Key Words List: Musical Elements and Structures

Which option best defines tempo in music?

• Key signature of the piece

• Tone color of instruments

• Volume level of the ensemble

• Overall speed of the music

Which description best matches musical texture?

• How fast the beat moves

• How layers of sound interact

• How loud the dynamic is

• How long the piece lasts

Which statement defines a leitmotif?

• A freely improvised solo cadenza

• A repeated bass line in a passacaglia

• A recurring theme linked to a character

• A short closing flourish in cadences

In melody writing, what is a sequence?

• A chromatic alteration of scale degrees

• Repetition of a motif at a new pitch

• A repeated pedal in the tonic

• Simultaneous sounding of three notes

In tonal music, the tonic is best described as

• The home pitch or central key area

• The highest note of a melody line

• The lowest note sounded by bass

• The accidental that raises a note

Which role does the dominant typically serve?

• Creates tension that resolves to tonic

• Maintains the same key center

• Softens dynamics before a cadence

• Signals a switch to minor mode

Which option is a cadence?

• A harmonic ending formula

• A melodic embellishment

• A dynamic accent mark

• A rhythmic displacement

Which set correctly lists four common cadence types?

• Perfect, imperfect, plagal, deceptive

• Major, minor, modal, pentatonic

• Binary, ternary, rondo, strophic

• Augmented, diminished, neutral, open

What does modulation mean?

• Changing from one key to another

• Changing from one timbre to another

• Changing from one meter to another

• Changing from one tempo to another

Which term names a solo song in an opera that explores emotion with melody?

• Oratorio

• Overture

• Recitative

• Aria