Q 01/05

Which Stanley Kubrick film uses an electronic version of a Henry Purcell funeral march as its title music?

A) Barry Lyndon

B) 2001: A Space Odyssey

C) A Clockwork Orange

D) The Shining

Answer · why

C) A Clockwork Orange

A Clockwork Orange opens with Purcell's 1695 march reworked on synthesizer by Wendy Carlos, who had made her name with Switched-On Bach.

Q 02/05

Which English rock band's guitarist has named Henry Purcell's harmonies as an influence on its songs?

A) The Who

B) The Kinks

C) Led Zeppelin

D) Pink Floyd

Answer · why

A) The Who

The Who guitarist Pete Townshend learned Purcell's suspended chords from the band's producer Kit Lambert. The influence is heard in the opening of Pin...

Q 03/05

Which English composer based The Young Person's Guide to the Orchestra on a tune by Henry Purcell?

A) Edward Elgar

B) Gustav Holst

C) Ralph Vaughan Williams

D) Benjamin Britten

Answer · why

D) Benjamin Britten

Benjamin Britten took the Rondeau from Purcell's music for the play Abdelazer. He wrote the piece for a 1946 educational film that showed off each sec...

Q 04/05

According to one story, Henry Purcell caught a fatal chill after being locked out of his home by whom?

A) His landlord

B) His wife

C) His mother

D) His daughter

Answer · why

B) His wife

His wife Frances is said to have bolted the door when he came home late from the theatre. Another theory is that tuberculosis killed him, at just 35 o...

Q 05/05

A crater near the north pole of which world is named after the English composer Henry Purcell?

A) Mercury

B) Venus

C) Mars

D) The Moon

Answer · why

A) Mercury

Mercury has craters named after famous writers, artists and composers. The name Purcell was adopted there in 1979.