Comments on: Independent 6897/Phi (22-11-08 Prize Puzzle)

By: eimi

eimi — Sat, 29 Nov 2008 01:27:11 +0000

Yes, the version with the preamble works better, but it wasn’t an option for the online version. Experienced a rather wonderful Carmina Burana at the Barbican tonight by the bye. I’m Orff now

By: Phi

Phi — Fri, 28 Nov 2008 18:21:15 +0000

X rather than 7 because 7 was plural, while each X was singular, and using ‘One among 7′ 13 times over would have extended the clues more than somewhat – a preamble was shorter.

The composer with a reasonably familiar zeroth symphony is Bruckner. However, in much the same way, an early discarded symphony by Schnittke has recently been unearthed (and recorded) and given the number 0.

Elliott Carter is indeed about to celebrate his own centenary. There’s been quite a bit of bustle about this in classical music circles (to add to the fun, Messiaen – who popped off as a mere octogenarian – has his centenary the day before) as 100-year-old working composers are fairly rare (I can think of only one precedent).

By: Geoff Moss

Geoff Moss — Fri, 28 Nov 2008 11:19:21 +0000

Neil
10a Chambers gives ‘a simpleton quite unconscious of being one’.

13d Carl August Peter Cornelius, a 19th century German composer.

By: eimi

eimi — Fri, 28 Nov 2008 11:18:01 +0000

There’s no way of including a preamble in the online Indy crosswords at present, so people doing this puzzle tomorrow will see that Neil is correct.