Music Section 1 Flashcards
Musicians in the US typically tune to
440 Hz
According to the Sachs-Hornbostel classification system, the trumptet is an
aerophone
On what topic is an ethnomusicologist MOST likely to write?
A comparison between Indian and European musical styles
Which instruments are members of the brass family?
Bugle, Baritone, Tuba
Timpani belong to the same instrument family as the
snare drum
A song in the “musique concrete” style will MOST likely include
tape recordings
What is the frequency of A2 on the piano?
110 Hz
On a piano, a whole step is the distance between
every other key
assume an alto clef. Which pitch does the center line represent?
D
Which line represents the G pitch in an alto clef?
second line from the bottom
“Clef” comes from the French word for?
Key
Which term describes the lowest pitch of an overtone series?
Fundamental
The white keys on a piano are usually called?
Natural keys
How does a musician play a theremin?
disturbing an electrical field
Which of the following instruments is NOT an idiophone?
Maracas, Xylophone, Tambourine, The Cowbell, and Wood block, Triangle
Maracas are classified as shaken instruments (classified as membranophones or more generally as rattles), where sound is produced by the rattling of objects inside a hollow container.
What is the dominant tuning system in Western music?
equal temperament
Which scale includes all pitches in an octave sorted in ascending order?
Chromatic
What is the relationship between A-sharp and B-flat?
Enharmonic
Which of the following intervals is a perfect fifth?
C to G
B to F
D to A
F to B
C to E
C to G and D to A
Which scale degree is known as the leading tone?
7
Which of the following intervals is the largest?
TT (Tritone interval consists of 6 half steps - the perfect fourth interval P4 only has 5 half steps)
How many half steps does an M6 interval contain?
9
Which term describes the fifth scale degree of a major scale?
dominant
How is a melodic interval structured?
One pitch occurs before another
Assume a major scale. What is the interval pattern between scale degrees 1-4?
M2-M2-m2
What is the second pitch in an A major scale?
B
Which of the following statements MUST be true if a scale is major?
^7-^8 is a half-step interval
Which scale is MOST common in Western music?
C major
Which of the following intervals is the Smallest?
G-flat to B-flat
How many half steps does an aug4 interval contain?
6
All minor scales will include
lowered third scale degree
What is a key difference between the natural minor and major scales?
The natural minor scale does not include a leading tone
Which keys are relative to each other?
C minor and E-flat major
Two keys are parallel if they
begin on the same tonic pitch
Which scale degrees can be lowered in a blues scale?
3
A scale with blues inflection will combine elements from
major and minor scales
If a composer wants to transpose a melody, they will
change the key
A true statement regarding contour
“The melody moves pretty smoothly”
Disjunct melodies will usually include intervals larger than a(n)
major second
Which vocal part performs MOST comfortably at a high range?
Soprano
The term tessitura is MOST often applied to
Vocal music
What part has the Lowest range (soprano, alto, tenor, bass, countertenor)?
Bass
A natural minor scale will include a half step between scale degrees
5 and 6
What interval is a half step in a harmonic minor scale?
^6-^7 ; ^5-^6 ; ^1-^2 ; ^3-^4 ; ^7-^1
^7-^1 - harmonic minor scale will include a half step interval between 7-1 but not between 1-7
If a musician says that a song is “in the key of E” , they mean
the tonic pitch is E
What scale degree helps determine if a scale is major or minor? (5, 4, 3, 2, 1)
3
How many key signatures are possible in common practice tonality?
15
How many key signatures are possible in common practice tonality?
2 sharps
What is the relative minor key of G-flat major?
E-flat minor
Assume a key signature has two sharps. What is the resulting major key if two sharps are added to it?
E major
What is the relative major key of C minor?
E-flat major
Assume an E-flat major key signature. What is the resulting key signature if one flat is added to it?
A-flat major
Major scale patterns are based on
whole and half steps
Which pitch or pitches are raised in a G major scale?
a) F, C b) F, C, G, D, A
c) F, C, G d) F
e) F, C, G, D
F
An A-flat major key signature includes
Four flats
What pitch or pitches are lowered in a D-flat major scale?
B, E, A, D, G
What key is the relative minor of C major?
A minor
How many major and minor scales exist in common practice tonality?
30
What keys have the same key signature?
a) C major; G-sharp minor
b) A major; A-flat minor
c) B major; G-sharp minor
d) E-flat major; E-flat minor
e) D-flat major; A minor
c) B major; G-sharp minor
The dominant seventh chord includes a fourth pitch to
intesify its pull to the tonic
What is the composition of the dominant seventh chord?
5-7-2-4
What interval is between the second note from the bottom and the top note of the dominant seventh chord?
tritone
How can a composer increase the complexity of a work’s harmony?
modulating the key
Who stated that music needed to “free” dissonance?
Arnold Schoenberg
What composer specialized in twelve-tone techniques?
Anton Webern
If a composer uses a non-functional harmony, the the song will specifically NOT
resolve chromatic chords
What technique produces polytonality?
Two different keys are performed simultaneously
Which of the following scales is unusual?
a) octatonic
b) melodic minor
c) major
d) harmonic minor
e) natural minor
Octatonic
What musical technique did Claude Debussy use extensively?
non-functional harmonies
Luigi Russolo was BEST known for
developing a categorization scheme for “noises
When was the twelve-tone method first developed?
1920s
How many pitches does a tone row hold?
12
Serial techniques increased in popularity after?
World War II
What is the interval between the top note and the second pitch from the top pitch in a dominant seventh chord?
m3
The process of arrangement will result in
individual instrumental parts
How many types of textures exist in Western music?
Four
Monophony will NOT include
harmony
What is a good example that demonstrates unison?
Multiple instruments playing the same melody at the same time
What musical style is MOST likely to employ heterophony?
Jazz
What instrument plays the accompaniment in “the Liberty Song”?
harpsichord
Assume a song has a single melody and instruments play the melody at staggered intervals. The texture will be
Imitative polyphony
An instrument’s timbre is also known as its
Tone color
How does a mute affect an instrument’s sound?
softening its volume
What musical term is an ornament?
a) coda b) trill
c) cadence d) da capo
e)bel canto
Trill
How is a decrescendo annotated in music notation?
a V rotated 90 degrees counterclockwise
What articulation results in smooth connections between notes?
legato
Which instrument can perform pizzicatos?
a) trumpet b) timpani
c) violin d) snare drum
e) wood block
Violin
The term piano means
quietly
A diminuendo means a musician should
decrease the dynamic level
Compared to the original melody, a sequence will
change the pitch level
What diagram depicts a strophic song?
AAAA
What term refers to the mark used to denote a variation
Prime
What key is a traditional favorite of the twelve-bar blues
B-flat major
The FIRST measure in the twelve-bar blues uses
I
An AABA diagram depicts
32-bar form
What diagram BEST depicts rondo form?
ABACA
What is the SIMPLEST form using contrast
ternary form
The LAST movement in a multi-movement word will use
sonata form
What diagram shows “song form”
AABA
Ternary form is also known a
ABA form
Before 1950, improvisation based on repetition was most common in
Soul music
The fifth measure of the twelve-bar blues will use the
dominant chord
What measure in the twelve-bar blues introduces the dominant seventh chord?
9
The LAST measure in the twelve-bar blues rests on the
tonic chord
Regular singing refers to
musical literacy
What fact BEST supports the idea that musical literacy in the American colonies decreased in the seventeenth century?
Psalmody used a small number of meters
A precentor MOST likely possesses a
strong voice
Humans can hear frequencies between
20 and 20,000 Hz
How does a musician produce sound on an idiophone
striking its body
Which instrument is a member of the woodwind family?
a) piano b) organ
c) trumpet d) viola
e) oboe
Oboe
What is the SMALLEST interval in Western music
half step
Assume a song uses a tenor clef. What pitch does the bottom line of the staff represent?
A
What characteristic applies to major scales
The seventh scale degree is called the leading tone
What interval is a half step in a melodic minor scale?
^7-^1
Which interval is the LARGEST?
a) B to G
b) D to B
c) C to G-flat
d) E-flat to G
e) B to F
D to B
Assume an E major scale. What is the second scale degree?
F-sharp
What is the range of a viola?
C3 to E6
If a composer wants to write a song with a slow tempo, they would MOST likely use
Lento
An anacrusis would MOST likely occur
before the downbeat
If a song is written in 4-4 time, which selection is equal to two measures?
sixteen eighth notes
“Cut-time” is indicated by the time signature
2-2
What does a “6” by a chord indicate?
It is in first inversion
What is the relative minor scale of B-flat major?
G minor
Assume a major key signature has four sharps. What is the resulting key signature?
E major
What key signature represents E-flat minor?
6 flats
Assume a D major scale. What is the ii triad?
E, G, B
What triad is known as the MOST stable chord in a key?
tonic
What is the MOST natural-sounding chord progressions within a key?
a chain of descending fifths
Assume a dominant seventh chord. What is the interval between the root and third?
M3
Modal mixture will usually occur between
parallel keys
What composer favored the use of non-functional harmonies?
Igor Stravinsky
An example that BEST demonstrates homophony?
A song with a melody and harmony
How is a staccato marked?
dot under a pitch
Articulation is the way a musician can?
start a pitch
A musician who sees the indication diminuendo should
decrease the dynamic level
The full name of the piano refers to its ability to
play soft and loud volumes
A motive is BEST defined as
Identifiable musical idea
Which dynamic marking is the SOFTEST?
a) ppp b) mf
c) mp d) p
e) pp
ppp
