Name That Composer: 10s Blitz

[C] Ludwig van Beethoven | Beethoven never named it "Moonlight." His Opus 27 No. 2 got its nickname from a poet comparing it to moonbeams on Lake Lucerne.

[D] Igor Stravinsky | This ballet made Stravinsky famous overnight in Paris. The magical firebird's theme transforms from mysterious whispers to triumphant brass celebrating Ivan's victory.

[A] Gioachino Rossini | Rossini's final opera before retirement at 37. The overture's galloping finale became synonymous with heroic horseback riding, especially thanks to The Lone Ranger.

[C] Johann Sebastian Bach | Those dramatic opening notes became horror movie shorthand. Bach probably wrote it as a young showoff, testing how many notes organs could handle simultaneously.

[B] Claude Debussy | Debussy's most beloved piano piece captures Verlaine's moonlit poetry. Those rippling arpeggios sound like light dancing on water while lovers whisper below.

[D] Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart | Mozart turned Beaumarchais's banned play into opera gold. Count Almaviva gets outwitted by his servants while Mozart serves up sublime music for everyone.

[A] Frédéric Chopin | Not sixty seconds but "small" waltz. Chopin supposedly watched George Sand's dog chase its tail, then spun the scene into whirling musical circles.

[B] Aaron Copland | Martha Graham danced to Copland's pioneer symphony. The Shaker hymn "Simple Gifts" becomes America's soundtrack, all wide spaces and wooden porches.

[D] Franz Liszt | Liszt's "Dance of Death" battles piano against orchestra using medieval Dies Irae. Virtuosic thunder meets Gothic imagination in this pianistic duel with mortality.

[C] Pyotr Il'yich Tchaikovsky | Tchaikovsky hated this crowd-pleaser featuring real cannons. Commemorating Napoleon's defeat, it ironically conquered American Fourth of July celebrations with Russian nationalism.

[A] Joseph Haydn | Haydn's musical prank wakes dozers with one thunderous chord. Symphony No. 94's gentle theme lulls audiences before that famous fortissimo gotcha moment.

[B] Edvard Grieg | Norway's most famous concerto opens with that unforgettable cascade. Grieg captured fjords and folk dances, making his only piano concerto eternally popular.

[C] Joseph-Maurice Ravel | Ravel called his hypnotic masterpiece "orchestration without music." One melody repeats eighteen times, growing from solo flute to full orchestral eruption.

[A] Sergei Rachmaninoff | Depression nearly silenced Rachmaninoff until hypnotherapy unlocked this masterpiece. Those opening chords announce his triumphant return, dedication thanking Dr. Nikolai Dahl.

[D] Jean Sibelius | Finland's secret anthem disguised as a tone poem. Sibelius smuggled patriotic protest past Russian censors, later churches borrowed the hymn worldwide.

[B] George Frideric Handel | Written in just 24 days during Handel's creative fever. King George II supposedly stood during "Hallelujah," creating the tradition we still follow today.

[C] Gustav Holst | Holst studied astrology, not astronomy, composing personality portraits. "Mars" introduced irregular meter to orchestras while "Jupiter" gifted England its favorite hymn.

[D] Johann Pachelbel | Wedding favorite written for unknown reasons, forgotten until 1960s rediscovery. Eight notes repeat 28 times beneath violin conversations, creating baroque's biggest earworm.

[B] Johann Strauss II | Vienna's liquid anthem waltzes through drawing rooms and space stations alike. Strauss's river rarely looked blue, but his music sparkles regardless.

[A] Modest Mussorgsky | Mussorgsky musically strolled through friend Hartmann's memorial exhibition. His piano promenades between paintings became orchestral blockbusters once Ravel added symphonic colors.