Instruments (8 pts.)
String instruments (know names and order high to low)
Names of woodwind instruments
Names of brass instruments
Know at least four percussion instruments
Genres (12 pts.)
Know the difference between concerto and sonata
Art songs: lieder (German) mélodie (French)
Fugue: polyphonic, imitative composition based on a single theme
Know the difference between madrigal, cantata, secular song
A libretto is the text of an opera
The form of many songs, especially from the Great American Songbook (I Got Rhythm, Flintstones, etc.),
is AABA (32-bar form); ABAC (32 bars) is another standard form
Form of the blues is AAB (12-bar blues)
Composers (10 pts.) List two composers from the…
Middle Ages:
Renaissance:
Baroque:
Classical:
Romantic:
Listening Portion pt.1 (19 pts.)
I will select 10 from the following: Know composer, title, period/art movement (n/a for the jazz examples),
and genre
Berlioz Symphonie fantastique program symphony Romantic
Debussy Voiles from Preludes solo piano music Impressionism
Dvorak String Quartet in F major “American” string quartet Romantic
Ellington Cotton Tail big band jazz
Haydn Symphony no. 102 symphony Classical
Landini Behold Spring secular song Middle Ages
Parker Ornithology bebop
Schoenberg Pierrot Lunaire song cycle Expressionism
Stravinsky Rite of Spring ballet Modernism
Vivaldi Four Seasons: Winter concerto Baroque
Wagner The Valkyrie opera Romantic
Weelkes Since Robin Hood madrigal Renaissance
Listening Portion pt.2 (musical observations) (21pts.)
You be will presented a piece that you have never heard before. Identify the genre and explain why it is
considered that genre. Write 8 observations about the music. Use at least five elements (melody, harmony,
rhythm, tempo, texture, word/music relationships, dynamics, timbre, form).
Practice this by listening to something you have never heard before.
Short Essay Questions (10 pts. each) 1/3 to 1/2 page each
A. Describe the defining characteristics of a jazz style (“sub-category”) of your choice. List two important
musicians associated with that style, and the instrument they play(ed). When did this style of jazz flourish?
B. Choose a piece of music that was somehow affected by events associated with the Second World War.
List the composer, title, approximate date of composition, and how it relates to (or how it was affected) by
the war.
C. Compose a piece in the style of 1) John Cage or 2) Pauline Oliveros. Be specific with your directions,
and be sure to mention which composer you are imitating.