The History of the Synthesizer Quiz

What is a synthesizer?

• A machine that builds musical instruments by hand

• A kind of electronic instrument that creates sound using devices like oscillators and filters

• A software program that writes songs by itself

• A device that records live band performances

What is an oscillator used for in a synthesizer?

• To record vocals

• To generate sound waves that vibrate in certain shapes

• To play prerecorded music

• To amplify speakers

Around how long has the synthesizer been around, according to the article?

• About 20 years

• About 40 years

• About 70 years

• Over 200 years

What was the telharmonium?

• The first digital synthesizer

• A large early machine that used motors and telephone receivers to make sound

• A famous song made with analog synths

• A kind of software synthesizer

What is RCA’s Mark II known for?

• Using analog filters to create music

• Being programmable, using paper-tape to sequence musical notes

• Being the first digital synthesizer everyone used

• Inventing FM synthesis

Who is Robert Moog?

• A scientist who invented FM synthesis

• A pioneer of analog synthesizers and namesake of the brand “Moog”

• A musician who played synthesizers in a famous band

• The inventor of the telephone

What does “analog synthesizer” refer to?

• A synth that works with digital code and computers only

• A synth that uses voltage, oscillators, filters to make sound, often with a vintage or classic feel

• A synth that only plays samples of real instruments

• Any synthesizer that can upload music to the internet

What is FM synthesis?

• A type of analog sound made by noise generators

• Using one oscillator to modulate (change) another oscillator to make more complex tones

• Recording voices and playing them back slowly

• Turning analog audio into digital

Which synthesizer is mentioned as one of the first to embrace FM synthesis?

• The Telharmonium

• Moog Model D

• Yamaha DX7

• Roland Juno

What are soft-synths (software synthesizers)?

• Big machines that need a lot of electricity and space

• Synths made with software (you can download, sometimes for free) that can make many kinds of sounds

• Synths that only make soft, quiet music

• Hardware synthesizers made by Moog and Roland