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Test your basic knowledge |
Music Appreciation
Start Test
Study First
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. Style modeled on that of the early acoustic string bands; probably the original 'alternative country' music.
Tupac Shakur
rave
Grateful Dead
bluegrass
2. 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
Michael Jackson
Tupac Shakur
sequencer
Madonna
3. Prince is one of the most talented musicians ever to achieve mass commercial success in the field of popular music. He has sold almost forty million recordings. Between 1982 and 1992 - he placed nine albums in the Top 10 - reaching the top of the cha
alternative music
Def Jam
Michael Jackson
Prince
4. 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
gangsta rap
Carole King
Def Jam
Public Enemy
5. Variant of MPEG; MP3 enables sound files to be compressed to as little as one-twelfth of their original size.
MP3
Grandmaster Flash
alternative rock
psychedelic rock
6. 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
Public Enemy
Tupac Shakur
Bob Marley
Kenny Rogers
7. 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.'
Run-D.M.C.
Willie Nelson
techno
Kurt Cobain
8. The most outrageous—and therefore famous—punk band - formed in 1975 in London. They were the creation of Malcolm McAllen - owner of a London boutique called Sex - which specialized in leather and rubber clothing.
The Sex Pistols
Carole King
soul music
pop rock
9. DJ and leader of the furious five - he developed many of the turntable techniques that characterized early hip-hop music.
Grandmaster Flash
Vanilla Ice
M.C. Hammer
synthesizer
10. The norm since the introduction of recording in the nineteenth century. Transforms the energy of sound waves into physical imprints (as in pre-1925 acoustic recordings) or into electronic waveforms that closely follow (and can be used to reproduce) t
The Ramones
Snoop Doggy Dogg (Calvin Broadus)
Snoop Doggy Dogg (Calvin Broadus)
analog recording
11. Country vocalist who scored crossover hits with songs such as 'I Fall to Pieces -' and 'Crazy -' both recorded in 1961.
Grateful Dead
Patsy Cline
gangsta rap
Bruce Springsteen
12. Heterogeneous category that includes artists from Africa - the Near East - and Asia—the ultimate margins of the American music industry.
world music
soft soul
Clear channel
Peter Gabriel
13. In progressive country - performers wrote songs that were more intellectual and liberal in outlook than their contemporaries and were more concerned with testing the limits of the country music tradition than with scoring hits. The key artists includ
gangsta rap
progressive country
heavy metal
nashville sound
14. A style of soft rock - lightly tinged with country music influences: John Denver - Olivia Newton-John - Kenny Rogers.
MIDI
countrypolitan
country pop
Sean 'Puffy' Combs
15. Acrobatic solo dancing improvised by the young 'B-boys' who attended hip-hop dances.
David Bowie
breakdancing
Donna Summer
rave
16. 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.
Clear channel
heavy metal
sequencer
urban folk
17. 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.
punk rock
heavy metal
alternative rock
psychedelic rock
18. 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.
MIDI
Queen Latifah
grunge rock
Run-D.M.C.
19. Sophisticated approach to the vocal presentation and instrumental arrangement of country music; a fusion of 'country' and 'cosmopolitan.'
disco
N.W.A.
countrypolitan
reggae
20. 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.
countrypolitan
Prince
Jimi Hendrix
James Brown
21. 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.
Beastie Boys
world music
Peter Gabriel
reggae
22. 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.
Vanilla Ice
sampling
Willie Nelson
Snoop Doggy Dogg (Calvin Broadus)
23. 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
funk music
hardcore
RIAA
Vanilla Ice
24. 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).
Nirvana
hardcore
Prince
soft soul
25. '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.
Aretha Franklin
Prince
Bruce Springsteen
Grandmaster Flash
26. The most original - inventive - and influential guitarist of the rock era - and the most prominent African American rock musician of the late 1960s.
The Ramones
M.C. Hammer
Jimi Hendrix
Run-D.M.C.
27. '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.
N.W.A.
progressive country
Aretha Franklin
Carole King
28. The norm since the introduction of recording in the nineteenth century. Transforms the energy of sound waves into physical imprints (as in pre-1925 acoustic recordings) or into electronic waveforms that closely follow (and can be used to reproduce) t
bluegrass
hardcore
analog recording
reggae
29. The most original - inventive - and influential guitarist of the rock era - and the most prominent African American rock musician of the late 1960s.
Clear channel
urban folk
Jimi Hendrix
Madonna
30. Ice's first album - To the Extreme (1990) - monopolized the Number One position for sixteen weeks in early 1991 - selling seven million copies. When it was discovered that Van Winkle - raised in reasonably comfortable circumstances in a middle-class
Donna Summer
bluegrass
Vanilla Ice
rave
31. British hard rock band that formed in London in 1968. Zeppelin's sledgehammer style of guitar-focused rock music drew on various influences - including urban blues - San Francisco psychedelia - and the virtuoso guitar playing of Jimi Hendrix.
Prince
Kurt Cobain
funk music
Led Zeppelin
32. Trio consisting of the MCs Run (Joseph Simmons - b. 1964) and D.M.C. (Darryl McDaniels - b. 1964) - and the DJ Jam Master Jay (Jason Mizell - b. 1965). Perhaps the most influential act in the history of rap music - they established a hard-edged - roc
Run-D.M.C.
reggae
funk music
Jimi Hendrix
33. One of the biggest stars to emerge from disco in the 1970s. She sang on several disco classics - including 'Love to Love You Baby' (1976) and 'Good Times' (1979).
Donna Summer
Tupac Shakur
Kurt Cobain
Ray Charles
34. Band that originated in the 1960s San Francisco rock scene. Their career spanned more than three decades.
gangsta rap
rave
Grateful Dead
techno
35. 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.
Carole King
rap
Def Jam
Peter Gabriel
36. Upbeat variety of rock music represented by artists such as Elton John - Paul McCartney - Rod Stewart - Chicago - and Peter Frampton.
art rock
pop rock
Andre (Dr. Dre) Young
The Sex Pistols
37. From the late 1980s through the 1990s - Madonna's popularity was second only to Michael Jackson's. She created controversial songs and music videos - including 'Papa Don't Preach' (1986) - 'Express Yourself' (1989) - and 'Like a Prayer' (1989).
Madonna
Sonic Youth
Beastie Boys
rave
38. Born in Mexico - he began his musical career playing guitar in Tijuana. He formed his band in San Francisco in the late 1960s. Their 1971 album Abraxas established a Latin American substream within rock.
Run-D.M.C.
Carlos Santana
M.C. Hammer
Willie Nelson
39. Variant of MPEG; MP3 enables sound files to be compressed to as little as one-twelfth of their original size.
RIAA
Grandmaster Flash
Bruce Springsteen
MP3
40. 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
Ray Charles
Public Enemy
house music
Patsy Cline
41. Device that enables musicians to create or 'synthesize' musical sounds. Began to appear on rock records during the early 1970s.
James Brown
synthesizer
soft soul
house music
42. Acrobatic solo dancing improvised by the young 'B-boys' who attended hip-hop dances.
breakdancing
bluegrass
soft soul
Madonna
43. 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.
sequencer
Clear channel
disco
hip-hop
44. One of the biggest stars to emerge from disco in the 1970s. She sang on several disco classics - including 'Love to Love You Baby' (1976) and 'Good Times' (1979).
Donna Summer
funk music
Tupac Shakur
breakdancing
45. 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.
punk rock
world music
rap
analog recording
46. The most successful white blues singer of the 1960s. Born in Port Arthur - Texas - Joplin came to San Francisco in the mid-1960s and joined a band called Big Brother and the Holding Company.
MIDI
Run-D.M.C.
Janis Joplin
Willie Nelson
47. Publicly traded corporation that owns more than 1 -200 radio stations - 39 television stations - 100000 advertising billboards - and 100 live performance venues - ranging from huge amphitheaters to dance clubs - enabling them to present more than 70
Sean 'Puffy' Combs
Nirvana
Clear channel
Kenny Rogers
48. The most outrageous—and therefore famous—punk band - formed in 1975 in London. They were the creation of Malcolm McAllen - owner of a London boutique called Sex - which specialized in leather and rubber clothing.
house music
nashville sound
The Sex Pistols
alternative rock
49. 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.
The Sex Pistols
alternative music
Snoop Doggy Dogg (Calvin Broadus)
M.C. Hammer
50. 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
reggae
Paul Simon
world music
The Ramones