Music Theory & History

Question 1

Which 18th-century Austrian composer and multi-instrumentalist is famous for works such as The Marriage of Figaro, Don Giovanni, Eine kleine Nachtmusik, and Die Zauberflöte?

Answer 1

Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart

Mozart was a child prodigy who began composing at a young age and is remembered for composing tirelessly.

In spite of his fame, he had little financial security and died of an illness at the age of 35, famously receiving a modest funeral that resulted in his having an unmarked grave in Vienna.

The audio excerpt is from “Donna Elvira.”

Question 2

Which 19th-century Polish composer’s famous works include Sonata No. 2, Movement 3 (Funeral March) and Op. 66 (Fantaisie Impromptu)?

Answer 2

Frederic Chopin

A pianist from age five, many of Chopin’s works were written for solo piano.

Question 3

Which 18th- and 19th-century German composer and pianist is best known for works such as Ode to Joy and Fur Elise?

Answer 3

Ludwig van Beethoven

Beethoven is famed for having continued to conduct, perform, and compose music even after becoming deaf.

He is also known for the piano sonata “Moonlight” and his Symphony No. 5 in C minor, one of the most famous compositions in classical music (playing now!).

Question 4

What type of music combines a musical score with the text of a play and is usually performed in a theatre accompanied by an orchestra or ensemble?

Answer 4

opera

Opera started near the end of the 16th century and is part of the Western classical music tradition.

Well-known opera singers include Luciano Pavarotti, Andrea Bocelli, and Anna Netrebko. Famous opera composers included Mozart, Rossini, and Bellini.

Question 5

Which 19th- and 20th-century Italian opera composer is most famous for operas including La Bohème, Tosca, and Madama Butterfly?

Answer 5

Giacomo Puccini

Question 6

Which musical era took place between 1730–1820 A.D., introducing smaller musical groups such as trios and string quartets, along with lighter, more beautiful compositions?

Answer 6

Classical

Composers of this era include Beethoven and Mozart.

It is interesting to note that any music from the Medieval, Renaissance, Baroque, and Classical eras are all referred to as “classical music”. This is not technically correct.

Question 7

Which Italian composer of opera during the Romantic Period is best known for his operas Aida (specifically the Grand March) and Rigoletto?

Answer 7

Giuseppe Verdi

Question 8

What style of dance music characterized by a heavy bass line originated in Jamaica in the 1960s?

Answer 8

reggae

Reggae borrows stylistically from jazz, rock and roll, and R&B. Bob Marley is arguably the most famous reggae musician of all time.

Question 9

Name this popular work of music and its composer:

Answer 9

Canon in D by Johann Pachelbel

Question 10

Name this popular work of music and its composer:

Answer 10

The Marriage of Figaro by Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart

Question 11

Which 19th-century German composer of operas is famous for works such as Bridal Chorus and Ride of the Valkyries?

Answer 11

Richard Wagner

Question 12

What type of music blends traditional African American and European music and often uses a ‘call and response’ pattern among both string and brass instruments?

The call and response pattern is a 5-bar (5 measure) repeating pattern that helps the artists share a common understanding that allows them to riff off each other.

Answer 12

blues

Blues developed during the American Civil War (1861-65) in the southern United States.

The ‘call and response’ pattern has one musician play a musical phrase and a second that then “answers” with a phrase.

Blues heavily influenced rock, jazz, country, and hip hop in the decades after its advent.

Question 13

Which type of instrument is played by plucking or moving a bow over a series of strings?

Answer 13

string

String instruments include guitar, violin, and cello.

Question 14

Name this popular work of music and its composer:

Answer 14

Ride of the Valkyries from Die Walküre, Act 3 by Richard Wagner

Question 15

Which 19th-century Russian composer is famous for writing music for The Nutcracker?

Answer 15

Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky

A gifted pianist, Tchaikovsky began taking lessons at age five. Another of his famous works is the well-known ballet, Swan Lake.

Question 16

Which 17th- and 18th-century German composer and organist composed works such as Minuet in G major, The Well-Tempered Clavier, and the Brandenburg concertos?

Answer 16

Johann Sebastian Bach

Bach only became recognized as a great composer posthumously in the early 19th century.

Question 17

What is the name for two or more different notes (usually three or more) that are played together at the same time?

Answer 17

musical chord

An example of a chord is called a triad (like the C Major triad).

Question 18

What instrument group does the piano fall into?

Answer 18

percussion instrument

Contrary to what you might have thought, a piano is technically a series of hammers which hit strings rather than by plucking or moving a bow across them.

When a key is depressed, a small hammer strikes a string, creating the sound we hear.

Technically, a piano belongs in three instrument groups: keyboard, string, and percussion.

Question 19

What is the name of the person who waves their arms in patterns to indicate time and tempo of the music?

Answer 19

Conductor

A conductor also cues musicians as to when to begin and stop playing.

They conduct an orchestra, chorus, opera company, ballet, and other ensembles.

Question 20

What type of music originated in New Orleans, Louisiana in the 1920s that blended American, European, and African music and incorporated musical techniques such as syncopation and improvisation?

Answer 20

jazz

Well-known artists include Louis Armstrong, John Coltrane, and Miles Davis.

Question 21

Which type of instrument is commonly made of metal, and produces sound through blown air and lip vibrations?

Answer 21

brass

Brass instruments include trumpet, French horn, trombone, and tuba.

Question 22

What American music genre originated in the 1940s as popular African-American music and was influenced by jazz, blues, soul, and rock and roll?

Answer 22

R&B

The term rhythm and blues has shifted in meaning over time, beginning as blues music in the 50s, moving to include gospel and soul in the 60s, and drifting to soul and funk in the 70s.

By the 80s, elements of pop, rock, and dance music were also under the R&B umbrella.

Well-known R&B artists include Aretha Franklin, Stevie Wonder, Michael Jackson (early in his career), and James Brown.

Question 23

Popular in the U.S. South, which American style of music sprung up in the early 1900s as a blend of folk and traditional Western music?

Answer 23

country

Well-known atists include Johnny Cash, Brad Paisley, and Florida Georgia Line.

Question 24

What type of popular dance music blends various Cuban and Puerto Rican musical genres using a precise percussion beat called the clave?

Answer 24

salsa

The word “salsa” was first heavily used in New York City during the 1970s.

Important salsa artists include Johnny Pacheco, Willie Colón, and Héctor Lavoe.

Question 25

Which **type of instrument** typically produces sound by being struck or shaken?

Answer 25

percussion ## Footnote Percussion instruments include snare drum, xylophone, timpani, and triangle.

Question 26

Which **modern-day composer** has written music for famous films, including *Jaws*, *Star Wars*, and *Harry Potter?*

Answer 26

John Williams ## Footnote Williams has won 22 Grammy awards. His other notable works include scores for Indiana Jones, E.T., Home Alone, Saving Private Ryan, and many more, as well as the Olympic games theme music.

Question 27

What **type of music** began in the 1970s and is characterized by beatboxing, scratching, MCing, and rapping?

Answer 27

hip hop / rap ## Footnote Well-known artists include The Sugarhill Gang, Nas, and Kanye West.

Question 28

What **type of music emerged from the 1980s undergound** to become popular in the 1990s and is characterized by an edgier guitar sound?

Answer 28

alternative rock ## Footnote Alternative music is also often associated with subversive lyrics and a defiant attitude toward the mainstream. Well-known alternative artists include Nirvana, R.E.M., and Radiohead.

Question 29

What **type of music** is typically made with some type of technological instrument or effect?

Answer 29

electronic ## Footnote Also commonly referred to as EDM (electronic dance music), the genre includes subgenres such as house, trance, and techno. Artists include Tiesto and Avicii.

Question 30

Which **type of instrument produces sound when air is blown into it**, and sometimes requires a wooden reed?

Answer 30

woodwind ## Footnote Woodwind instruments include flute, clarinet, and saxophone.

Question 31

What **music genre emerged in the United States in the 1950s** and was first characterized by the use of guitars and a drum set as lead instruments?

Answer 31

rock (and roll) ## Footnote Rock and roll was based in and influenced by jazz, blues. gospel, and country music. Famous early rock artists included The Beatles, The Rolling Stones, and Queen.