Q&A Hero

Q: Discuss the differences between listening to recorded music at home and live music at a concert.

Q: The audience generally claps after complete works such as a symphony, a concerto, a sonata, or a song cycle.

Q: The concertmaster is the first-chair cellist.

Q: Before attending a concert of music that is new to you, you should prepare by doing some reading.

Q: Its best to sit near the performers during a chamber music concert.

Q: All tickets to concerts of symphonic music are very expensive.

Q: It is traditional for ensemble players to wear blacklong dresses or black pants and tops for women and tuxedos or tails for the mento minimize visual distractions.

Q: The concert program an usher hands you often has helpful notes about the pieces you will hear.

Q: In general, you should plan to arrive at a concert at least twenty minutes before it is scheduled to begin.

Q: For a concert featuring a large ensemble, front-row orchestra seats are the best location from which to hear a balanced performance.

Q: Listening to recorded music at home is just about the same experience as hearing it live.

Q: The act of partial listening is normal and appealing.

Q: The French word encore means: a. again. c. played twice. b. more. d. repeat.

Q: The different sections of a symphony are called: a. works. c. movements. b. pieces. d. songs.

Q: All of the following are established concert traditions except: a. performers wearing dark clothing. b. question-and-answer sessions with the audience during the concert. c. pianists performing from memory. d. orchestras standing when the conductor enters.

Q: The audience claps: a. during the piece. b. after complete works such as a symphony, a concerto, or a song cycle. c. after well-performed solos. d. between movements or songs.

Q: At a symphony concert, the first individual to make a separate entrance is: a. the conductor. c. the music director. b. the soloist. d. the concertmaster.

Q: Which of the following is considered rude behavior at a concert? a. turning your cell phone off c. talking to your companion b. applauding after complete works d. jotting down notes on your program

Q: During a concert, it is appropriate to leave your seat: a. whenever you are bored. b. during breaks in the works. c. only at the end of the program. d. only during intermission and at the end.

Q: If you arrive at a concert after the performance has begun, you should: a. enter and crawl over people to find your seat. b. enter and stand in the aisle until there is a break. c. wait until there is a break in the music and then enter and quickly find your seat. d. give up and go home.

Q: What is the best way to prepare in advance to attend an opera? a. practice speaking the language in which it will be performed b. read an overview of the plot c. buy a new outfit to wear d. read biographies of the singers

Q: A good source to find out more about works to be performed at a concert is: a. your music textbook. c. the Internet. b. StudySpace. d. all of the answers shown here

Q: Which of the following is NOT a good source of concert information? a. city and college newspapers b. websites of nearby venues c. college music or fine arts departments d. recently issued CDs

Q: Which of the following is NOT true about live concerts? a. The events have an element of unpredictability. b. They encourage partial listening. c. The performance is aurally stimulating. d. The performance is visually stimulating.

Q: Describe the four categories of musical instruments around the world and how they each produce sound. Cite an example of each.

Q: Describe the variety of musical sounds possible from the human voice. Consider issues such as range, social function, historical period, and regional styles.

Q: Aerophones produce sound from a vibrating string stretched between two points.

Q: Bass is the lowest male vocal range.

Q: Alto is the highest female vocal range.

Q: One of the most common membranophones around the world is the bagpipe.

Q: A guitar is an example of a chordophone.

Q: Flutes and whistles are classified as idiophones.

Q: Throughout history, the voice has been a model for instrumentalists and to instrument builders.

Q: In some cultures, womens voices are preferred for certain styles of music.

Q: Throughout history, womens voices have held a central role in the performance of church music.

Q: The human voice and instruments can produce a throbbing effect, which is called: a. vibrato. c. register. b. timbre. d. melody.

Q: Drum-type instruments fall into the category of: a. aerophones. c. idiophones. b. chordophones. d. membranophones.

Q: How do idiophones produce sound? a. from a vibrating string b. from a vibrating column of air c. from the shaking, scraping, or striking of the instrument itself d. from a tightly stretched membrane

Q: Of the following, which is a chordophone? a. flutes c. bagpipes b. whistles d. yangquin

Q: Instruments that produce sound by using air as the vibrating means are called: a. aerophones. c. idiophones. b. chordophones. d. membranophones.

Q: Instruments that produce sound from a vibrating string are called: a. aerophones. c. idiophones. b. chordophones. d. membranophones.

Q: The human voice: a. is an unnatural musical instrument. b. is limited in character and range. c. possesses lyric beauty and expressiveness that have been a model for instrument builders and players. d. can be made to sound like any instrument.

Q: The generally accepted term for the high male vocal range is: a. bass. c. alto. b. tenor. d. soprano.

Q: Which of the following voice types has the lowest range? a. baritone c. tenor b. bass d. alto

Q: The standard ranges of the human voice from highest to lowest are: a. soprano, alto, tenor, bass. c. tenor, soprano, alto, bass. b. bass, tenor, soprano, alto. d. soprano, tenor, alto, bass.

Q: A specific area within the range of a voice or instrument, such as high, middle, or low, is called: a. timbre. c. register. b. volume. d. form.

Q: A mechanism that generates musical vibrations and launches them into the air is called: a. a mute. c. a baton. b. a podium. d. an instrument.

Q: The quality of sound that distinguishes one instrument or voice from another is: a. timbre. c. tempo. b. pitch. d. volume.

Q: Which of the following is NOT a property of a musical sound? a. pitch c. duration b. texture d. timbre

Q: Find a contemporary use of word-painting and discuss how the composer captures the meaning of the word through music.

Q: Explain how the text-setting style influences the meaning of a song.

Q: When a single syllable is elongated by many notes, it is called melismatic.

Q: Word-painting not only emphasizes the word but also captures the joyful meaning through music.

Q: Happy Birthday is an example of a syllabic text setting.

Q: In strophic form, the same music is repeated for each stanza.

Q: The term vernacular refers to the language of the people.

Q: Vocalise is a wordless melody.

Q: In both Gospel and popular musical styles, singers use melismas as part of their signature style.

Q: Melismatic is the opposite of syllabic.

Q: Words and music that recur after stanza in a song are called a refrain or chorus.

Q: Italian was the official language of the Roman Empire.

Q: The opposite of vernacular is secular.

Q: Vocables such as Shoo-be-doo-be-doo-wop are an example of scat-singing.

Q: What is the text-setting style that not only emphasizes the word but also captures its joyful meaning through music? a. word-painting c. syllabic b. vernacular d. mousikas

Q: The text-setting style in which a single syllable is elongated by many notes is called: a. neumatic. c. melismatic. b. syllabic. d. word-painting.

Q: The text-setting style where each syllable gets one note is called: a. melismatic. c. syllabic. b. neumatic. d. vocalise.

Q: Words and music that recur after each stanza are called: a. a strophe. c. the break. b. a refrain or chorus d. the hook.

Q: Like poems, songs are often written in rhymed: a. stanzas or strophes. c. rhythms. b. refrains. d. vocalise.

Q: Which word means nonreligious? a. vernacular c. vocalise b. secular d. nonlexical

Q: In 1962, the Roman Catholic Church approved the use of the _____ for the Mass. a. Latin c. scat-singing b. vernacular d. secular

Q: ______ was the language of the Roman Empire, as well as the language of learning at medieval and Renaissance universities. a. Latin c. English b. German d. Italian

Q: A wordless melody, such as singing on a neutral vowel like ah, is called: a. nonlexical. c. Sprecthstimme. b. timbre. d. vocalise.

Q: ______ is a vocal improvisation common to jazz that uses wordless vocables. a. Vernacular c. Scat-singing b. Secular d. Mousikas

Q: Syllables such as Zip-a-dee-doo-dah, zip-a-dee-ay are considered: a. mousikas. c. Latin. b. nonlexical. d. secular.

Q: Describe how tempo and dynamics affect our response to music. Cite examples to support your response.

Q: Mezzo piano is the Italian term for moderately soft.

Q: There is no relation between tempo and the mood of a piece.

Q: Vivace is the Italian term for lively.

Q: Tempo markings indicate the character of the music as well as the pace.

Q: Vigor and gaiety are associated with brisk speed.