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Quiz about The Great Pianists
Quiz about The Great Pianists

The Great Pianists Trivia Quiz

A quiz dealing with the jazz musicians who made the piano sing and ring.

A multiple-choice quiz by YouAreJunk. Estimated time: 6 mins.
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Author
YouAreJunk
Time
6 mins
Type
Multiple Choice
Quiz #
315,601
Updated
Dec 03 21
# Qns
15
Difficulty
Tough
Avg Score
8 / 15
Plays
386
Awards
Top 35% Quiz
- -
Question 1 of 15
1. The late 1940s and early 1950s sparked a new sound in jazz known as bebop, which incorporated faster, more harmonic-based improvisation rather than melodic variation. Which of the following pianists is arguably the greatest influence on the bebop language? Hint


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Question 2 of 15
2. Using space and silence in improvisation is a mature approach, and "saying a lot with little notes" can be very effective. Which of the following pianists is best known for his use of space and silence? Hint


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Question 3 of 15
3. Though he possessed somewhat limited technique, Oscar Peterson remains one of the most influential pianists in the history of jazz.


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Question 4 of 15
4. Throughout Miles Davis' career, the piano chair in his various ensembles housed some of the idiom's most influential pianists/keyboardists. Which of the following musicians was not the pianist of a Miles Davis-led ensemble? BE CAREFUL! Hint


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Question 5 of 15
5. Which of the following pianists was known best for just his playing, rather than playing AND composing? Hint


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Question 6 of 15
6. Which of the following pianists can be linked most to the classical harmonic concepts of impressionism, much like the composers Debussy and Ravel? Hint


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Question 7 of 15
7. Quartal voicings (chords built entirely of fourths) is a common sound to the jazz piano language. Which of the following pianists is known for revolutionizing this harmonic concept? Hint


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Question 8 of 15
8. Which of the following pianists is best known for his work as a composer/collaborator with guitarist Pat Metheny in the Pat Metheny Group? Hint


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Question 9 of 15
9. Many of the great jazz pianists were also equally great classical pianists. Which of the following duos went on a tour in Japan during the 1980s playing the Mozart Concerto for Two Pianos? Hint


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Question 10 of 15
10. Which of the following orchestral conductors also gained renown as a world-class jazz pianist? Hint


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Question 11 of 15
11. Which of the following pianists lost his cabaret card for allegedly refusing to testify against his friend in a drug bust? Hint


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Question 12 of 15
12. Which of the following pianists is most associated with the ECM label? Hint


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Question 13 of 15
13. Which of the following pianists went through a several-month phase where he was unable to record or perform because of coping with a death? Hint


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Question 14 of 15
14. During the rise of the bebop era, Bud Powell was the house pianist at Minton's Playhouse.


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Question 15 of 15
15. Which of the following 20th century film composers began his career as a jazz pianist? Hint



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Quiz Answer Key and Fun Facts
1. The late 1940s and early 1950s sparked a new sound in jazz known as bebop, which incorporated faster, more harmonic-based improvisation rather than melodic variation. Which of the following pianists is arguably the greatest influence on the bebop language?

Answer: Bud Powell

 Bud Powell is to the piano what Charlie Parker is to the alto saxophone. Though contemporaries of Bud, Wynton Kelly and Red Garland gleaned the harmonic vocabulary he came up with, as did Bill Evans later on.
2. Using space and silence in improvisation is a mature approach, and "saying a lot with little notes" can be very effective. Which of the following pianists is best known for his use of space and silence?

Answer: Ahmad Jamal

 The evidence is on the records. Although all the choices have been known to use space as a facet of their improvisations, Ahmad Jamal really made that "his sound." Sometimes he would play one note in a measure and wait two or three measures to play again.
3. Though he possessed somewhat limited technique, Oscar Peterson remains one of the most influential pianists in the history of jazz.

Answer: False

Oscar Peterson did not possess limited technique. On the absolute contrary, he was a master virtuoso on the instrument.
4. Throughout Miles Davis' career, the piano chair in his various ensembles housed some of the idiom's most influential pianists/keyboardists. Which of the following musicians was not the pianist of a Miles Davis-led ensemble? BE CAREFUL!

Answer: Keith Jarrett

 The trick to this question is the phrase "not the PIANIST." All the choices played with Miles at some point in his career, but only Keith Jarrett never played PIANO. He only played electric keyboards during Miles' fusion era in the 1970s.
5. Which of the following pianists was known best for just his playing, rather than playing AND composing?

Answer: Teddy Wilson

 Teddy Wilson was never really a jazz composer; only an interpreter.
6. Which of the following pianists can be linked most to the classical harmonic concepts of impressionism, much like the composers Debussy and Ravel?

Answer: Bill Evans

 Bill Evans' harmonic concept draws from the depths of French classical music, with tightly packed harmonies and chord voicings.
7. Quartal voicings (chords built entirely of fourths) is a common sound to the jazz piano language. Which of the following pianists is known for revolutionizing this harmonic concept?

Answer: McCoy Tyner

 All of the pianists in this question have each had something to say about harmony, but McCoy Tyner was best known for this concept while playing in John Coltrane's quartet in the late 1950s and early 1960s.
8. Which of the following pianists is best known for his work as a composer/collaborator with guitarist Pat Metheny in the Pat Metheny Group?

Answer: Lyle Mays

 The key word is "GROUP." Although all the pianists in this question have worked with and/or collaborated with Pat Metheny, the only pianist to ever play in the Pat Metheny GROUP since its inception is Lyle Mays, with whom Metheny has written almost all of the music the group plays.
9. Many of the great jazz pianists were also equally great classical pianists. Which of the following duos went on a tour in Japan during the 1980s playing the Mozart Concerto for Two Pianos?

Answer: Chick Corea and Keith Jarrett

 Jarrett and Corea both have expressed their love for Mozart, and how much he has been an influence on both of them.
10. Which of the following orchestral conductors also gained renown as a world-class jazz pianist?

Answer: André Previn

 Previn once did a live interview with the great Oscar Peterson, which included the two of them playing together.
11. Which of the following pianists lost his cabaret card for allegedly refusing to testify against his friend in a drug bust?

Answer: Thelonious Monk

 Thelonious Monk and Bud Powell were caught with narcotics (assumed to have belonged to Powell) in a parked car in 1951. Monk lost his license to play in any alcohol-serving New York club for refusing to testify against Powell.
12. Which of the following pianists is most associated with the ECM label?

Answer: Keith Jarrett

 Keith Jarrett has been recording for ECM Records since almost the start of his career.
13. Which of the following pianists went through a several-month phase where he was unable to record or perform because of coping with a death?

Answer: Bill Evans

 Ten days after recording the monumental 1961 album "Sunday at the Village Vanguard," bass legend Scott LaFaro was tragically killed in a car crash, which devastated Evans. Evans did not record again until 1962.
14. During the rise of the bebop era, Bud Powell was the house pianist at Minton's Playhouse.

Answer: False

The house pianist at Minton's Playhouse was not Bud Powell, but rather, Thelonious Monk.
15. Which of the following 20th century film composers began his career as a jazz pianist?

Answer: John Williams

 While studying at Juilliard in the 1950s, Williams found work as a pianist in jazz groups throughout New York City.
Source: Author YouAreJunk

This quiz was reviewed by FunTrivia editor Pagiedamon before going online.
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Referenced Topics
Music   History   Other Music   Languages   Vocabulary   Albums   Classical Music   French Language   New York   Jazz   Guitarists   Composers   Keyboards   1980s Country Music   Saxophone   1960s Country Music   1970s Country Music   1950s Country Music   Miles Davis  

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