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Music Appreciation

Subjects : performing-arts, music
Instructions:
  • Answer 50 questions in 15 minutes.
  • If you are not ready to take this test, you can study here.
  • Match each statement with the correct term.
  • Don't refresh. All questions and answers are randomly picked and ordered every time you load a test.

This is a study tool. The 3 wrong answers for each question are randomly chosen from answers to other questions. So, you might find at times the answers obvious, but you will see it re-enforces your understanding as you take the test each time.
1. Born in Texas - Nelson was one of the most influential figures in the progressive country movement. Nelson's rise to national fame came in the mid-1970s - through his association with a group of musicians collectively known as 'the Outlaws.'






2. Founded in 1982 - Public Enemy was organized around a core set of members who met as college students - drawn together by their interest in hip-hop culture and political activism. The group included the standard hip-hop configuration of two MCs—Chuck






3. Country vocalist who scored crossover hits with songs such as 'I Fall to Pieces -' and 'Crazy -' both recorded in 1961.






4. A digital recording process wherein a sound source is recorded with a microphone - converted to a digital stream of binary numbers - and stored in a computer. The sampled sounds may be retrieved in a number of ways.






5. The first commercially successful white act in hip-hop. Their early recordings represent a fusion of the youth-oriented rebelliousness of hardcore punk rock—the style they began playing in 1981—with the sensibility and techniques of hip-hop.






6. Rock style that emerged in the late 1970s. It was a 'back to basics' rebellion against the perceived artifice and pretension of corporate rock music—a stripped-down and often purposefully 'nonmusical' version of rock music.






7. Born in the impoverished shantytowns of Kingston - Jamaica - reggae first became popular in the United States in 1973 - after the release of the Jamaican film The Harder They Come and its soundtrack album. The heart of reggae music consists of 'riddi






8. Singer and guitarist who founded the alternative rock band Nirvana. His recordings broke through to the commercial mainstream and popularized grunge rock. He shot himself in Seattle in 1994.






9. Hip-hop artist whose work is a self-conscious alternative to the violence and sexism in the work of rap stars such as Dr. Dre - the Notorious B.I.G. - and 2Pac Shakur. Her commitment to female empowerment builds on the ground-breaking example of Quee






10. CEO of the New York independent label Bad Boy Records.

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11. Known as the 'Genius of Soul'; songwriter - arranger - keyboard player - and vocalist fluent in R&B - jazz - and mainstream pop.






12. Regional style of alternative rock from Seattle that blended heavy metal guitar textures with hardcore punk. Bands from Seattle included Green River - Mudhoney - Pearl Jam - Nirvana - and Soundgarden.






13. Emerged during the 1970s as one part of the cultural complex of hip-hop. It consisted of rhymed speech accompanied by funk-derived rhythmic grooves.






14. Kurt KObain's band - Nevermind album






15. The most influential and economically successful member of N.W.A. He founded an independent record label (Death Row/Interscope) - cultivated a number of younger rappers - and continued to develop a distinctive hip-hop production style - christened 'G






16. Genre that developed out of hard rock in the 1970s and achieved mainstream success in the 1980s.






17. African American musical style rooted in R&B and gospel that became popular during the 1960s.






18. 'The Queen of Soul -' she began singing gospel music at an early age and had several hit records with Atlantic - including 'Respect' in 1967 and 'Think' in 1968.






19. Style of folk music that grew in popularity in the burgeoning New York folk scene during the 1960s. It included artists such as Bob Dylan.






20. One of the main venues for techno. Semipublic event modeled partly on the be-ins of the 1960s counterculture.






21. The most influential and economically successful member of N.W.A. He founded an independent record label (Death Row/Interscope) - cultivated a number of younger rappers - and continued to develop a distinctive hip-hop production style - christened 'G






22. Tragic victim of conflicts between East and West Coast factions within the hip-hop business. He was an up-and-coming star with Los Angeles-based Death Row Records when He was shot and killed in Las Vegas in 1996.






23. Springsteen's music and personal image evoked the rebellious rock 'n' rollers of the 1950s and the socially conscious folk rockers of the 1960s. His songs reflected his working-class origins and sympathies.






24. Rapper from Oakland - California; hit the charts in 1990 with Please Hammer Don't Hurt 'Em - which held the Number One position for twenty-one weeks and sold over ten million copies - becoming the bestselling rap album of all time.






25. Got his start in the 1960s as a member of the famous folk rock duo Simon and Garfunkel. His album Graceland (1986) was a global collaboration recorded in South Africa - England - and the United States. It is the album responsible - more than any othe






26. -one of the forerunners of the Grunge genre - originally part of the 'no wave' scene in NY -Many alternative bands such as Nirvana looked up to them -album 'Daydream Nation' was well-received by critics - and then they were signed to Geffen Records -






27. Centered on the creation of a strong rhythmic momentum or groove - with the electric bass and bass drum often playing on all four main beats of the measure - the snare drum and other instruments playing equally strongly on the second and fourth beats






28. Achieved celebrity as a member of the art rock group Genesis before embarking on a solo career. Gabriel's best-selling single 'Sledgehammer' became Number One pop and Number Sixty-one R&B in 1986. The award-winning video version of 'Sledgehammer' was






29. The most important woman in the history of hip-hop - in terms of both her commercial success and her effectiveness in establishing a feminist beachhead on the male-dominated field of rap music.






30. Named after the Warehouse - a popular gay dance club in Chicago - it was a style of techno dance music. Many house recordings were purely instrumental - with elements of European synth-pop - Latin soul - reggae - rap - and jazz grafted over an insist






31. Began his performing career as a member of the Jackson Five. He achieved unprecedented success with his 1982 album Thriller - and his elaborately produced music videos helped boost the new medium of music videos. Jackson became the first African Amer






32. Style modeled on that of the early acoustic string bands; probably the original 'alternative country' music.






33. Singer-songwriter Who wrote many hits in the 1960s with Gerry Goffin. In 1971 - the success of her album Tapestry made her a major recording star.






34. The leader of the Wailers and a national hero in his native Jamaica - Marley was reggae's most effective international ambassador. His songs of determination - rebellion - and faith - rooted in the Rastafarian belief system - found a worldwide audien






35. Music played by San Francisco bands that encompassed a variety of styles and musical influences - including folk rock - blues - 'hard rock -' Latin music - and Indian classical music.






36. Springsteen's music and personal image evoked the rebellious rock 'n' rollers of the 1950s and the socially conscious folk rockers of the 1960s. His songs reflected his working-class origins and sympathies.






37. The term 'alternative'—like the broadly equivalent terms 'underground' and 'independent'—is used across a wide range of popular genres - including rock - rap - adult contemporary - dance - folk - and country music. It is used to describe music that c






38. Form of rock music that blended elements of rock and European classical music. It included bands such as King Crimson; Emerson - Lake - and Palmer; and Pink Floyd.






39. Centered on the creation of a strong rhythmic momentum or groove - with the electric bass and bass drum often playing on all four main beats of the measure - the snare drum and other instruments playing equally strongly on the second and fourth beats






40. Style of electronic dance music that originated in the Detroit area during the 1980s.






41. Music played by San Francisco bands that encompassed a variety of styles and musical influences - including folk rock - blues - 'hard rock -' Latin music - and Indian classical music.






42. One of the main venues for techno. Semipublic event modeled partly on the be-ins of the 1960s counterculture.






43. Marketing category that emerged around 1990; it is most often used to describe bands like are.E.M. - Sonic Youth - the Dead Kennedys - and Nirvana.






44. The 'Godfather of Soul.' He was known for his acrobatic physicality and remarkable charisma on stage. No other single musician has proven to be as influential on the sound and style of black music as James Brown.






45. A digital recording process wherein a sound source is recorded with a microphone - converted to a digital stream of binary numbers - and stored in a computer. The sampled sounds may be retrieved in a number of ways.






46. Country vocalist who scored crossover hits with songs such as 'I Fall to Pieces -' and 'Crazy -' both recorded in 1961.






47. Form of dance music popular in the late 1970s - characterized by elaborate studio production and an insistent beat: Donna Summer - Chic - the Village People - the Bee Gees.






48. Tragic victim of conflicts between East and West Coast factions within the hip-hop business. He was an up-and-coming star with Los Angeles-based Death Row Records when He was shot and killed in Las Vegas in 1996.






49. Extreme variation of punk - pioneered during the early 1980s by bands in San Francisco (the Dead Kennedys) and Los Angeles (the Germs - Black Flag - X - and the Circle Jerks).






50. Device that standardized digital technologies - enabling devices produced by different manufacturers to 'communicate' with one another.