question

If a pitch vibrates at 880 cycles, the octave below would vibrate at ___ cycles.

answer

440

question

Which of the following is a characteristic feature of jazz music?

answer

syncopation

question

A song in which several people sing the same melody, but each person starts at a different time is an example of

answer

strict imitation

question

An example of a homophonic texture could be a

answer

all answers are correct

question

Which of the following would be a good example of a change in musical style?

answer

The major and minor scales were the basic scales of western music from the 1600s to the 1900s, but in the twentieth century many composers abandoned tonality.

question

The Renaissance may be described as an age of

answer

all answers are correct

question

The intellectual music called humanism

answer

focused on human life and its accomplishments

question

Which of the following statements is not true of humanism?

answer

the humanists were basically atheistic in their beliefs

question

The use of organs in church

answer

bothered the clergy because they distracted the listeners from worship

question

During the late Middle Ages, the church believed that music during religious services should be

answer

used only as a discreet accompaniment

question

Church authorities in the Middle Ages ___ their religious services.

answer

wanted music only as a discreet accompaniment to

question

Which of the following is not true of Gregorian chant?

answer

it is usually polyphonic in texture

question

Gregorian chant is seldom heard today because

answer

all answers are correct

question

Gregorian chant melodies tend to move

answer

stepwise within a narrow range of pitches

question

The church modes are

answer

like the major and minor scales in that they consist of seven different tones

question

The form of the chant Alleluia: Vidimus stellam is

answer

ABA

question

The French secular songs of the Middle Ages were often concerned with

answer

all answers are correct

question

Trouvere songs of the Middle Ages dealt with all of the following subjects except

answer

religion

question

Which of the following statements is not true of secular music in the Middle Ages?

answer

The medieval jongleurs, important sources of information in a time when there were no newspapers, were accordingly ranked on a high social level

question

The notation of troubadour and trouvere melodies does not indicate

answer

rhythm

question

The wandering minstrels, or jongleurs, of the middle ages

answer

all answers are correct

question

Which of the following statements is not true of the medieval estampie?

answer

it was intended for religious services

question

Which of the following statements is not true?

answer

Medieval music theorists favored the use of triads, the basic consonant chords of music

question

In medieval times, most polyphonic music was created by

answer

placing new melodic lines against known chants

question

Among other causes, secular music became more important than sacred music in the fourteenth century because

answer

all answers are correct

question

One of the major characteristics of ars nova is its use of

answer

syncopation

question

Secular music in the fourteenth century

answer

all answers are correct

question

The ars nova or new arts differed from old music in that

answer

a new system of notation permitted composers to specify almost any rhythmic pattern

question

Guillame de Machaut's compositions consist mainly of

answer

love songs with instrumental accompaniment

question

Which of the following statements is not true of the Renaissance?

answer

The Catholic church was even more powerful in the Renaissance than during the Middle Ages

question

Which of the following statements is not true of Renaissance music?

answer

instrumental music became more important than vocal music during the Renaissance

question

Renaissance music sounds fuller than medieval music because

answer

all answers are correct

question

Renaissance melodies are usually easy to sing because

answer

the melody often moves along a scale with a few large leaps

question

Which of the following statements is not true?

answer

Josquin spent most of his life in the province of Hainaut, today a part of Belgium

question

Palestrina's Pope Marcellas Mass sounds fuller than Josquin's Ave Maria because

answer

it is set for six voices instead of four

question

During the Renaissance, every educated person was expected to

answer

all answers are correct

question

Which of the following describes a difference between English and Italian madrigals

answer

a lighter and more humorous tone

question

Lute songs are mostly ___ in texture.

answer

homophonic

question

The expression of ___, as heard in John Dowland's Flow My Tears, was a prominent feature of English literature and music in the time of William Shakespeare

answer

melancholy

question

John Dowland's Flow My Tears consists of ___ musical selections that are each immediately repeated.

answer

three

question

In most lute songs, the lute accompaniment

answer

is subordinate to the voice

question

Which of the following statements regarding the Renaissance is not true?

answer

much of the instrumental music composed during the Renaissance was intended for church use

question

Much of the instrumental music composed during the Renaissance was intended for

answer

dancing

question

The word baroque has at various times meant all of the following except

answer

naturalistic

question

Which of the following statements is not true?

answer

the late baroque period was one of the most revolutionary periods in music history

question

The early baroque was characterized by

answer

homophonic texture

question

The early and late baroque periods differed in that composers in the late baroque

answer

favored polyphonic texture

question

The middle baroque was characterized by

answer

a diffusion of style into every corner of Europe

question

Affections in baroque usage refers to

answer

emotional states or moods of music

question

A baroque musical composition usually expresses ___ within the same movement

answer

one basic mood

question

the baroque principle of ___ may be temporarily suspended in vocal music when drastic changes of emotion in a text inspires corresponding changes in the music

answer

unity of mood

question

The compelling drive and energy in baroque music are usually provided by

answer

repeated rhythmic patterns

question

baroque melodies often are

answer

elaborate and ornamental

question

Baroque melodies give the impression of

answer

dynamic expansion

question

Which of the following statements is not true?

answer

audiences in the baroque period were most anxious to hear old familiar favorites, and did not care for new music

question

Which of the following statements is not true?

answer

a concerto grosso normally involves a large group of soloists accompanied by an equal number of supporting players

question

Which of the following statements is not true?

answer

in opera, the terms ensemble and chorus are synonymous

question

Which of the following statements is not true?

answer

The members of the Florentine Camerata based on their theories on actual dramatic music that had come down to them from the Greeks

question

A typical baroque operatic form was the da capo aria in ABA form in which the singer

answer

was expected to embellish the returning melody with ornametnal tones

question

To evoke angry or or warlike feelings in some of his texts, Monteverdi introduced new orchestral effects, including pizzicato and

answer

tremolo

question

to achieve intensity of expression, Monteverdi used ___ with unprecedented freedom and daring.

answer

dissonances

question

Which of the following statements is not true?

answer

all twelve of monteverdi's operas are regularly performed in Europe and America

question

Which of the following statements is not true?

answer

Henry Purcell was virtually unknown in his own time, but today is considered England's most significant composer from the baroque era

question

Which of the following statements is not true?

answer

The trio sonata usually involved three performers, two on high instruments and one on a bass line

question

Which of the following statements is not true?

answer

Like Corelli, Vivaldi wrote only secular, instrumental music

question

Which of the following about Vivaldi's La Primavera (Spring) from The Four Seasons is true?

answer

the piece is an example of program music

question

Bach achieves unity of mood in his compositions by using

answer

an insistent rhythmic drive

question

Which of the following statements about baroque suites is not true?

answer

the baroque suite is a musical form exclusive to the orchestra

question

Although all the movements of a baroque suite are in the same key, they differ in

answer

all answers are correct

question

in contrast to fugues, baroque suites tended to have ___ because they were based on dance steps

answer

balanced and symmetrical phases

question

The various dances in the baroque suite are usually

answer

in AABB form

question

Which of the following statements is not true?

answer

when chorale melodies were harmonized for church choirs, the tune was assigned to the tenors

question

Which of the following statements is not true?

answer

oratorios first appeared in England

question

Oratio differes from opera in that it has no

answer

acting, scenery, or costumes

question

Which of the following statements is not true of the classical period?

answer

Philosophers and writers in the classical period believed that custom and tradition, rather than reason, were the best guides to human conduct

question

Which of the following composers is not considered a master of the classical period?

answer

Johann Christian Bach

question

Which of the following statements is not true?

answer

composers in the classical period continued to use terraced dynamics in their compositions

question

Which of the following characteristics is not typical of the music of the classical period?

answer

classical music is basically polyphonic

question

Which of the following statements is not true of the music of the classical period?

answer

the basso continuo was the nucleus of the instrumental ensemble

question

social mobility during the classical period was

answer

an important factor in the rise of the middle class

question

in the classical period, serious composition was flavored by

answer

folk and popular music

question

Which of the following statements is not true?

answer

political and economic power shifted during the classical period from the middle class to the aristocracy and the church

question

Composers in the classical period took middle-class tastes into account by

answer

all answers are correct

question

in the exposition of a sonata-form movement

answer

the second theme is in a new key

question

in the recapitulation of a sonata-form movement

answer

the closing section is in the tonic key

question

at the end of a classical exposition there is usually a

answer

repeat sign

question

Which of the following statements is not true

answer

the second theme returns in the recapitulation of a sonata form movement in an exact repitition of its statement in the exposition

question

a modulation from the home key to a new key in the exposition of a sonata form movement takes place in the

answer

bridge

question

a feeling of harmonic tension and forward motion is created in the exposition of a sonata form movement by

answer

the conflict of tonalities between the first and second themes

question

Sonata form should be viewed as

answer

a set of principles that serve to shape and unify conrasts of theme and key

question

each successive variation in a theme with variations

answer

retains some elements of the theme

question

Which of the following statements is not true?

answer

the recapitulation section is an important way for a composer to develop variations in the theme-and-variation form

question

Which of the following elements is usually not changed in varying the theme in theme-and-variations form?

answer

length

question

the character of the minuet is best described as

answer

stately and dignified

question

Which of the following is not a characteristic of the minuet?

answer

quick, lively tempo

question

Which of the following statements is not true?

answer

the character of the minuet is best described as brisk and lively

question

The scherzo differs from the minuet in that it

answer

moves more quickly

question

When performers encounter the phrase, da capo, they

answer

return to the beginning of the piece and and repeat the movement

question

the main theme in a rondo movement is usually

answer

lively, pleasing, and simple to remember

question

Which of the following is not true about the rondo?

answer

its uses ended in the classical period

question

The return of the main theme in rondo form is all the more welcome because it is usually

answer

in the tonic key

question

the main theme of the rondo

answer

is usually in the tonic key

question

Because of its character, the rondo most often serves as a

answer

finale

question

The rondo was used

answer

as late as the twentieth century

question

which of the following statements is not true?

answer

the rondo as a musical form was not used in musical compositions after the classical period

question

Which of the following is not true of the symphony?

answer

it is a musical composition for solo instruments and orchestra

question

The slow movement of a symphony is usually not

answer

in the tonic key

question

Which of the following statements is not true?

answer

The opening movement of a classical symphony is almost always slow and in ABA form

question

the slow movement of a classical symphony

answer

is generally not in the tonic key

question

The last movement of a classical symphony

answer

all answers are correct

question

One way that unity is often achieved in the classical symphony is by the use of the same

answer

key in three of its four movements

question

Which of the following statements is not true?

answer

a typical sequence of movements in a classical concerto is fast, slow, dance-related, fast

question

The essence of a classical concerto is the

answer

interplay between a soloist and the orchestra

question

The classical concerto differs from the symphony in that it does not have a ___ movement.

answer

minuet or scherzo

question

A classical concerto greatly relies on a soloist's

answer

virtuosity

question

Classical chamber music is designed

answer

for the intimate setting of a small room

question

A major fact that distinguishes chamber music from the symphony or concerto is that chamber music

answer

is performed by one player per part

question

Which of the following statements is not true?

answer

the piano trio is a musical composition for three pianos

question

Which of the following is not a characteristic of Hadyn's music?

answer

it is mostly static, showing few changes in texture and orchestration

question

Why did Mozart's music fall out of favor with Vienna audiences towards the end of this life?

answer

The Viennese thought that it was too complicated and contained too many dissonances

question

What following technique did Beethoven use more extensively in his late works?

answer

fugal counterpoint

question

Which of the following is not characteristic of romanticism?

answer

an emphasis on balance and clarity of structures

question

Which of the following is not a characteristic aspect of romanticism in literature and painting?

answer

emotional restraint

question

Of all the inspirations for romantic art, none was more important than

answer

nature

question

Drawing creative inspiration from cultures of lands foreign to the composer is known as

answer

exoticism

question

Which of the following statements is not true?

answer

Fascination with the melodies, rhythms, and colorful materials from distant lands is a romantic trend known as musical nationalism

question

The orchestra in the romantic period

answer

was larger and more varied in tone color than the classical orchestra

question

Which of the following statements is not true of the piano in the early romantic period?

answer

The piano's range remained basically the same as in the classical period

question

Which of the following statements is not true?

answer

Romantic composers rejected the basic forms of the classical period and preffered to develop new forms of their own

question

Which of the following statements is not true?

answer

Romantic musicians often composed to execute a commission or meet the demands of an aristocratic or church patron

question

Which of the following statements is not true of the romantic art song?

answer

The art song is restricted to strophic form

question

Which of the following forms was not used in composing art songs?

answer

concerto

question

Which of the following statements is not true?

answer

Schubert labored at great length over each of his compositions, which accounts for his small output

question

Most of Chopin's pieces

answer

are exquisite miniatures

question

Which of the following statements is not true?

answer

Chopine's piano etudes, compositions designed to help a performer master specific technical difficulties, are primarily technical exercises without much musical value

question

Liszt's piano works are characterized by

answer

all answers are correct

question

Liszt typified the romantic movement because he

answer

all answers are correct

question

Mendelssohn's Violin Concerto was inspired by

answer

his friendship the famous violinist Ferdinand David

question

Which of the following statements is not true?

answer

The symphonic poem, or tone poem, is a two-movement composition in sonata-allegro form

question

Parisians were startled by Berlioz's Fantastic Symphony because of its

answer

all answers are correct

question

The citizen's sense of national identity and patriotic feelings were intensified by

answer

all answers are correct

question

Which of the following statements is not true?

answer

The strongest impact of musical nationalism was felt in Italy, France, Germany, and Austria

question

Which of the following statements is not true?

answer

Tchaikovsky was a happily-married family man with a cheerful, self-confident outlook

question

Brahms's works, though very personal in style, are rooted in the music of

answer

all answers are correct

question

Brahms's musical trademarks included

answer

the use of two notes against three

question

Critics were often scandalized by the subject matter of Verdi's operas because they

answer

seemed to condone rape, suicide, and free love

question

Giuseppe Verdi mainly composed his operas

answer

to entertain a mass public

question

Which of the following statements is not true?

answer

Verdi composed primarily for the Italian musical elite, those who would best appreciate his talents

question

The soul of a Verdi opera is

answer

expressive vocal melody

question

Verdi's later operas differ from his earlier ones in that they have

answer

all answers are correct

question

the movement in opera known as verismo is best exemplified by

answer

Giacomo Puccini

question

The orchestration in Wagner's opera is

answer

full and colorful

question

Which of the following statements is not true?

answer

twentieth-century music follows the same general principles of musical structure as earlier periods

question

composers in the twentieth century drew inspiration from

answer

all answers are correct

question

Which of the following statements is not true?

answer

composers in the earlier twentieth century drew inspritation only from serious art music and their own intellect, ignoring popular and folk music

question

In twentieth-century music

answer

all answers are correct

question

In modern music

answer

all answers are correct

question

When viewed closer, impressionist paintings are made up of

answer

tiny colored patches

question

Impressionist painters were primarily concerned with the effect of light, color, and

answer

atmosphere

question

Which of the following statements is not true?

answer

The impressionist painters were particularly obsessed with portraying scenes of anceint French glories

question

Which of the following characteristics is not usually associated with impressionism?

answer

clearly delineated form

question

Debussy's music tends to

answer

sound free and almost improvisational

question

Impressionism in music is characterized by

answer

a stress on tone color, atmosphere, and fluidity

question

In order to "drown the sense of tonality," Debussy

answer

all answers are correct

question

Which of the following statements concerning neoclassicism is not true?

answer

Neoclassical composers reacted against twentieth-century harmonies and rhythms, and preferred to revive old forms and styles exactly as they were

question

Which of the following is not characteristic of neoclassicalism?

answer

misty atmosphere

question

neoclassical composers favored

answer

clear polyphonic textures

question

Neoclassical compositions are characterized by

answer

forms and stylistic features of earlier periods

question

Neoclassical composers modeled many of their works after the compositions of

answer

Johann Sebastian Bach

question

Neoclassicism was a reaction against

answer

romanticism and impressionalism

question

Stravinsky's enormous influence on twentieth-century music is due to his innovations in

answer

all answers are correct

question

Expressionism grew out of the same intellectual climate as Freud's studies of

answer

hysteria and the unconscious

question

Richard Strauss's operas Salome and Elektra were known for their

answer

chromatic and dissonance music

question

The operas of Richard Strauss use chromaticism and dissonance to depict

answer

perversion and murder

question

Expressionist painters, writers, and composers used ___ to assault and shock their audience

answer

deliberate distortions

question

Which of the following statements is not true?

answer

Expressionist artists favored pleasant subjects, delicate pastel colors, and shimmering surfaces

question

The expressionists rejected

answer

conventional prettiness

question

Expressionist composers

answer

avoided tonality and traditional chord progressions

question

Which of the following statements is not true?

answer

typical of expressionsit composers, Berg scored his opera Wozzeck for a small chamber orchestra

question

Webern's melodic lines are

answer

"atomized" into two- or three-note fragments

question

Anton Webern's twelve-tone works contain many examples of

answer

strict polyphonic imitation

question

Bela Bartok evolved a completely individual style that fused folk elements with

answer

all answers are correct

question

The melodies Bela Bartok used in most of his works are

answer

original themes that have a folk flavor

question

While remaining within the framework of a tonal center, Bela Bartok often used ___ in his music

answer

all of these

question

Charles Ive's music contains elements of

answer

all answers are correct

question

Putnam's Camp, Redding, Connecticut, illustrates Charles Ive's technique of quoting snatches of familiar tunes by presenting fragments of

answer

Yankee Doodle

question

All of the following are major developments in music since 1950 except the

answer

continued composition of symphonies in the classical style

question

composers began to shift from tonality to the twelve-tone system because

answer

they discovered it was a compositional technique rather than a special musical style

question

The twelve-tone composer whose style was most imitated in the 1950s and 1960s was

answer

Anton Webern

question

Serialism is a compositional technique in which

answer

a series of rhythms, dynamics, or tone colors could serve as a unifying idea

question

All of the following are proponents of serialism except

answer

John Cage

question

In chance, or aleatory music, the composer

answer

chooses pitches, tone colors, and rhythms by random methods

question

Which of the following characteristics is not true of minimalist music?

answer

A fast rate of change

question

Minimalist music is characterized by

answer

a steady pulse, clear tonality, and insistent repetition of short melodic patterns

question

Many composers since the mid-1960s have made extensive use of quotations from earlier music as an attempt to

answer

improve communication between the composer and the listener

question

In electronic music, there is no need for

answer

performers

question

Eric Whitacre's choral music often

answer

alternates consonant chords with sweetly dissonance tone clusters

question

Which of the following categories of black folk music is not considered one of the sources for the blues?

answer

gospel

question

The blues

answer

all answers are correct

question

The chord progression usually used in the blues involves only three basic chords: tonic, dominant, and

answer

subdominant

question

The most distinctive feature of New Orleans style jazz was

answer

collective improvisation by the front line

question

Bebop differed from earlier jazz forms in that it

answer

was meant for attentive listening, not dancing

question

A bebop performance genrally began and ended with

answer

a statement of the main theme by one or two soloists in unison

question

The following can be said about free jazz:

answer

all answers are correct

question

Which of the following is not a characteristic of fusion?

answer

the percussion section is smaller than in earlier jazz

question

In West Side Story the song "America" is given a Hispanic flavor with the use of alternations between

answer

6/8 and 3/4 meter

question

The Latin atmosphere heard in "America" from West Side Story is acheived through the use of such South American instruments as

answer

claves, guiro, and guitar

question

The dramatic importance of dance throughout West Side Story is illustrated through Bernstein's frequent use of

answer

instrumental interludes intended only for dancing

question

Which of the following is not a function of film and music?

answer

provide songs for the actors to sing

question

Movie soundtracks can contain

answer

original music and previously existing compositions

question

The Beatle's influence on American rock music may be seen through a later performers' use of

answer

all answers are correct

question

Rock is based on a powerful beat in quadruple meter with strong accents on ___ of each bar.

answer

the second and fourth beats

question

The harmonic progressions of rock are usually

answer

quite simple

question

Rock songs

answer

tend to have short melodic patterns that are repeated several times

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