The Ultimate Music Theory Quiz | Other Music

Answer: zf

"Dynamics" is the proper term in music for "volume". There are six main dynamics: pp (pianissimo) is very quiet, p (piano) is quiet, mp (mezzopiano) is slightly quiet, mf (mezzoforte) is slightly loud, f (forte) is loud and ff (fortissimo) is very loud. These terms are all Italian.

Answer: Bb (B flat)

A sharp raises the pitch of the note by 1 semitone (half a note), and a flat lowers it by 1 semitone. A natural is just a normal note (e.g. G, D).

Key signatures appear at the start of music. They tell you if there are any sharps or flats in the piece (although sharps and flats can appear throughout the piece), for instance, if F# was written in the key signature, every F should be played as an F# - 1 semitone higher.

Sometimes, however, flats, sharps or naturals are written in the music. If the key signature contains F# and an F has a natural written next to it, then that F (and any more Fs in that bar) is played without a sharp.

Answer: F C G D A E B

I used an acronym to help me remember the order of sharps - "Father Charles goes down and ends battle". Saying it backwards ("Battle ends and down goes Charles' father") helps you remember the order of flats.

There are some other acronyms for the order of sharps: "Fat children get diabetes after eating bacon" and "Father Christmas gave dad an electric blanket".

There are also some other acronyms for the order of flats: "Bears eat at dad's garbage can first" and "Blanket exploded and dad got cold feet".

Answer: Bass clef

There are two clefs commonly used in music: the treble clef and the bass clef.

The clef shows what note to play, for instance, a note on the bottom line on the stave is a E using the treble clef. Using the bass clef it is an G.

Answer: A line above or below the stave

A stave consists of five parallel lines which are horizontal. It is used to write music on. A ledger line is a small line that can go above or below the stave and is used to write a single note in. Multiple leger lines can be used for one note.

The link below shows notes on ledger lines, all of which are above the stave:

http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/0/09/Ledger_lines.png


"A pair of vertical lines, the second of which is bold" is describing a double bar line which indicates the end of a piece of music.

"A vertical line" is describing a bar line which indicates the end of a bar.

Answer: 5

The picture below shows a stave. It is used to write music on. The position of the note on the stave determines the pitch. A note low down on the stave is low in pitch, and a note high up on the stave has a high pitch.

http://www.clker.com/cliparts/8/o/v/o/e/B/plain-treble-stave-md.png

Answer: E and F

There is no black key between E and F because there is no note between the two. Instead of E# being the same as Fb, E# is F (natural) and Fb is E (natural).

There is no black key between B and C either - B# is C and Cb is B.

Answer: Decrescendo - gradually get quieter

Decrescendos (and crescendos) are placed below the stave. They indicate that you should get quieter/louder during the notes above the (de)crescendo.

If placed the opposite way round, it is a crescendo - it indicates that you should gradually get louder.

http://www.aprende-gratis.com/teoria-musical/imagenes/crescendo-decrescendo.png

In the link above, you would get louder in the first bar, and quieter in the second.

Answer: Semicrotchet (eighth note)

Instead of half a crotchet being called a semicrotchet, it is called a quaver.

The most commonly used notes are: semibreve (whole note), minim (half note), crotchet (quarter note), quaver (eighth note), semiquaver (sixteenth note).

There are some other, less common, shorter notes: demisemiquaver (thirty-
second note), hemidemisemiquaver (sixty-fourth note), semihemidemisemiquaver (one-hundred-and-twenty-eighth note)

There are also some longer notes which are not used in modern music (except for some extremely rare occasions): breve (double note), longa (which lasts as long as 2 or 3 breves, depending on the era the music was written in).

Answer: F, A, C and E.

G, B, D, F and A are the notes in the lines of the bass clef.
E, G, B, D and F are the notes in the lines of the treble clef.
A, C, E and G are the notes in the spaces of the bass clef.

There are some mnemonics to remember these:

For the lines of the treble clef, "Every good boy deserves football".
For the lines of the bass clef, "Grizzly bears don't fly airplanes".
For the spaces of the bass clef, "All Cows Eat Grass".
For the spaces of the treble clef, "Forks and chopsticks everywhere", although I tend to remember them because they spell "FACE".