______UNITED STATES ACADEMIC DECATHLON®
MUSIC
LEVEL TEST 3: HARD DIFFICULTY LEVEL
2016-2017 ______INSTRUCTIONS: On your answer sheet, mark the lettered space (a, b, c, d, or e) corresponding to the answer that BEST completes or answers each of the following test items. ______
1. Which of the following compositions is in verse-chorus form?
a. “I Got Rhythm” b. “Praise the Lord and Pass the Ammunition” c. “In the Mood” d. “Boogie Woogie Bugle Boy” e. “Ol’ Man River”
2. Emphasis on which of the following would increase the perceived “hotness” of a jazz performance?
a. saxophones b. solo improvisation c. shout chorus d. trumpets e. blues form
3. “Dissonant Counterpoint,” such as that in Ruth Crawford’s String Quartet 1931, is a characteristic of ______.
a. impressionism b. expressionism c. primitivism d. ultramodernism e. nationalism
4. Which of the following frequencies would sound if one played an A above middle C?
a. 55 Hz b. 110 Hz c. 220 Hz d. 440 Hz e. 880 Hz
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5. ______broadcasts from the Palomar Ballroom played a vital role in popularizing swing music.
a. Duke Ellington’s b. Charlie Parker’s c. Benny Goodman’s d. Fletcher Henderson’s e. Glenn Miller’s
6. Cartoons were frequently used as propaganda tools, such as Donald Duck in Nutzi Land. Bugs Bunny similarly starred in a 1942 cartoon, “______.”
a. Any Bonds Today? b. This is the Army c. Praise the Lord and Pass the Ammunition d. The White Cliffs of Dover e. Boogie Woogie Bugle Boy
7. Which of the following composed many patriotic tunes, such as “Over There,” “You’re a Grand Old Flag,” and “Yankee Doodle Dandy”?
a. George Gershwin b. Arthur Sullivan c. Irving Berlin d. Morton Gould e. George Cohan
8. Which of the following jazz innovations is NOT attributed to Fletcher Henderson?
a. increased size of ensemble b. preferring clarinets over saxophones c. sectional writing d. frequent call-and-response between sections e. extensive use of a riff
9. “Surry with the Fringe on the Top” is BEST described as being in which form?
a. verse-chorus b. ternary c. rondo d. alternation e. theme and variation
10. ______and C major are parallel scales.
a. A minor b. A major c. C minor d. G minor e. G major
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11. The use of harmonic progression in “Boogie Woogie Bugle Boy” is MOST similar to which of the following?
a. “Praise the Lord and Pass the Ammunition” b. “Surrey with the Fringe on the Top” c. “Ol’ Man River” d. “I’ve Got Rhythm” e. “Cross Road Blues”
12. Which of the following jazz styles would typically feature the shortest solo breaks?
a. Bebop b. Swing c. New Orleans d. Bop e. Big band
13. Which of the following songs constitutes a vision song?
a. “Surrey with the Fringe on the Top” b. “I’ve Got Rhythm” c. “Cross Road Blues” d. “Ol’ Man River” e. “In the Mood”
14. In common-practice tonality, which of the following chords is the MOST unstable, prompting listeners to desire for it to resolve to a more consonant chord?
a. major b. minor c. diminished d. dominant e. all of the above
15. ______features layers of ostinatos that fall out of sync with each other and do not repeat enough times to sync back up.
a. String Quartet 1931, Mvt. IV b. Quartet for the End of Time, Mvt. I c. The Banshee d. Fanfare for the Common Man e. Concerto for Orchestra, Mvt. I
16. ______sometimes featured “wordless voice” in his or her compositions, featuring a singer singing no words.
a. Duke Ellington b. Ruth Crawford c. Henry Cowell d. Arnold Schoenberg e. George Cohan
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17. Moving a song to a different TONIC pitch is called
a. counterpoint b. tessitura c. obbligato d. transposition e. transcription
18. Which of the following swing bandleaders was known for using a prominent saxophone section led by a clarinet?
a. Duke Ellington b. Fletcher Henderson c. Glenn Miller d. Benny Goodman e. Count Basie
19. In a film, ______music is the term for music that the characters in the story would be able to hear.
a. custom b. special c. symphonic d. source e. original
20. The ______is a component that allowed for the amplification of an audio track embedded on film.
a. phonofilm b. vacuum tube c. vitaphone d. movietone e. vinyl record
21. What organization would have taken a Broadway musical on tour to perform for overseas troops?
a. The Wing b. NASM c. OWI d. MWC e. USO
22. ______played the same instrument that is heard during Rhapsody in Blue’s iconic opening.
a. Duke Ellington b. Benny Goodman c. Glenn Miller d. Paul Whiteman e. Charlie Parker
23. A time signature is used to indicate which aspect of a piece of music?
a. meter b. tempo c. beat d. rhythm e. tessitura 4 Music Level Test 3
24. Which of the following instrumental works would NOT qualify as programmatic?
a. The Banshee b. Concerto for Orchestra c. String Quartet 1931 d. Quartet for the End of Time e. A Survivor from Warsaw
25. ______blues is NOT synonymous with “country blues”.
a. Folk b. Classic c. Southern d. Delta e. Down-home
26. Which of the following was written by a composer while he or she served as a soldier?
a. A Survivor from Warsaw b. This is the Army c. Quartet for the End of Time d. “In the Mood” e. War Requiem
27. A(n) ______triad consists of two minor thirds.
a. major b. minor c. augmented d. diminished e. dominant
28. Which was a new discipline at the start of World War II?
a. music therapy b. music theory c. musicology d. ethnomusicology e. none of the above
29. What characteristic of “Surrey with the Fringe on the Top” qualifies it as a musical scene?
a. recitative b. orchestral accompaniment c. ballet d. multiple themes e. speaking
30. Which of the following musical comedies included integrated songs?
a. Yip, Yip, Yaphank b. Girl Crazy c. Oh, Kay! d. Show Boat e. Little Johnny Jones 5 Music Level Test 3
31. U.S. concert groups touring throughout Latin America during World War II represents the efforts of the ______.
a. OWI b. OCIAA c. MWC d. USO e. NWMC
32. Which of the following pieces of music includes a primary theme that is largely built around an arpeggio that is repeated in a syncopated pattern?
a. “Boogie Woogie Bugle Boy” b. “I’ve Got Rhythm” c. “In the Mood” d. “Praise the Lord and Pass the Ammunition” e. “Surrey with the Fringe on the Top”
33. A C major chord spelled E-G-C from lowest-to-highest is in ______.
a. first inversion b. second inversion c. third inversion d. root position e. None of the Above
34. Which of the following is an example of Expressionism?
a. Fanfare for the Common Man b. String Quartet 1931, Mvt. IV c. War Requiem d. American Salute e. A Survivor from Warsaw
35. Which of the following works represents a musical comedy?
a. Oklahoma! b. Girl Crazy c. South Pacific d. This is the Army e. Rhapsody in Blue
36. ______features bichordal harmonies.
a. The Banshee b. String Quartet 1931, Mvt. IV c. “Ol’ Man River” d. Fanfare for the Common Man e. American Salute
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37. Which of the following compositions qualifies as serialism?
a. The Banshee b. Fanfare for the Common Man c. Survivor from Warsaw d. Concerto for Orchestra, Mvt. I e. American Salute
38. The key of ______major follows G major in a clockwise progression around the circle of fifths.
a. F b. C c. D d. A e. E
39. ______culminates in a scene involving a soldier greeting his killer in the afterlife.
a. War Requiem b. South Pacific c. This is the Army d. Buck Privates e. Quartet for the End of Time
40. Which of the following styles of music is the oldest?
a. Swing b. Bebop c. Blues d. Ultramodernism e. Musical theater
41. A(n) ______chord borrows notes from outside of the original key.
a. major b. minor c. diminished d. augmented e. chromatic
42. Which of the following musical concepts can be found in the initial phrases of “Surrey with the Fringe on the Top?”
a. palindrome b. obbligato c. recitative d. sequence e. compound meter
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43. The first synchronized-sound film featuring Warner Brothers’ Vitaphone technology was ______.
a. Don Juan b. The Wizard of Oz c. The Jazz Singer d. Steamboat Willie e. Casablanca
44. Which of the following musical selections includes examples of scat singing?
a. “I’ve Got Rhythm” b. “Surrey with the Fringe on the Top” c. “Boogie Woogie Bugle Boy” d. “Ol’ Man River” e. “Praise the Lord and Pass the Ammunition”
45. In a twelve-tone composition, what would be the next pitch of this sequence: A-B-C-D-E-F-G-Gb-Eb-Db- Bb-______?
a. Ab b. Bb c. Cb d. Fb e. A
46. Who of the following is an important representative of a non-American who integrated jazz and blues styles into classical music?
a. Erich Korngold b. George Gershwin c. Aaron Copland d. Kurt Weil e. Darius Milhaud
47. Which of the following compositions was based on a pre-existing property?
a. Concerto for Orchestra b. Show Boat c. String Quartet 1931 d. Girl Crazy e. The Banshee
48. Which of the following productions includes recitative?
a. Girl Crazy b. This is the Army c. South Pacific d. Porgy and Bess e. Oklahoma!
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49. A composition diagrammed as ABACA is an example of ______form.
a. sonata b. blues c. rondo d. ternary e. theme and variation
50. What composer’s opera served as a voice of dissent for an occupied European country?
a. George Gershwin b. Kurt Weil c. Erich Korngold d. Arnold Schoenberg e. Olivier Messiaen
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