Counterpoint (radio)
| Genre | Quiz show |
|---|---|
| Running time | 30 minutes |
| Country | United Kingdom |
| Language(s) | English |
| Home station | BBC Radio 4 |
| Starring |
Ned Sherrin (1986–2006) Edward Seckerson (2007) Paul Gambaccini (2008–2013, 2014–) Russell Davies (2013–2014) |
| Air dates | since 1986 |
| Opening theme | Bach: Partita in E Major |
| Website | Counterpoint |
Counterpoint is a BBC Radio 4 quiz. Described in the show's introduction as "The general knowledge music quiz", the questions are about music, from classical, jazz, pop, musicals, and all other forms of music. It was originally hosted by Ned Sherrin (1986–2006). In the chair for the 2007 series was Edward Seckerson with Paul Gambaccini taking over in 2008, following the death of Ned Sherrin in 2007.Russell Davies took over temporarily in 2013 following allegations made against Gambaccini, who returned to the show in November 2014 after being cleared of the allegations.
The quiz is played by three contestants over three rounds, or "movements" as they are known in the show.
In the first, each contestant is asked four (occasionally if there is a lackage of time, three instead) questions, two of which are illustrated by short musical pieces. Two points are awarded for a correct answer, or one point for a partially correct response. If the given answer is incorrect, or partially incorrect, the other two contestants may buzz in for one point. If there is a tie at the end of the first round, a further buzzer question is asked to determine the contestants' order for the next round.
The middle round is a solo round, similar to the 'specialist subject' format of Mastermind, with the difference that the contestants have neither chosen nor been given warning of the subject. Five categories of questions are offered, some of which are very specific e.g. "Beethoven's Piano Sonatas", while others are more general, for instance "sunshine and rain". The contestant with the most points after round one chooses from the five categories, the runner-up chooses from the four remaining, and the contestant in last place chooses from the three that are left. Each round consists of seven (occasionally six) questions, including three musical cues. Again two points are given for a correct answer, but, in this round, questions answered incorrectly are not offered to the other contestants.
The final round consists of a variable number of questions, usually no more than twenty. Any contestant can answer these questions, provided they buzz in first. A correct answer will add one point to a contestant's score. If an incorrect answer is given, a contestant is deducted one point.
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