Deck 9: The Rise of Popular Culture

Question 1

Which of the following ragtime characteristics can be traced to African roots?

A) march form
B) tonal harmony
C) syncopation
D) complex harmonic sections

Answer 1

C

Question 2

Tin Pan Alley songs lend themselves well to barbershop singing.

Answer 2

True

Question 3

Ragtime's roots were solely African-American.

Answer 3

False

Question 4

Which of the following originated during the "Gay Nineties?"

A) ragtime
B) art music
C) spiritual
D) ASCAP

Question 5

Tin Pan Alley songs are generally accessible to average singers because

A) the harmony is very tight
B) the vocal range is very modest
C) they always feature syncopated rhythms
D) they feature AABBCCDD form

Question 6

Irving Berlin was especially prolific because

A) he wrote for Tin Pan Alley as well as Hollywood
B) he helped found ASCAP
C) he became heavily involved in instrumental music
D) he taught dozens of now-famous songwriters

Question 7

"Take Me Out to the Ballgame" demonstrates which of the following?

A) the Tin Pan Alley tendency to focus on the chorus rather than the verses
B) a march-like, duple meter
C) early ragtime influences of its day
D) the genius of Cole Porter's lyrics

Question 8

Which of the following is true regarding the chromaticism of Cole Porter's tunes?

A) made piano accompaniment impossible
B) required the use of a full orchestra
C) made accurate singing difficult
D) required the use of a large chorus

Question 9

Most Tin Pan Alley songwriters had significant interest in jazz and classical music.

Question 10

Early ragtime performers played highly structured music.

Question 11

Increased dissonance in art music was one reason for the increasing gap between art and popular music in the late nineteenth century.

Question 12

Which of the following is not connected to the decline of Tin Pan Alley?

A) Popular music tastes change over time, and Tin Pan Alley did not significantly change.
B) World War II made sentimental songs seem less significant.
C) An ASCAP strike limited air time for Tin Pan Alley hits.
D) The Hollywood movie industry wanted to work independently from Tin Pan Alley.

Question 13

Which of the following is considered the most common ragtime form?

A) AAB
B) ABA
C) ABACA
D) AABBCCDD

Question 14

A cakewalk contains a repeated,syncopated rhythm.

Question 15

Eubie Blake was a famous

A) ragtime pianist
B) composer of marches
C) composer of Civil War songs
D) song plugger

Question 16

Tin Pan Alley is both a place and a musical genre.

Question 17

Which of the following musical trends was largely led by American Jews?

A) ragtime
B) Tin Pan Alley
C) gospel
D) barbershop

Question 18

Cole Porter is considered an excellent lyricist.

Question 19

Which of the following likely would be of the most interest to ASCAP today?

A) create and promote computerized music notation software
B) oppose Napster
C) encourage the diversification of music education
D) promote the development of music education texts

Question 20

Ragtime performance is primarily associated with African-Americans.

Question 21

Which is not true regarding Scott Joplin?

A) He was known as the ragtime "king".
B) He composed many rags.
C) He insisted that rags be improvised.
D) He studied with a German teacher.

Question 22

To "rag" a melody is to

A) vary the tune
B) syncopate the rhythm
C) enrich the harmony
D) change the form

Question 23

Describe the blending of musical tastes between Tin Pan Alley and Hollywood.How does the movie industry impact the sale and distribution of popular music today?

Question 24

The perforated sheets on which pianists recorded their performances to be reproduced on a player piano were called

A) cylinder recordings
B) piano scores
C) piano rolls
D) sheet music

Question 25

To modulate is to change

A) tempo
B) words
C) instrumentation
D) key

Question 26

The story of a typical Tin Pan Alley song was told in the

A) chorus
B) strain
C) verses
D) trio

Question 27

Each melodic section in a march or rag is called a

A) trio
B) break
C) strain
D) finale

Question 28

Tin Pan Alley refers to which industry?

A) concert management
B) musical instrument
C) popular music
D) art music

Question 29

The form of a rag is similar to that of a

A) fugue
B) song
C) theme and variations
D) march

Question 30

Technically speaking,why is ragtime difficult for the average pianist to perform?

Question 31

Which of the following did not significantly affect the popularity of a song in the 1920s?

A) piano rolls
B) recordings
C) radio
D) theatre performances

Question 32

The cakewalk rhythm that became a cliché of ragtime was

A) short-short-long
B) long-long-short
C) short-long-short
D) long-short-long

Question 33

"White Christmas," "Easter Parade," and "God Bless America" were written by

A) Cole Porter
B) George Gershwin
C) Irving Berlin
D) Ira Gershwin

Question 34

The cakewalk is a dramatic

A) march
B) dance
C) theatrical production
D) play