Rhythmic Arithmetic
What syllable/nickname is used to count a single quarter note?
Ta
What unit (i.e., grqaphic element of notation) is used to visually separate beat groupings on a musical staff?
Bar lines, or measure lines.
What mnemonic phrase is used to remember the order of sharps in key signatures?
"Fat Cows Go Dancing After Eating Brownies" (FCGDAEB)
What five solfege syllables make up the standard Do-Pentatonic scale?
Do - Re - Mi - So - La
Define monophony, the oldest musical texture.
A single melodic line performed without any accompanying layers, sung or played in unison.
How many beats does a whole note or whole rest receive (when counting a quarter note as the beat)?
4
In a time signature, what does the top number tell you?
How many beats are in each measure.
What is the order of flats in key signatures?
BEADGCF ("BEAD + GCF")
Define musical transposition.
Transposition is playing or writing the same music in a different key while keeping all intervals/distances between notes identical.
What formal musical term is used to describe a traditional "round" (such as "Row, Row, Row Your Boat")?
Canon
What is the technical term for a pick-up beat or group of notes that precedes beat 1?
Anacrusis
What Italian tempo marking describes a "walking pace" (76–108 BPM)?
Andante
Using the "Two Rules" method, how do you find the key name for a sharp key signature?
Look at the last sharp in the signature; the key name is one semitone (half-step) above it.
What is tonicization?
Tonicization is taking an established scale and making a note other than the normal "Do" sound like the "home note" or strong pitch center without changing the pitch collection.
Name two examples of unpitched percussive instruments.
Snare drum, bass drum, cymbals, triangle
According to standard notation rules, how much value does a dot add to a note?
It adds 50% (or half) of the note's original value.
What is the difference between a ritardando and an accelerando?
Ritardando (or rallentando) means to gradually slow down, while accelerando means to speed up.
Why are key signatures used in sheet music instead of writing out accidentals every time?
Key signatures act as a shorthand so composers don't have to write individual accidentals next to every note throughout the piece.
List at least one practical reason why musicians or composers might need to transpose music.
(1) To adapt music for different vocal ranges (e.g., Soprano, Tenor, Mezzo-Soprano); (2) To write correct notation for transposing brass and woodwind instruments.
What is the difference between polyphony and homophony?
Polyphony features multiple independent, simultaneous melodic lines, whereas homophony features a clear principal melody supported by chordal accompaniment or block harmonies moving together.
Explain the function of a tie in musical notation.
A tie joins two note values together across beats or bar lines to extend their duration as a single continuous sound.
If a piece is written in 6/8 time, how many beats are in a bar and which note value counts as 1 beat?
There are 6 beats per bar, the eighth note counts as 1 beat.
What major key has four flats, and how do you determine its name using the "Two Rules" method?
A♭ Major; the second-to-last flat in the signature (B♭, E♭, A♭, D♭) is A♭
Name the 7 diatonic modes derived from the major scale in order, starting from Ionian.
Ionian, Dorian, Phrygian, Lydian, Mixolydian, Aeolian, Locrian.
What plantation tradition preserved West African musical practices (like call-and-response and polyrhythms) in America, laying the foundation for blues, jazz, and rock 'n' roll?
The Ring Shout
What short-long-short rhythmic motif and/or rhythmic pattern was introduced in Lesson 3.3?
Syncopa, or syncopation
How do simple (duple) meters and compound (triple) meters differ in terms of how their beats feel and subdivide?
Simple/duple meters subdivide beats into 2 parts and feel "square" (like a march), whereas compound/triple meters subdivide beats into 3 parts and feel "round" (like a waltz or jig).
How are keys organized as you move clockwise versus counterclockwise around the Circle of Fifths?
Moving clockwise moves up by a perfect fifth and adds sharps; moving counterclockwise adds flats.
What are the chromatic solfege syllables for a transposed Dorian mode starting on "Do"? Which specific scale degree is altered compared to a standard major scale?
Do - Re - Me - Fa - So - La - Te - Do; the third scale degree (Mi) is lowered to Me (minor 3rd) and seventh scale degree (Ti) is lowered to Te.
How is the Afro-Cuban clave's rhythmic structure organized?
The clave is a foundational two-measure rhythmic pattern that holds the meter together using a distinctive 3-note and 2-note structure (3-2 or 2-3).