CLEP Humanities : Medieval Music (476-1400)
Study concepts, example questions & explanations for CLEP Humanities
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Example Questions
Example Question #1 : Understanding Terminology That Describes Medieval Music
How many notes are in a traditional Western octave?
Ten
Twelve
Seven
Eight
Five
Eight
The octave is the interval between a musical note and that of half or double its frequency. The octave is one of the natural elements of music, with two different notes producing the exact same pitch. In the Western tradition, while there are twelve chromatic, or precise half-interval, steps, the actual notation of each scale is on eight notes of differing spaces.
Example Question #2 : Medieval Music (476 1400)
Gregorian chant was most utilized in what venue during the Middle Ages?
Funerals
Courtly settings
Liturgy
Governmental functions
Weddings
Liturgy
Gregorian chant is the style of music that developed throughout the Middle Ages, having various sources and styles. It was an ecclesiastical form of music, meaning that it was a "church" music. In particular, it was a kind of liturgical music, used in the various forms of public worship undertaken by the Latin Roman Catholic Church. Its melodies were based on the texts of the Mass, the Divine Office, and other liturgical ceremonies. Many of these texts were biblical, though adaptations from other sources are also found in many hymns and antiphons throughout the Middle Ages.
Example Question #1 : Music
Which of the following was the primary language of Gregorian Chant in the Middle Ages?
Greek
Latin
Aramaic
Hebrew
Arabic
Latin
Strictly speaking, Gregorian Chant is a phenomenon of the Christian West. It was the liturgical music of the Latin Rite of the Roman Catholic Church, which dominated much (though not all) of Western Europe throughout the Middle Ages. While there were other forms of liturgical worship throughout this period, the Latin Rite was the "location" for the development of the Gregorian Chant repertoire. Its texts were taken from various parts of the liturgy, drawing on biblical sources as well as more original compositions by hymn and antiphon writers.
Example Question #42 : Performing Arts
Which musical instrument was common in Medieval music and was associated with the god Apollo in Ancient Greece?
Lyre
Pipes
Trumpet
Lute
Harpsichord
Lyre
The pipes, trumpet, and harpsichord are not common Medieval instruments. Though is was an ancient stringed instrument also common in Medieval times, the lute was not associated with Apollo.
Example Question #1 : Identifying Forms Of Medieval Music
Gregorian chants were developed by clerics of which religious tradition?
Orthodox Christianity
Protestant Christianity
Sunni Islam
Roman Catholic Christianity
Rabbinic Judaism
Roman Catholic Christianity
Developed in the ninth and tenth centuries in Western Europe, Gregorian chants are a simple, monophonic form of music used as sacred music by monks in the Catholic tradition. Gregorian chants helped spread the Latin Rite of Roman Christianity by having a common, uniform musical style for worship. Among certain monastic orders, the Gregorian chant is still a common form of worship.
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