Music Exam 1

The tradition of troubadours and trouvères developed in: England. the Middle East. France. Italy.

France

The outstanding composer-poet of the Ars nova was: Petrarch. Boccaccio. Machaut. Chaucer.

Machaut

Ternary form is represented by the pattern: A-B. A-B-C. A-A-A. A-B-A.

aba

Beats that are more strongly emphasized than others are said to be: accented. minor. major. metrical.

accented

Which marking is appropriate for a slow tempo? piano andante allegro adagio

adagio

By definition, a musical sound has: all of the above a perceivable pitch and a measurable frequency. a certain volume. a distinct timbre.

all of the above

Which of the following is the lowest-sounding member of the double-reed family? oboe English horn bassoon bass clarinet

bassoon

The resting place at the end of a phrase is called a: comma. period. cadence. pause.

cadence

A singing style that features a leader who is imitated by a group is called: thematic development. crossover. ostinato. call and response.

call and response

A composition with strict imitation throughout is called a(n): canon. retrograde. sequence. augmentation.

canon

A combination of three or more tones that constitutes a single block of harmony is called a(n): scale. octave. chord. interval.

chord.

Instruments that produce sound from a vibrating string are called: chordophones. aerophones. membranophones. idiophones.

chordophones

A fairly large group of singers who perform together is called a(n): chamber ensemble. band. chorus. orchestra.

chorus

Should a composer write a film score for a horror movie, we might reasonably expect that the harmony would include a great deal of: dissonance. conjunct motion. syncopation. consonance.

dissonance

The first accented beat of a measure is called a(n): downbeat. syncopated beat. simple beat. upbeat

downbeat

The degree of loudness or softness, or volume, at which music is played is called: timbre. tempo. texture. dynamics.

dynamics

How many notes in a scale does an octave span? six five ten eight

eight

"Homophonic" describes a single-voiced texture without accompaniment. True False

f

"Twinkle, Twinkle, Little Star" is an example of triple meter. True False

f

A combination of tones that is discordant and unstable produces a consonance. True False

f

A musical form based on a statement, a departure, and a restatement of the first idea is called binary form. True False

f

A tempo marking indicates the loudness of a piece of music. True False

f

All woodwind instruments are made of wood. True False

f

Flutes and whistles are classified as idiophones. True False

f

Improvisation is common in Western music, but not in non-Western music. True False

f

In the composition of songs, the music always comes first. True False

f

Most composers and artists in the Middle Ages signed their works. True False

f

Most percussion instruments fall into the categories of idiophones and aerophones. True False

f

Organum was freely composed, with no preexisting basis. True False

f

Secular music is generally intended for religious occasions. True False

f

Specialized choirs that perform with organ are called a cappella ensembles. True False

f

The Renaissance is the earliest musical period in the Western tradition. True False

f

The Young Person's Guide to the Orchestra by Britten is based on a dance tune by Beethoven. True False

f

The art of counterpoint is most closely associated with monophonic texture. True False

f

The bugle has a wide range of pitches due to its valves. True False

f

The dates given for the beginning and end of eras are precise ones. True False

f

The length or size of a vibrating object has no effect on pitch. True False

f

The modern symphony orchestra is typically made up of twenty to thirty players. True False

f

The modes were developed from the major and minor scales. True False

f

The perfection of monophony is the single most important feature in the development of Western music. True False

f

The piano is limited by a narrow range of pitches and dynamics. True False

f

The trumpet is the lowest-pitched instrument of the brass family. True False

f

The upbeat is the strongest in any meter. True False

f

The viola is somewhat smaller and higher pitched than the violin. True False

f

Vocal music must use recognizable words. True False

f

Within a key, the central tone is called the semitone. True False

f

The term accelerando indicates that the tempo is: getting faster. staying the same. getting slower. returning to the original tempo.

getting faster

The texture in which all the voices move in the same rhythm is called: homometer. homorhythm. polymeter. polyrhythm.

homorhythm

The procedure in which a melodic idea is presented in one voice and then restated in another is called: imitation. retrograde. inversion. diminution.

imitation.

The distance between two pitches is called a(n): interval. countermelody. phrase. cadence.

interval

The piano got its name, originally fortepiano, from: the fact that it could not sustain tones. its large size. the name of its inventor. its wide dynamic range.

its wide dynamic range.

Scat-singing is common in: Asian music. Christmas carols. jazz. Renaissance madrigals.

jazz

Meter is marked off in groupings known as: cadences. phrases. chords. measures.

measures

Drum-type instruments fall into the category of: chordophones aerophones. membranophones. idiophones.

membranophones.

The process of passing from one key to another is known as: modulation. transposition. development. transformation.

modulation

Traditional music of the Far East is largely: homophonic. monophonic. polyphonic. contrapuntal.

monophonic

The smallest fragment of a theme that forms a melodic-rhythmic unit is called a: canon. motive. cadence. sequence.

motive

Which of the following is a double-reed instrument? oboe clarinet saxophone flute

oboe

An interval spanning eight notes is called a(n): octave. triad. fifth. chord.

octave.

The earliest type of polyphony was: plainsong. the motet. secular. organum.

organum

Timpani are members of the ________ family of instruments. string brass percussion woodwind

percussion

Which of the following dynamic markings is the softest? pianissimo (pp) piano (p) mezzo forte (mf ) mezzo piano (mp)

pianissimo

When two or more independent melodic lines are combined, the resulting texture is called: heterophony. homophony. monophony. polyphony.

polyphony

The element of music that organizes movement in time is: melody. form. rhythm. harmony.

rhythm

A simple and familiar type of canon is called a: scale. motive. theme. round.

round

The musical symbol # represents a: pitch. sharp. note. flat.

sharp

The standard ranges of the human voice, from highest to lowest, are: bass, tenor, soprano, alto. tenor, soprano, alto, bass. soprano, alto, tenor, bass. soprano, tenor, alto, bass

soprano, alto, tenor, bass

The percussion family comprises a variety of instruments that are made to sound by: strumming. striking or shaking. plucking. blowing air.

striking or shaking.

Approximately two-thirds of a symphony orchestra consists of: brass. woodwinds. percussion. strings

strings

The setting of one note per syllable is called: melismatic syllabic neumatic word-painting

syllabic

A genre is a category or type of music repertory. True False

t

A major scale can begin on any of the twelve semitones of the octave. True False

t

A movement is a complete, comparatively independent division of a large-scale work. True False

t

A musical note is the symbolic representation of a sound with pitch and duration. True False

t

A phrase is a component unit of a melody. True False

t

A variety of world musics make use of pentatonic scales. True False

t

Active chords seek to resolve to resting chords, imparting a sense of direction or goal. True False

t

Chamber music is intended for a small group of performers, with one player to a part. True False

t

In the early Middle Ages, music was often composed in fixed patterns of long and short notes known as rhythmic modes. True False

t

Most large musical ensembles need a conductor in order to perform together. True False

t

Music and mathematics have been linked since the time of the ancient Greeks. True False

t

String instruments are generally played by either bowing or plucking. True False

t

Ternary form is best outlined as A-B-A. True False

t

The chanson is an example of secular music. True False

t

The degree of loudness and softness in music is called dynamics. True False

t

The dominant is an example of an active chord, which can cause tension in music until it is resolved. True False

t

The order of church services and the structure of each service are known as the liturgy. True False

t

The process of passing from one key to another is known as modulation. True False

t

The standard instrumentation of a string quartet is two violins, viola, and cello. True False

t

The two categories of orchestral percussion instruments are pitched and unpitched. True False

t

Three alternate notes of a scale, sounded simultaneously, form a triad. True False

t

In determining pitch, what is meant by frequency? the number of vibrations per second how fast the pitches are played how often the pitch is heard the span between the highest and lowest notes

the number of vibrations per second

The principle of organization whereby we hear a piece of music in relation to a central tone is called: transposition. tonality. modulation. chromaticism.

tonality

In harmony, the ________ is considered a place of rest and return. dominant tonic leading tone subdominant

tonic

The soprano brass instrument sometimes described as possessing a brilliant timbre is the: clarinet. French horn. trumpet. violin.

trumpet

The bass instrument in the brass family is the: bassoon. double bass. tuba. trombone.

tuba

Which of the following does NOT make frequent use of pentatonic scales? Western art music Japanese music Native American music Chinese music

western art music

The term a cappella refers to choral music performed: without any accompaniment. with organ accompaniment. with orchestral accompaniment. with piano accompaniment.

without any accompaniment.

The instruments of the Western orchestra are categorized in four groups: strings, brass, percussion, and: idiophones. flutes. chordophones. woodwinds.

woodwinds.