Music 105 - Understanding Music » Spring 2022 » Midterm Examination
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Question #1
A sequence may be defined as
A.
a part of a melody.
B.
the emotional focal point of a melody.
C.
the repetition of a melodic pattern at a higher or lower pitch.
D.
a resting place at the end of a phrase.
Question #2
The musical element that refers to the way chords are constructed and how they follow each other is
A.
meter.
B.
harmony.
C.
tempo.
D.
melody.
Question #3
A chord is a
A.
pattern of accents used in music.
B.
combination of three or more tones sounded at once.
C.
series of individual tones heard one after another.
D.
resting point at the end of a phrase.
Question #4
A combination of tones that is considered unstable and tense is called a
A.
dissonance.
B.
progression.
C.
chord.
D.
consonance.
Question #5
The simplest, most basic chord used in western music is the
A.
triad.
B.
consonance.
C.
dyad.
D.
dissonance.
Question #6
The distance in pitch between any two tones is called
A.
duration.
B.
an interval.
C.
timbre.
D.
dynamic accent.
Question #7
Tonality is another term for
A.
modulation.
B.
key.
C.
chromaticism.
D.
scale.
Question #8
If a pitch vibrates at 880 cycles, the octave below would vibrate at ____ cycles.
A.
440
B.
1760
C.
220
D.
660
Question #9
Modulation refers to
A.
the central tone of a musical composition.
B.
the sharp or flat signs immediately following the clef sign at the beginning of the staff of a musical composition.
C.
a shift from one key to another within the same composition.
D.
an independence from major or minor scales.
Question #10
The organization of musical ideas in time is called
A.
variation.
B.
ternary.
C.
repetition.
D.
form.
Question #11
A composition that alternates often between soft and loud dynamics can be said to be high in
A.
contrast.
B.
cadence.
C.
repetition.
D.
form.
Question #12
Three-part form can be represented as
A.
A A B.
B.
A B C.
C.
All answers are correct.
D.
A B A.
Question #13
We know little about the music of very ancient civilizations because
A.
it was too primitive to interest later generations.
B.
there probably was almost none.
C.
hardly any notated music has survived from these cultures.
D.
it is too difficult to be played today.
Question #14
Dynamics in music refer to
A.
the relative highness or lowness we hear in a sound.
B.
an exemplary performance.
C.
the quality that distinguishes musical sounds.
D.
the degree of loudness and softness.
Question #15
A gradual increase in loudness is known as a
A.
decrescendo.
B.
crescendo.
C.
diminuendo.
D.
fortissimo.
Question #16
Register refers to
A.
the instrument manufacturer's brand name.
B.
playing two or more notes at the same time.
C.
part of an instrument's total range.
D.
the number of reeds an instrument uses.
Question #17
Woodwind instruments are so named because they
A.
have wooden key mechanisms.
B.
use a wooden reed.
C.
are made of wood.
D.
were originally made of wood.
Question #18
The highest woodwind instrument in the orchestra is the
A.
oboe.
B.
clarinet.
C.
English horn.
D.
piccolo flute.
Question #19
Pitch is defined as
A.
the degree of loudness or softness in music.
B.
the relative highness or lowness that we hear in a sound.
C.
the quality that distinguishes musical sounds.
D.
leaning on a musical note.
Question #20
A hollow, funnel-shaped piece of wood, plastic, or metal that brass players use to alter the tone of their instruments is called a
A.
mute.
B.
tailpiece.
C.
crook.
D.
reed.
Question #21
The _________ has strings that are plucked by a set of plastic, leather, or quill wedges.
A.
harpsichord
B.
accordion
C.
piano
D.
organ
Question #22
The first, or stressed, beat of a measure is known as the
A.
upbeat.
B.
downbeat.
C.
intro.
D.
head.
Question #23
In general, the smaller the vibrating element, the __________ its pitch.
A.
higher
B.
lower
C.
softer
D.
louder
Question #24
A _______________ is an apparatus that produces ticking sounds or flashes of light at any desired musical speed.
A.
beat
B.
stopwatch
C.
clock
D.
metronome
Question #25
The distance between a melody's lowest and highest tones is known as its
A.
range.
B.
cadence.
C.
rhythm.
D.
sequence.
Question #26
Staccato refers to playing or singing a melody
A.
at a higher or lower pitch.
B.
in small steps.
C.
in a smooth, connected manner.
D.
in a short, detached manner.
Question #27
A smooth, connected style of playing a melody is known as
A.
staccato.
B.
legato.
C.
vibrato.
D.
glissando.
Question #28
A cadence is
A.
the repetition of a melodic pattern at a higher or lower pitch.
B.
the emotional focal point of a melody.
C.
a melody that serves as the starting point for a more extended piece of music.
D.
a resting place at the end of a phrase.
Question #29
The church frowned on instruments because of their
A.
association with minstrels and jongleurs.
B.
use in early Jewish religious ceremonies.
C.
earlier role in pagan rites.
D.
sacred quality and background.
Question #30
The passamezzo is a
A.
silly, humorous dance in duple meter.
B.
wooden instrument with a cup-shaped mouthpiece.
C.
lively dance in triple meter.
D.
stately dance in duple meter similar to the pavane.
Question #31
Most medieval music was
A.
vocal.
B.
for the piano.
C.
for the organ.
D.
instrumental.
Question #32
The music the Medieval monks sang was called
A.
Trouvère songs.
B.
estampies.
C.
Gregorian chant.
D.
contemporary gospel.
Question #33
Pope Gregory the Great
A.
composed all of the Gregorian chants.
B.
All answers are correct.
C.
reorganized the Catholic church liturgy during his reign from 590 to 604.
D.
published all of the Gregorian chants.
Question #34
The church modes are
A.
like the major and minor scales in that they consist of seven different tones.
B.
different from the major and minor scales in that they consist of only five different tones.
C.
different from the major and minor scales in that they consist of only six different tones.
D.
completely different from any other form of scale.
Question #35
Hildegard of Bingen was
A.
abbess of the convent at Rupertsberg.
B.
the first woman composer to leave a large number of works that have survived.
C.
All answers are correct.
D.
a visionary and mystic active in religious and diplomatic affairs.
Question #36
The first large body of secular songs that survives in decipherable notation was composed
A.
from 590 to 604.
B.
during the twelfth and thirteenth centuries.
C.
during the fifteenth century.
D.
during the ninth century.
Question #37
A.
dance.
B.
stringed instrument.
C.
secular song form.
D.
song of worship.
Question #38
Which of the following statements is not true of humanism?
A.
The Madonna was treated as a beautiful young woman.
B.
The humanists were basically atheistic in their beliefs.
C.
The humanists focused on human life and its accomplishments.
D.
The humanists were captivated by the pagan cultures of ancient Greece and Rome.
Question #39
The center of polyphonic music in Europe after 1150 was
A.
Reims.
B.
Rome.
C.
Paris.
D.
London.
Question #40
The term ars nova refers to
A.
Italian and French music of the fourteenth century.
B.
German music of the sixteenth century.
C.
paintings from the new world.
D.
the new art of baroque painters.
Question #41
A new system of music notation that allowed composers to specify almost any rhythmical pattern had evolved by the
A.
early fourteenth century.
B.
late twelfth century.
C.
early thirteenth century.
D.
late fourteenth century.
Question #42
The texture of Renaissance music is chiefly
A.
homophonic.
B.
monophonic.
C.
polyphonic.
D.
heterophonic.
Question #43
The Renaissance motet is a
A.
polyphonic choral composition made up of five sections.
B.
piece for several solo voices set to a short poem, usually about love.
C.
dancelike song for several solo voices.
D.
polyphonic choral work set to a sacred Latin text other than the ordinary of the mass.
Question #44
The Council of Trent attacked the church music of the Renaissance because it
A.
All answers are correct.
B.
used secular tunes, noisy instruments, and theatrical singing.
C.
was tiresomely monophonic.
D.
was based on Gregorian chant.
Question #45
The Renaissance madrigal is a
A.
polyphonic choral work set to a sacred Latin text.
B.
piece for several solo voices set to a short poem, usually about love.
C.
dancelike song for several solo voices.
D.
polyphonic choral composition made up of five sections.
Question #46
A.
electronic instrument whose tone is generated by oscillators.
B.
bass woodwind instrument similar to the bassoon.
C.
keyboard instrument suitable for playing basso continuo parts.
D.
plucked string instrument capable of producing chords as well as a bass line.
Question #47
Vivaldi spent most of his life working at an institution for orphaned and illegitimate girls in
A.
Cremona.
B.
Venice.
C.
Florence.
D.
Rome.
Question #48
Bach was recognized as the most eminent ____________ of his day.
A.
organist
B.
composer
C.
cellist
D.
violinist
Question #49
Bach created masterpieces in every baroque form except
A.
fugue.
B.
opera.
C.
sonata.
D.
concerto.
Question #50
Although all the movements of a baroque suite are in the same key, they differ in
A.
meter.
B.
tempo.
C.
All answers are correct.
D.
national origin.
Question #51
In contrast to fugues, baroque suites tended to have ____________ because they were based on dance steps.
A.
melodies in minor keys
B.
choral singers
C.
foot stomps and hand claps
D.
balanced and symmetrical phrases
Question #52
In their use of aria, duet, and recitative, Bach's cantatas closely resembled the ____________ of the time.
A.
operas
B.
suites
C.
concertos
D.
sonatas
Question #53
Oratorio differs from opera in that it has no
A.
vocal soloists.
B.
acting, scenery, or costumes.
C.
orchestral accompaniment.
D.
choral part.
Question #54
George Frideric Handel was born in 1685, the same year as
A.
Claudio Monteverdi.
B.
Johann Sebastian Bach.
C.
Arcangelo Corelli.
D.
Antonio Vivaldi.
Question #55
Handel spent the major portion of his life in
A.
Italy.
B.
Ireland.
C.
Germany.
D.
England.
Question #56
Affections in baroque usage refers to
A.
the doctrine of universal brotherhood.
B.
terraced dynamics.
C.
emotional states or moods of music.
D.
the nobility's manner of deportment.
Question #57
Terraced dynamics refers to
A.
the sudden alternation from one dynamic level to another.
B.
a gradual change from soft to loud.
C.
a gradual change from loud to soft.
D.
dynamics that are not written in the music but added by the performer.
Question #58
The main keyboard instruments of the baroque period were the organ and the
A.
harpsichord.
B.
accordion.
C.
piano.
D.
clavichord.
Question #59
A bass part together with numbers that specify the chords to be played above it is called
A.
figured bass.
B.
basso profundo.
C.
sequenced bass.
D.
counterpoint.
Question #60
A concerto grosso most often has ____________ movement(s).
A.
one
B.
three
C.
four
D.
two
Question #61
A musical ornament consisting of the rapid alternation of two tones that are a whole or half step apart is a
A.
shake.
B.
trill.
C.
wobble.
D.
blurb.
Question #62
The main theme of a fugue is called the
A.
countersubject.
B.
subject.
C.
episode.
D.
answer.
Question #63
Turning the subject of a fugue upside down, or reversing the direction of each interval, is called
A.
inversion.
B.
stretto.
C.
countersubject.
D.
retrograde.
Question #64
Castrati
A.
All answers are correct.
B.
combined the lung power of a man with the vocal range of a woman.
C.
received the highest fees of any musicians.
D.
were male singers who had been castrated before puberty.
Question #65
Embellishments are
A.
music created at the same time it is performed.
B.
notes printed in the music that ornament the melody.
C.
ornamental tones not printed in the music that seventeenth- and eighteenth-century performers were expected to add to the melody.
D.
obsolete in contemporary performances.
Question #66
Monteverdi spent the greater part of his career in
A.
the Vatican, Rome.
B.
Notre Dame, Paris.
C.
The Duomo, Florence.
D.
St. Mark's, Venice.
Question #67
A song for solo voice with orchestral accompaniment is called a/an
A.
duet.
B.
aria.
C.
ensemble.
D.
stretto.
Question #68
A typical baroque operatic form was the da capo aria in ABA form in which the singer
A.
would improvise new words for the returning A section.
B.
would make a literal repetition of the opening A section after the B section.
C.
was expected to embellish the returning melody with ornamental tones.
D.
would insert recitatives between the sections for added variety.
Question #69
Bach created masterpieces in every baroque form except
A.
opera.
B.
conceerto
C.
sonata.
D.
fugue.
Question #70
In contrast to fugues, baroque suites tended to have ____________ because they were based on dance steps.
A.
foot stomps and hand claps
B.
melodies in minor keys
C.
choral singers
D.
balanced and symmetrical phrases
Question #71
In their use of aria, duet, and recitative, Bach's cantatas closely resembled the ____________ of the time.
A.
suites
B.
sonatas
C.
operas
D.
concertos
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