1. 

   Which of the following is not an opera by Handel?

   1. Ruggiero

   2. Rodelinda

   3. Rinaldo

2. 

   What is Xerxes singing about in the 1738 opera's best known aria Ombra mai fu?

   1. His despair over his lands being conquered by the Greek army

   2. A love song to his serving maid (who, unbeknowst to him, is his sister in disguise)

   3. A song of gratitude to his beloved plane tree, for the shade it gives him

3. 

   Handel's final opera was Deidamia, premiered on 10 January 1741. How long was its initial run?

   1. Three performances

   2. One month

   3. Two years

4. 

   In the background story of Alcina, hero Ruggiero is whisked away by a mythical creature. What is it?

   1. A hippogriff

   2. A phoenix

   3. A mulefa

5. 

   A sea monster, a wild bear, and a mountain that splits in two: which Handel opera has all three?

   1. Giulio Cesare

   2. Giulietta

   3. Giustino

6. 

   As well as over 40 operas, Handel wrote around 20 oratorios. Which biblical story was not featured as a subject?

   1. Joseph and his brothers

   2. David and Goliath

   3. Moses leading the Israelites out of Egypt

7. 

   What was the greatest popular threat to Handel's Italian operatic empire in London?

   1. The Paupers' Revue

   2. The Threepenny Opera

   3. The Beggar's Opera

8. 

   Which historical figure does NOT feature in a Handel opera?

   1. Genghis Khan

   2. Cleopatra

   3. Alexander the Great

9. 

   In his 2011 staging of Rinaldo for Glyndebourne, Robert Carsen reenvisaged the text as what:

   1. A harrowing post-holocaust landscape of feral gangs who fight for supremacy

   2. A gung-ho fantasy of a bullied schoolboy, with St Trinian's style schoolgirls and a teacher in tight PVC who administers canings

   3. An English civil war story, with Oliver Cromwell a gout-ridden hunchbacked bully.

10. 

    Handel's first opera in London was Rinaldo: birds on stage, live fire, vocal acrobatics. It was the biggest hit of his career. Which musical is now playing in the theatre that stands on the spot where Rinaldo was first performed?

    1. Chitty-Chitty Bang Bang

    2. Phantom of the Opera

    3. Les Misérables

Solutions

1:A, 2:C, 3:A, 4:A, 5:C, 6:B, 7:C, 8:A, 9:B, 10:B

Scores