MIDTERM TEST KEY – Music 100
1. Opening melody of “Twinkle, Twinkle Little
Star how I wonder what you are” is:
a) Wave-like
b) Descending
c) Ascending
d) Drone
2. The meter in “Mary had a little lamb” is:
a) Quadruple
b) Triple
c) Nonmetric
d) Too difficult to count
3. Minor chords can be described as:
a) Hard to hear
b) Sweet
c) Sad
d) Syncopated
10. Dynamics describe:
a) Personality
b) Speed in music
c) Ukrainian soccer team
d) Volume of music
11. The four families of Western instruments are:
a) Drums, guitar, bass, vocal
b) Dulcimer, banjo, accordion,
saxophone
c) Strings, woodwinds, brass,
percussion
d) Keyboard, fiddle, jug, washboard
12. Flute is a part of:
a) Woodwind family
b) Brass
c) Percussion
d) Special effects
4. Major chords can be described as:
a) Happy
b) Sad
c) Evil
d) Sour
13. Which family of instruments is frequently
referred to as “the heart of the orchestra”?
a) Brass
b) Harpsichord & guitar
c) Strings
d) Choir
5. Musical dissonance is:
a) Unpleasant
b) Discordant
c) Tense
d) All of the above
14. Gregorian Chant is:
a) Sacred
b) Monophonic
c) Free flowing and sung in Latin
d) All of the above
6. Monophony is:
a) Drone
b) Major scale
c) Consonant
d) Single voice
15. Hildegard of Bingen was:
a) Medieval composer of sacred music
b) Wife of Pope John Paul II
c) Jewish Cantor
d) Teacher at SDSU
7. Polyphony is:
a) Many voices in counterpoint
b) Accompaniment
c) Stupid
d) All of the above
16. Piano-forte is:
a) Mountain range in Lombardy
b) Italian candy
c) Antiquated term for a keyboard
instrument
d) Church choir
8. Motive is:
a) Large scale composition
b) Melodic idea
c) Improvisation
d) Musical instrument
9. Tempo in music refers to:
a) Speed
b) Motive
c) Form
d) Time
17. Troubadours were:
a) Poet-musicians
b) Troublemakers and brigands
c) Priests and shamans
d) All of the above
18. Word painting is:
a) Important
b) Unimportant
c) Subject in kindergarten
d) Music, which reflects the meaning of
the lyrics in a song
19. Vivaldi’s set of concertos “Four Seasons”
was inspired by:
a) His sister
b) Italian sonnets
c) Meeting with the Pope
d) None of the above
20. Mozart was:
a) Musical genius
b) Composer
c) Performer
d) All of the above
21. The new area in theory of music in Baroque
was:
a) Organum
b) Gregorian Chant
c) Doctrine of the Affection
d) Symphonic Poem
22. Italian opera started in:
a) Florence
b) Athens
c) Moscow
d) New York
23. Most recognizable part of an opera is:
a) Instrumentation
b) Recitative
c) Aria
d) Costumes
24. Johann Sebastian Bach is best known for
writing:
a) Fugues
b) Horror movie music
c) Novels
d) Musicals
25. The Four Season were written by:
a) Josquin des Prez
b) G. W. Bush
c) G. F. Handel
d) Antonio Vivaldi
26. Oratorio is:
a) Brian de Palma movie
b) Sacred opera
c) Christmas carol
d) Broadway musical
27. Concerto form has:
a) Four movements:
Fast-Slow-Fast-Fast
b) Two movements:
Slow-Fast
c) Three movements:
Fast-Slow-Fast
d) Five movements:
Fast-Slow-Fast-Slow-Fast
28. How many notes are there in the main motive
of Beethoven’s Fifth Symphony?
a) Three
b) Four
c) Five
d) Seventy two
29. How many symphonies did Beethoven write?
a) One hundred four
b) Three
c) Nine
d) None
30. Classical music is characterized by:
a) Homophonic texture
b) Memorable melodies
c) Symmetrical, balanced forms and
regular rhythms
d) All of the above
31. Eine Kleine Nachtmusik was written by:
a) Johann Sebastian Bach
b) Antonio Vivaldi
c) George Frideric Handel
d) Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart
32. What was the surprise in the “Surprise
Symphony”?
a) Loud crash created by the orchestra
b) Conductor falling off the podium
c) Appearance of the “King of the
Troubadours”
d) Vivid description of a city in Arizona
33. Musical form called Rondo can be defined
as:
a) A A A A
b) A B A C A
c) A B A
d) None of the above
34. Romantic music is characterized by:
a) Memorable melodies and rich
harmonies
b) Expanded forms and larger
orchestras
c) Virtuoso soloists like Franz Liszt
d) All of the above
35. Franz Liszt was revered for his:
a) Virtuoso piano playing
b) Poetry
c) Paintings
d) Novels
42. Ludwig van Beethoven was:
a) Woman
b) Composer and pianist
c) First Roman Emperor
d) Dog
36. Absolute music is:
a) Musical accompaniment
b) Opera
c) Oratorio
d) None of the above
43. The fourth movement of “Symphonie
Fantastique” vividly describes:
a) Beheading
b) Glorious sunset in San Diego
c) Political unrest in Moldova
d) Pomp and majesty of a royal court
37. “Symphonie Fantastique” by Hector Berlioz
is:
a) Overture
b) Oratorio
c) Program Symphony
d) Belgian chocolate cake
38. “Symphonie Fantastique” tells the story of:
a) Napoleon Bonaparte’s exile and
escape from Elba
b) An artist gifted with a lively
imagination who has poisoned himself
with opium
c) Music student’s boredom induced
hallucinations
d) Raimbaut de Vacqueiras’ battle with
the Bulgars
39. What is Program music?
a) Recording studio in LA
b) Texas based Microchip Company,
which focuses on recording equipment
c) Computer generated music
d) Music, which carries some extramusical meaning
40. What is Absolute music?
a) Instrumental music composed purely
as music, and not intended to represent
or illustrate something else
b) Father Guido Sarducci's sermon
c) W. A. Mozart's favorite drink
d) Pythagorean musical theorem
41. Richard Wagner's The Ring of the Nibelung
is:
a) Polyphonic Gregorian chant
b) Cycle of four epic Music Dramas
c) Treatise on Dendrochronology
d) Symphony
44. Rap song “The Second coming” by Juelz
Santana was inspired by:
a) Movie by Spike Lee
b) Oratorio by G. F. Handel
c) 13th century Gregorian chant Dies
Irae
d) Wife of King Arthur
45. The so-called Mozart effect is:
a) Based on neuroscience studies of
Mozart's music effects on human brain
b) Based on lowering of A440Hz to
A432Hz
c) Result of years of chronic absinthe
abuse
d) Austrian café in Spring Valley
46. “The Nutcracker” is:
a) Kickboxing move
b) Music Drama by R. Wagner
c) Ballet by P. I. Tchaikovsky
d) Opera by Harry Truman
47. Die Walküre were:
a) Warrior goddesses from Norse
mythology
b) French movie producers
c) Reform minded German liberals
d) Bavarian football team mascots
48. Program symphony is:
a) Opera
b) Instrumental music with extra
musical content
c) Viennese chocolate cake
d) Painting by Picasso
49. Idée fixe in music is:
a) Gourmet French dish
b) Recurring musical theme
c) Symptoms of frontal lobe dementia
d) Painting by Salvador Domènec
Felipe Jacinto Dalí i Domènech,
Marquis de Púbo
50. Tempo Rubato is:
a) Japanese for: Thank you!
b) Italian for: Good times.
c) Slight fluctuation in tempo
d) Professor at Mesa College
59. Canon in music is:
a) Beautiful
b) Ugly
c) Unnecessary
d) Strictly imitative work
51. Sonata-allegro form can be expressed as:
a) Repetitive A-A-A-A form
b) Binary A-B form
c) Free-flowing no repeat form
d) Cyclical ternary A-B-A form
60. The lowest male voice is:
a) Soprano
b) Tenor
c) Bass
d) Alto
52. Why did Tchaikovsky write 1812 Overture:
a) To remember the birth year of his
wife
b) For a movie
c) To commemorate Napoleon’s
invasion of Russia
d) As parody of a troubadour love song
61. The highest female voice is:
a) Bass
b) Alto
c) Tenor
d) Soprano
53. Antonio Vivaldi is best know for his:
a) Pizzas
b) Novels
c) Movies
d) Concertos
54. What was the most popular musical
instrument in the Renaissance?
a) Lute
b) Viola da Gamba
c) Harpsichord
d) Bassoon
55. Musical sound is represented by a symbol
called:
a) Pitch
b) Decibel
c) Note
d) Frequency
56. What is a musical cadence?
a) Distance between two pitches
b) Musical resting place
c) Interval
d) Unsavory sound
57. Triple meter means:
a) One beat per measure
b) Two beats per measure
c) Three beats per measure
d) Four beats per measure
58. What instrument does a conductor play?
a) Pan pipes
b) Drums
c) Triangle
d) Orchestra
62. Triangle is:
a) Percussion instrument
b) Devil’s delight
c) Dysfunctional relationship
d) Martial arts move
63. Violin is a part of:
a) Woodwind family
b) Strings
c) Brass
d) Percussion section
64. Vibraphone is:
a) I’d rather not say…
b) Brass instrument
c) Pitched percussion instrument
d) Aerophone instrument
65. Musical theme is:
a) Unimportant in contemporary music
b) Morally disreputable song
c) Heterophonic improvisation
d) Recognizable melody, upon which
part or all of a composition is based
66. Medieval musicians performed mostly in:
a) Public theaters for serfs
b) Churches and courts
c) Sordid hookah and opera houses
d) All of the above
67. G. F. Handel’s famous "Halleluiah" chorus is
from his oratorio is called:
a) Mephistopheles
b) Row, row, row your boat
c) Messiah
d) None of the above
68. The ubiquitous musical composition Ride of
the Valkyries is originally from:
a) Richard Wagner's music drama Die
Walküre
b) Dante’s epic poem Inferno
c) Karl Marx's masterwork Das Kapital
d) Friedrich Nietzsche's critical essay
Nietzsche contra Wagner
69. Music drama is:
a) Unimportant for classical musicians
b) Pretentious cacophony of sounds
c) Genre that integrated theater and
music completely
d) Overbearing, degenerate, overly
emotional art music
70. In medieval times sacred music was sung in:
a) Czech
b) French
c) English
d) Latin
71. J. S. Bach’s music is:
a) Highly elaborate and contrapuntal
b) Obscure
c) Inconsequential
d) Canadian
72. Musical scale is:
a) Series of notes differing in pitch
according to a specific scheme (usually
within an octave)
b) Bath scale which sings when you
step on it
c) German brewery song
d) East Coast female Hip-hop artist’s
shiny outfit
73. Mozart’s music is:
a) Depressing and stupid
b) Nobody listens to it anymore
c) Graceful and imaginative
d) Who is Mozart?
74. 1st Viennese school was:
a) Haydn, Mozart, Beethoven
b) Obama, Berlusconi, Putin
c) Napoleon, Hitler, Mussolini
d) Smetana, Brahms, Wagner
75. What instrument did Mozart play?
a) Guitar
b) Saxophone
c) Triangle
d) Piano
76. Characterize the tempo in the 2nd movement
of The Surprise symphony:
a) Deliberate with regular beat pattern
b) Irregular, frenetic pace
c) Rollicking, speedy tempo
d) Unmeasured
77. Which keyboard instrument produces sound
from air flowing through its many pipes?
a) Kettle drum
b) Trumpet
c) Organ
d) Arch lute
78. Binary form can be best outlined as:
a) AB
b) ABA
c) ABACADA
d) ABRACADABRA
79. The sections of a large-scale work are called:
a) Notes
b) Phrases
c) Symphonies
d) Movements
80. Which one of the following instruments
came originally from the Arab world?
a) Pipe organ
b) Alto saxophone
c) Lute
d) Viola da Braccio
81. Fugue is:
a) Orchestral introduction
b) Series of dances
c) Free flowing unmeasured song
d) Highly structured contrapuntal form,
based on a single theme or subject
82. How many movements does Classical
symphony have?
a) Four
b) Three
c) Two
d) One
83. Which classical master’s music
foreshadowed the emotional Romantic style?
a) W. A. Mozart
b) F. J. Haydn
c) L. van Beethoven
d) J. S. Bach
84. What is the mood of the fifth movement of
Symphonie Fantastique by Hector Berlioz?
a) Infernal and scary
b) Grim
c) Frightening and gloomy
d) All of the above
85. “Leitmotif” is:
a) Specific recurring musical idea
b) German for “being late”
c) Bavarian beer
d) Sauerkraut dish
86. How does the hero of the Symphonie
Fantastique end?
a) Getting married to a nymph
b) Being executed by guillotine
c) Leaves for America
d) In a convalescent home
TRUE or FALSE
87. Hildegard of Bingen was a nun:
a) True
b) False
88. Rhythm is important in music:
a) True
b) False
89. Symphonie Fantastique was written
and performed on the guitar:
a) True
b) False
90. Johann Sebastian Bach was a
famous composer from the Classical
Era:
a) True
b) False
LISTENING EXAMPLES
91.This sample is music from:
a. Renaissance
b. Baroque
c. Romantic period
d. Middle Ages
92. This composition is by:
a. A. Vivaldi
b. J. S. Bach
c. Hildegard of Bingen
d. Louis XIV of France
93. This sample is:
a. Overture
b. Aria
c. Concerto
d. Gregorian Chant
94. This music is by:
a. Richard Wagner
b. Robert Schuman
c. W. A. Mozart
d. J. S. Bach
95. This musical style is called:
a. Imitative counterpoint
b. Bossa Nova
c. Monophonic chant
d. Polyphonic madrigal
96. This music is:
a. Oratorio
b. Concerto
c. Sacred cantata
d. Medieval instrumental dance
97. The instrument in this composition is:
a. Guitar
b. Organ
c. Symphonic orchestra
d. Idiophone
98. Which movement of a concerto is this:
a. First
b. Second
c. Third
d. Fourth
99. The instrument in this composition is:
a. Violin
b. Bagpipe
c. Harp
d. Harpsichord
100. This sample is from:
a. L. van Beethoven's Fifth Symphony
b. Moldau by B. Smetana
c. Rigoletto by G. Verdi
d. Sacred Mass by Palestrina