Never before had the musicians faced so many challenges at once as the

Question

Never before had the musicians faced  so many challenges at once as they had in  playing Schubert’s Trout Variations.

A. so many challenges at once as they had in
B. at once as many challenges as
C. at once as many challenges that they were when
D. as many challenges at once as they confronted in
E. so many challenges at once that confronted them in

arihantbengani16 · Answer

Never before had the musicians faced - clearly states that - playing Schubert’s Trout Variations -is a relatively recent event and hence "HAD" is incorrect here

Patriarch · Answer

By IDIOMs: 
so many as --> Incorrect --> Eliminate A
As many that --> Incorrect --> Eliminate C

Missing pronoun and verb to connect the later un underlined part of the sentence & also modifier 'as many challenges' should come next to faced 
so Eliminate B

'Challenges that confronted them' is logically wrong; rather it should be 'challenges that they confronted' --> Eliminate E

D is the right answer

nivivacious · Answer

Never before had the musicians faced so many challenges at once as they had in playing Schubert’s Trout Variations.

A. so many challenges at once as they had in
Incorrect. The phrase "as they had in" is unnecessary.

B. at once as many challenges as
Incorrect. Placement of "at once" disrupts the flow of the sentence and makes it confusing.

C. at once as many challenges that they were when
Grammatically and logically incorrect

D. as many challenges at once as they confronted in
Idiomatically and grammatically correct

E. so many challenges at once that confronted them in
Incorrect. The phrase "that confronted them in" is awkward and disrupts the flow of the sentence

Never before had the musicians faced so many challenges at once as the

Prep Toolkit

Top 5 GMAT Debrief Videos

615 to 715 in 15 Days (Ria's Strategies)

More than Quant/Verbal Abilities: Speed vs. Accuracy

745 with Only Self-Prep and GMAT Club

From 555 to 765: 210-point Improvement

Perfect 805 Score Debrief by Julia

My Rewards

GMAT Sentence Correction (SC - EA only) Questions

Never before had the musicians faced so many challenges at once as the

Prep Toolkit

615 to 715 in 15 Days (Ria's Strategies)

More than Quant/Verbal Abilities: Speed vs. Accuracy

745 with Only Self-Prep and GMAT Club

From 555 to 765: 210-point Improvement

Perfect 805 Score Debrief by Julia

My Rewards