Category: Music

Q1. What is the primary reason the yueqin is nicknamed “moon guitar” or “moon lute”?
A. It is played primarily at night under moonlight
B. Its round body resembles the shape of a full moon
C. It was invented during a lunar festival
D. Its sound evokes the quiet of the night sky
Answer: B. Its round body resembles the shape of a full moon

Q2. The yueqin evolved from which ancient Chinese string instrument?
A. Pipa
B. Guzheng
C. Ruan
D. Erhu
Answer: C. Ruan

Q3. During which Chinese dynasty did the yueqin become known by its current name?
A. Tang Dynasty
B. Jin Dynasty
C. Han Dynasty
D. Qing Dynasty
Answer: A. Tang Dynasty

Q1. What is the oud primarily classified as in musical instrument families?
A. A percussion instrument
B. A wind instrument
C. A short-necked lute-type chordophone
D. A keyboard instrument
Answer: C. A short-necked lute-type chordophone

Q2. The name “oud” in Arabic most commonly refers to what?
A. A type of reed
B. Wood or a flexible stick
C. A metal string
D. A bird’s feather
Answer: B. Wood or a flexible stick

Q3. Which ancient Persian instrument is considered the direct ancestor of the modern oud?
A. Tar
B. Setar
C. Barbat
D. Qanun
Answer: C. Barbat

Q1. What family of musical instruments does the historical spinet belong to?
A. Piano family
B. Harpsichord family
C. Organ family
D. String family
Answer: B. Harpsichord family

Q2. How is sound primarily produced on a historical spinet?
A. By plectra plucking strings
B. By hammers striking strings
C. By air blowing through pipes
D. By tangents striking strings
Answer: A. By plectra plucking strings

Q3. What is the typical shape of the most common type of historical spinet?
A. Rectangular
B. Oval
C. Wing-shaped or bentside
D. Square
Answer: C. Wing-shaped or bentside

Q1. What is the primary sound production mechanism of the celesta?
A. Vibrating strings struck by hammers
B. Metal bars struck by felt hammers
C. Tuning forks vibrated by keys
D. Wooden plates bowed with a mechanism
Answer: B. Metal bars struck by felt hammers

Q2. The name “celesta” derives from a French word meaning what?
A. Bell-like
B. Sparkling
C. Heavenly
D. Mystic
Answer: C. Heavenly

Q3. In which year was the modern celesta patented?
A. 1860
B. 1886
C. 1892
D. 1900
Answer: B. 1886

Q1. What is the primary distinguishing feature of the cornet’s bore compared to the trumpet?
A. Cylindrical throughout
B. Conical, gradually widening
C. Completely straight
D. Narrower at the bell
Answer: B. Conical, gradually widening

Q2. The modern valved cornet was developed in which decade?
A. 1600s
B. 1750s
C. 1820s
D. 1900s
Answer: C. 1820s

Q3. Which instrument is the cornet historically derived from?
A. Post horn
B. Natural trumpet
C. French horn
D. Flugelhorn
Answer: A. Post horn

Q1. What family of musical instruments does the bassoon belong to?
A. Single-reed woodwinds
B. Brass
C. Double-reed woodwinds
D. Percussion
Answer: C. Double-reed woodwinds

Q2. The bassoon is known for producing sound through which type of mouthpiece?
A. Single reed
B. Double reed
C. Metal mouthpiece
D. Open hole
Answer: B. Double reed

Q3. What is the primary material used to construct modern bassoons?
A. Metal
B. Plastic
C. Maple wood
D. Bamboo
Answer: C. Maple wood

Q1. What is the primary material used for the bars of a modern marimba?
A. Metal
B. Wood
C. Synthetic plastic
D. Stone
Answer: B. Wood

Q2. The marimba belongs to which family of musical instruments?
A. Chordophone
B. Aerophone
C. Idiophone
D. Membranophone
Answer: C. Idiophone

Q3. What structure is suspended below each bar on a marimba to amplify the sound?
A. Resonator pipes
B. Metal bells
C. Drum heads
D. Strings
Answer: A. Resonator pipes

Q1. What is the primary ancestor of the European lute?
A. The Greek lyre
B. The Arabic oud
C. The Indian sitar
D. The Persian tar
Answer: B. The Arabic oud

Q2. During which historical period was the lute the most important instrument for secular music in Europe?
A. Medieval
B. Classical
C. Renaissance
D. Romantic
Answer: C. Renaissance

Q3. How was the medieval lute typically played before the shift to fingerstyle?
A. With fingernails
B. With a plectrum
C. Bowed like a violin
D. Strummed with a pick
Answer: B. With a plectrum

Q1. What does the name “piccolo” mean in Italian?
A. High flute
B. Small
C. Octave flute
D. Military flute
Answer: B. Small

Q2. The modern piccolo sounds how many octaves higher than written music?
A. Two octaves
B. The same pitch
C. One octave
D. Half an octave
Answer: C. One octave

Q3. Which family of musical instruments does the piccolo belong to?
A. Woodwind
B. String
C. Brass
D. Percussion
Answer: A. Woodwind

Q1. What does the name “euphonium” derive from in ancient Greek?
A. “Loud voice”
B. “Sweet-voiced” or “beautiful sound”
C. “Tenor horn”
D. “Brass tube”
Answer: B. “Sweet-voiced” or “beautiful sound”

Q2. Who is credited with inventing the euphonium (originally called “euphonion”) around 1843 in Weimar, Germany?
A. Adolphe Sax
B. John Philip Sousa
C. Carl Moritz
D. Ferdinand Sommer
Answer: D. Ferdinand Sommer

Q3. The euphonium is most commonly pitched in which key?
A. C
B. F
C. Bb
D. Eb
Answer: C. Bb