CLEP Humanities : Answering Other Questions About Romantic Music

Study concepts, example questions & explanations for CLEP Humanities

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Example Questions

Example Question #21 : Music

Frederic Chopin is most well known for his compositions for the __________.

Possible Answers:

violin

flute

guitar

harpsichord

piano

Correct answer:

piano

Explanation:

Frederic Chopin was a Polish-born composer of the Romantic Era, who was a child prodigy on the piano and began composing in his teens. As an adult, he moved to Paris, France, and became a well known composer of works for the piano, both solo and as a featured member of an ensemble.

Example Question #1 : Answering Other Questions About Romantic Music

The mandolin is a fretted instrument with four double courses of strings tuned similarly to a __________.

Possible Answers:

viola

bass

guitar

violin

cello

Correct answer:

violin

Explanation:

The mandolin is the most famous member of the "mando" family that also includes the mandola and mandocello, among other instruments. The instruments in this family all have double courses of four strings, meaning that each string is paired with an exact twin, that is the same size and tuned to the same note. A mandolin is tuned just like a violin, while the mandola and mandocello are tuned like the viola and cello, respectively.

Example Question #23 : Music

Pyotr Tchaikovsky's 1812 Overture utilizes as musical motifs the national anthems of __________.

Possible Answers:

Great Britain and Russia

Poland and Germany

Germany and Russia

France and Russia

Germany and France

Correct answer:

France and Russia

Explanation:

Tchaikovsky's 1880 masterpiece commemorates the Russian defense of the French invasion of 1812 during the Napoleonic Wars. Anachronistically, though, both anthems Tchaikovsky used to represent each army were not used during the 1812 invasion. Napoleon had banned "La Marseillaise" in 1805, and "God Save The Tsar" was not even written in 1812.

Example Question #24 : Music

Which of the following songs were not written by the nineteenth-century American songwriter Stephen Foster?

Possible Answers:

"Dixie"

"My Old Kentucky Home"

"Camptown Races"

"Jeannie with the Light Brown Hair"

"Oh, Susanna"

Correct answer:

"Dixie"

Explanation:

Stephen Foster (1826-1864) is considered the "Father of American Music" for his many famous and influential compositions, including "Jeannie with the Light Brown Hair," "My Old Kentucky Home," "Camptown Races," and "Oh, Susanna." Despite Foster's immense fame both at the time and in the years since, he was actually part of a broader popular music explosion thanks to sheet music's development. Among the other popular songs of the time was Daniel Decatur Emmet's "Dixie," from 1859.

Example Question #2 : Answering Other Questions About Romantic Music

Which of the following instruments is NOT a brass instrument?

Possible Answers:

Cornet

Tuba

Sousaphone

Trumpet

Saxophone

Correct answer:

Saxophone

Explanation:

Brass instruments, while deriving their name from the material they are usually made from, are not defined by the material from which they are composed. Instead, brass instruments are united by the the way air enters the instruments, and are each further controlled by a limited number of valves. A saxophone, despite its construction, is a woodwind due to its use of reeds and a series of tone holes the player can open and close.

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