1. The oldest known musical instruments were flutes made from bird bone 42,000 years ago.

2. Handel is thought to have written more notes of music than any other composer.

3. In Singapore, clean toilets and appreciation of music are seen as signs of a gracious society.

4. When Mozart performed in London aged nine, he was closely examined by some who claimed he must be a dwarf as no child could be so good.

5. Brahms’s favourite tavern was Zum Roten Igel (The Red Hedgehog) in Vienna, which he visited most days often together with Johann Strauss.


6. When drinking coffee, Beethoven liked every cup to be made from exactly 60 coffee beans.

7. Mozart was a keen billiards player and owned a billiard table, five balls, 12 cues and four lights.

8. According to a survey at Barcelona University, the most popular chemical elements in song lyrics are silver, gold, tin and oxygen, in that order.

9. A musical fly swatter was patented in 1994. It changes tune when it hit something.

10. The world record speed for playing Chopin’s Minute Waltz is 52 seconds.