A themed puzzle as usual from Gozo.
The theme is pieces of classical music. I go to lots of operas and classical music events but even so I didn’t know all the solutions. The wordplay is clear enough so the solutions are guessable anyway, which is how it should be. Thank you Gozo.
| Across | ||
| 1 | EGMONT | Unusual tone about introductions to Gustav Mahler’s overture (6) |
| anagram (unusual) of TONE contains (about) first letters (introductions to) of Gustav Mahler – a Beethoven overture | ||
| 4 | IOLANTHE | Poor theologian has no go for operetta (8) |
| anagram (poor) of THEOLOGIAN missing GO | ||
| 9 | CARMEN | Operatic MOT mechanics (6) |
| cryptic definition – CAR MEN might be MOT mechanics – the definition is incomplete but needs to be read in the context of the theme | ||
| 10 | IDOMENEO | Vow to fellows at old game at the opera (8) |
| I DO (a vow) then MEN (fellows) with E O (an old gambling game) – opera by Mozart | ||
| 12 | DIES IRAE | Readies distributed around start of interval included in Verdi’s Requiem (4,4) |
| anagram (distributed) of READIES contains (around) Interval (first letter, start of) – the second section of Verdi’s Requiem (and used in many others too) | ||
| 13 | ERNANI | Grandma appearing in Queen Bess, Verdi opera (6) |
| NAN (grandma) inside ER I (Elizabeth I, Queen Bess) | ||
| 15 | See 20 | |
| 16 | THE KINGDOM | Those folk admitting piece the same as Elgar’s oratorio (3,7) |
| THEM (those folk) contains (admitting) KING (piece, chess) and DO (ditto, the same) | ||
| 19 | THE PLANETS | Suite by Holst through which thane slept rough (3,7) |
| anagram (rough) of THANE SLEPT | ||
| 20, 15 | DRUM ROLL | Date on strange register for Haydn symphony (4,4) |
| D (date) on RUM (strange) ROLL (register) | ||
| 23 | ELIJAH | Oratorio by Mendelssohn, I judge, in sound being revolutionary (6) |
| I and J (judge) inside HALE (sound) reversed (being revolutionary) | ||
| 25 | CREATION | Oratorio by Haydn in the making? (8) |
| double definition | ||
| 27 | THE BIRDS | Respighi’s suite is a take on Hitchcock and play by Aristophanes (3,5) |
| triple definition – music, film and play | ||
| 28 | EROICA | Timeless blue material as Beethoven symphony (6) |
| EROtICA (blue material) missing T (time) | ||
| 29 | PEER GYNT | Marie leaves prayer-meeting confused about Grieg’s incidental music (4,4) |
| anagram (confused) of PraYER mEeTiNG missing MARIE | ||
| 30 | PRAGUE | Couple with a viol from Shetland for Mozart symphony (6) |
| PR (pair, couple) with A GUE (viol form Shetland) – no 38 in D, the “Prague Symphony” | ||
| Down | ||
| 1 | ENCODER | Cryptographer turned red once (7) |
| reversal (turned) of RED ONCE | ||
| 2 | MARSEILLE | Heard Mum speak in French city (9) |
| sounds like (heard) “ma say” (mum speak) | ||
| 3 | NO EXIT | You can’t leave this way, love, about 11.10 possibly (2,4) |
| I can’t figure this out. The basic ingredients are O (love) XI (11) and TEN (10). | ||
| 5 | OLDS | Aussie parents look up to daughter and son . . . . (4) |
| LO (look) reversed (up) with D (daughter) and S (son) | ||
| 6 | ADMIRING | . . . . looking up to notice on motorway telephone (8) |
| AD (notice) MI (M1, motorway) RING (telephone) | ||
| 7 | TONGA | Fashion silver around horse- drawn carriage (5) |
| TON (fashion) then AG (silver) reversed (around) | ||
| 8 | EGOTISM | It’s all about me. It’s me. Go away! (7) |
| anagram (away) of IT’S ME GO | ||
| 11 | DASHING | Stylish, frustrating and in a hurry (7) |
| triple definition | ||
| 14 | SKATERS | Jamaican music – short cut to Waldteufel’s waltz (7) |
| SKA (Jamaican music) then TERSe (short, cut short) | ||
| 17 | DERAILING | One line I found in terrible danger, this becoming a possibility? (9) |
| I (one) L (line) I inside (found in) anagram (terrible) of DANGER | ||
| 18 | PLEADING | Urgent request for parking in front (8) |
| P (parking) then LEADING (in front) | ||
| 19 | TREETOP | Highest point reached by plane? (7) |
| cryptic definition – a plane tree (maple) perhaps | ||
| 21 | MANDATE | Authorisation of meeting with or in Douglas! (7) |
| a MAN-DATE might be a meeting (date) in the Isle of Man (in Douglas, capital of) | ||
| 22 | FAIRER | Prettier elf, not unknown to hesitation (6) |
| FAIRy (elf) missing y (unknown, in equations) with ER (a hesitation) | ||
| 24 | IRENE | Peaceful girl, alluring one, topless, at end of promenade (5) |
| sIREN (alluring girl) missing first letter (topless) then promenadE (end of) – Irene the goddess of peace | ||
| 26 | ODIN | God making no noise, apparently (4) |
| O DIN (zero noise) | ||
definitions are underlined
I write these posts to help people get started with cryptic crosswords. If there is something here you do not understand ask a question; there are probably others wondering the same thing.
Personally, I don’t like opera so attempted this with some trepidation. Many answers were entered based on the cryptic fodder alone with a silent hope and prayer. Couldn’t make an intelligent guess for 30a so left that one. Guessed IDOMENGO for 10a. E O is an old game? Is that really obscure or is it just my ignorance? Despite the above, I did end up quite enjoying this in a masochistic kind of way.
Thanks to Gozo and PeeDee.
E O was an early roulette-style game where a ball fell into slots labelled either E or O. I only found out about it through solving croswords where I have seen it come up a few times. See here…
Thanks to PeeDee and Gozo
Very educational. I took MOT in 9a as slang for girlfriend and the def as simply MECHANICS
One of those crosswords where you are surprised how much you know about a subject, helped by the clear wordplay
Thanks to Gozo for the memory test and to PeeDee for the blog
I liked the theme and had to “earn my keep” with a few pieces I’d never heard of, specifically ERNANI and THE KINGDOM. The second outing for IDOMENEO in the last week or so, though I couldn’t understand the EO bit – thanks for the link. Never heard of a TONGA or the ‘viol from Shetland’.
I just took 3d to be XI contained in an anagram of O + TEN, but I may be missing something.
My favourite was the triple def. at 11d which was slow to yield as my last in.
Thanks to Gozo and to PeeDee
Damn !Armani wasnt an opera. A show piece nonetheless.
Thanks to Gozo and PeeDee. I knew most of the musical items and managed to parse the others (e.g., ELIJAH) but needed help with EO and gue.
Re 29a
I saw it as confused MARIE subtracted from PRAYER MEETING with ABOUT as the anagrind of the remnant.
3d
I read as Yoda speak – O, about (it) XI TEN, possibly
I continue to be awed by Gozo’s ability to have a themed answer for every across clue and still end up with no obscure words you usually find in an Azed puzzle for the down clues. Brave, Gozo!
Thanks Gozo and PeeDee
EGMONT was the first themed answer in after getting 1d and 3d. Not a close follower of classical pieces, I only knew 4 or 5 of the works and either used the word play to derive them or semi cheat and look up the composer when I was unable to do that. With ones like PRAGUE (using the unheard of GUE), it would be almost impossible to derive if that symphony was not known.
Impressive effort by Gozo to fit so many theme words like this into the grid. Particularly liked both triple definition clues – 27a and 11d.
Finished in the SE corner with EROICA, that PRAGUE and the craftily clued &lit, DERAILING as the last one in.