George Gershwin compose in 1922 as a precursor to Porgy and Bess?
A. Of Thee I Sing
B. Blue Monday
C. Girl Crazy
D. Show Girl
Answer: B. Blue Monday
Q17. With whom did George Gershwin collaborate on his early 1920s musicals like Piccadilly to Broadway?
A. Ira Gershwin
B. Buddy DeSylva
C. William Daly
D. DuBose Heyward
Answer: C. William Daly
Q18. In what year did George Gershwin premiere his breakthrough symphonic work Rhapsody in Blue?
A. 1922
B. 1924
C. 1926
D. 1928
Answer: B. 1924
Q19. Who conducted the premiere of George Gershwin’s Rhapsody in Blue with Paul Whiteman?
A. Paul Whiteman
B. Ferde Grofe
C. George himself
D. Otto Klemperer
Answer: A. Paul Whiteman
Q20. Who orchestrated George Gershwin’s Rhapsody in Blue for orchestra?
A. Ira Gershwin
B. Ferde Grofe
C. Joseph Schillinger
D. Maurice Ravel
Answer: B. Ferde Grofe
Q21. What was the first Broadway musical co-written by George and Ira Gershwin in 1924?
A. Oh, Kay!
B. Funny Face
C. Lady Be Good
D. Strike Up the Band
Answer: C. Lady Be Good
Q22. Which 1925 piano concerto by George Gershwin explored French musical influences?
A. Rhapsody in Blue
B. Concerto in F
C. Second Rhapsody
D. Variations on I Got Rhythm
Answer: B. Concerto in F
Q23. In what year did George Gershwin compose the tone poem An American in Paris?
A. 1924
B. 1926
C. 1928
D. 1930
Answer: C. 1928
Q24. For which 1926 musical did George Gershwin name the title character after his romantic interest, Kay Swift?
A. Lady Be Good
B. Oh, Kay!
C. Funny Face
D. Girl Crazy
Answer: B. Oh, Kay!
Q25. Which George Gershwin musical from 1930 introduced the song “I Got Rhythm”?
A. Show Girl
B. Strike Up the Band
C. Girl Crazy
D. Of Thee I Sing
Answer: C. Girl Crazy