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TASC Music practice questions

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Question 1Music (content domain details not published in the retrieved source)

Which term describes the speed of a piece of music?

  1. Texture
  2. Tempo Correct answer.
  3. Dynamics
  4. Timbre

Explanation

Tempo is the term for the speed at which music is performed, usually indicated by words such as adagio or allegro, or by a metronome marking in beats per minute. It is distinct from loudness, tone color, and how many layers are sounding.

Question 2Music (content domain details not published in the retrieved source)

A note written on the second line from the bottom of the treble staff represents which pitch?

  1. D
  2. F
  3. A
  4. G Correct answer.

Explanation

The treble staff lines, from bottom to top, spell E-G-B-D-F, and the spaces spell F-A-C-E. The second line from the bottom is therefore G, the pitch a fifth above middle C.

Question 3Music (content domain details not published in the retrieved source)

How many beats does a half note receive in a time signature with a quarter-note beat?

  1. One
  2. Three
  3. Two Correct answer.
  4. Four

Explanation

In any meter counted in quarter notes, such as 4/4, a half note lasts for two beats because it is twice the duration of a quarter note. Its hollow notehead without a stem flag confirms this value.

Question 4Music (content domain details not published in the retrieved source)

Which instrument family produces sound primarily by vibrating a stretched string?

  1. Strings Correct answer.
  2. Woodwind
  3. Percussion
  4. Brass

Explanation

String instruments such as the violin, cello, and guitar generate sound when a stretched string vibrates, and the body of the instrument amplifies that vibration. The other families rely on vibrating air columns or struck membranes and solid bodies.

Question 5Music (content domain details not published in the retrieved source)

A piece marked forte should be performed in which manner?

  1. Softly
  2. Quickly
  3. Loudly Correct answer.
  4. Slowly

Explanation

Forte is an Italian dynamic marking meaning strong or loud, abbreviated f. It indicates volume rather than speed, so it says nothing about the tempo of the passage.

Question 6Music (content domain details not published in the retrieved source)

Which of these is a major key signature containing no sharps or flats?

  1. D major
  2. C major Correct answer.
  3. F major
  4. G major

Explanation

C major uses only the natural notes, so its key signature is empty. Each of the other keys named requires one or more accidentals in its signature.

Question 7Music (content domain details not published in the retrieved source)

What does a dot placed immediately after a notehead do to that note's duration?

  1. It shortens the note by half
  2. It raises the pitch by one step
  3. It adds half of the note's original value Correct answer.
  4. It doubles the note's original value

Explanation

A dot extends a note by half of its written value, so a dotted half note lasts three beats rather than two. The dot affects duration only and never changes pitch.

Question 8Music (content domain details not published in the retrieved source)

In 3/4 time, which beat of the measure typically receives the strongest accent?

  1. All beats equally
  2. The second beat
  3. The third beat
  4. The first beat Correct answer.

Explanation

In simple triple meter the first beat is the downbeat and carries the primary accent, with beats two and three weaker. This pattern gives the waltz its characteristic ONE-two-three pulse.

Question 9Music (content domain details not published in the retrieved source)

A melody moves from C up to G. Which interval does this describe?

  1. Perfect fourth
  2. Minor sixth
  3. Major third
  4. Perfect fifth Correct answer.

Explanation

Counting letter names inclusively from C to G gives five steps, and because both notes belong to the C major scale the interval is a perfect fifth, spanning seven semitones.

Question 10Music (content domain details not published in the retrieved source)

Which chord is built on the tonic of a major key using scale degrees one, three, and five?

  1. The tonic triad Correct answer.
  2. The subdominant triad
  3. The leading-tone triad
  4. The dominant triad

Explanation

A triad built on the first scale degree with degrees one, three, and five is the tonic triad, and in a major key it is a major triad. It provides the home harmony of the key.

Question 11Music (content domain details not published in the retrieved source)

A composition in sonata form typically presents its main themes in which section first?

  1. The exposition Correct answer.
  2. The coda
  3. The development
  4. The recapitulation

Explanation

Sonata form opens with the exposition, which introduces the primary and secondary themes, usually in contrasting keys. The development then transforms that material, and the recapitulation restates it.

Question 12Music (content domain details not published in the retrieved source)

Which scale pattern consists of the intervals whole, whole, half, whole, whole, whole, half?

  1. Chromatic
  2. Natural minor
  3. Major Correct answer.
  4. Whole tone

Explanation

The major scale is defined by that exact succession of whole and half steps, which places half steps between scale degrees three and four and between seven and eight. This pattern produces the familiar do-re-mi sound.

Question 13Music (content domain details not published in the retrieved source)

A piece in cut time, marked with a C crossed by a vertical line, is equivalent to which meter?

  1. 3/4
  2. 2/2 Correct answer.
  3. 4/4
  4. 6/8

Explanation

The crossed C symbol, called alla breve, indicates 2/2 time: two beats per measure with the half note receiving one beat. It moves twice as fast as a 4/4 reading of the same notation.

Question 14Music (content domain details not published in the retrieved source)

In a minor key, raising the seventh scale degree to create a leading tone most directly produces which chord on the dominant?

  1. A major triad Correct answer.
  2. A minor triad
  3. An augmented triad
  4. A diminished triad

Explanation

Raising the seventh degree of a minor key makes the dominant chord major, because the interval from scale degree five to the raised seventh becomes a major third. This raised leading tone strengthens the pull back to the tonic.

Question 15Music (content domain details not published in the retrieved source)

Which tempo term indicates a walking pace, faster than adagio but slower than allegro?

  1. Presto
  2. Andante Correct answer.
  3. Largo
  4. Vivace

Explanation

Andante means at a walking pace and sits in the moderate range of tempo markings, between the slow adagio and the brisk allegro. It is commonly used for lyrical second movements.

Question 16Music (content domain details not published in the retrieved source)

A melody built from the notes of the A natural minor scale uses which collection of pitches?

  1. A B C D E F G Correct answer.
  2. A Bb C D E F G
  3. A B C D E F# G
  4. A B C# D E F# G#

Explanation

A natural minor shares its pitches with C major, so it uses A, B, C, D, E, F, and G with no sharps or flats. The half steps fall between B and C and between E and F.

Question 17Music (content domain details not published in the retrieved source)

Which texture describes a single unaccompanied melodic line?

  1. Homophonic
  2. Polyphonic
  3. Heterophonic
  4. Monophonic Correct answer.

Explanation

Monophonic texture consists of one melodic line with no harmony or additional parts, as in unaccompanied plainchant. The word refers to the number of simultaneous lines, not to the number of performers.

Question 18Music (content domain details not published in the retrieved source)

A composer writes a melody and then repeats it a perfect fifth higher. Which technique is being used?

  1. Inversion
  2. Sequence Correct answer.
  3. Retrograde
  4. Augmentation

Explanation

A sequence restates a melodic idea at a different pitch level, and moving it up a fifth is a common sequential pattern. The shape of the melody stays the same while its starting pitch changes.

Question 19Music (content domain details not published in the retrieved source)

In a standard symphony orchestra, which section usually tunes to the principal oboe before a performance?

  1. The percussion section
  2. The brass section
  3. The string section Correct answer.
  4. The woodwind section

Explanation

The concertmaster leads the string section in tuning to the principal oboe, whose steady pitch anchors the ensemble. The other sections then adjust to that shared reference pitch.

Question 20Music (content domain details not published in the retrieved source)

A passage marked crescendo should change in which way?

  1. Gradually louder Correct answer.
  2. Gradually faster
  3. Gradually softer
  4. Gradually slower

Explanation

Crescendo is a dynamic instruction meaning to increase volume gradually, often shown by a hairpin symbol opening to the right. It concerns loudness only and does not alter tempo.

Question 21Music (content domain details not published in the retrieved source)

Which cadence moves from the dominant chord to the tonic chord at the end of a phrase?

  1. Authentic cadence Correct answer.
  2. Half cadence
  3. Deceptive cadence
  4. Plagal cadence

Explanation

An authentic cadence resolves from the dominant to the tonic, giving a strong sense of closure. A perfect authentic cadence adds the requirement that both chords be in root position with the tonic in the top voice.

Question 22Music (content domain details not published in the retrieved source)

A theme is stated in C major, then restated in E flat major. How has its key changed?

  1. Up a minor third Correct answer.
  2. Up a perfect fourth
  3. Up a major third
  4. Down a minor third

Explanation

The distance from C up to E flat is three semitones, which defines a minor third. A major third would require E natural, four semitones above C.

Question 23Music (content domain details not published in the retrieved source)

In compound duple meter such as 6/8, how are the six eighth notes grouped?

  1. Into six separate beats
  2. Into two groups of three Correct answer.
  3. Into four groups of two and one
  4. Into three groups of two

Explanation

Compound duple meter divides each of two main beats into three equal parts, so 6/8 groups its eighth notes as two beats of three. The felt pulse is therefore two, not six.

Question 24Music (content domain details not published in the retrieved source)

A chord progression uses the chords C major, A minor, F major, and G major. Which Roman numeral analysis fits in the key of C major?

  1. I, vi, ii, V
  2. I, IV, vi, V
  3. I, iii, IV, V
  4. I, vi, IV, V Correct answer.

Explanation

In C major, C is the tonic I, A minor is the submediant vi, F major is the subdominant IV, and G major is the dominant V. The uppercase numerals mark major triads and the lowercase vi marks the minor triad.

Question 25Music (content domain details not published in the retrieved source)

A melody built on the whole-tone scale is best described by which characteristic?

  1. It uses the same pitches as the natural minor scale
  2. It alternates half and whole steps throughout
  3. It contains a leading tone a half step below the tonic
  4. It divides the octave into six equal steps Correct answer.

Explanation

The whole-tone scale consists entirely of whole steps, producing six equally spaced pitches within the octave. Because every step is the same size, no pitch functions as a leading tone, which weakens any sense of tonal center.

Question 26Music (content domain details not published in the retrieved source)

A piece is marked to be played at a moderate speed, faster than andante but slower than allegro. Which tempo marking fits this description?

  1. Lento
  2. Moderato Correct answer.
  3. Largo
  4. Presto

Explanation

Moderato sits in the middle of the common tempo spectrum and literally suggests a moderate pace, placing it above andante and below allegro. Largo and lento are both slow markings, while presto is very fast, so only moderato matches the described middle position.

Question 27Music (content domain details not published in the retrieved source)

A note is written on the second line from the bottom of a staff with a treble clef. Which pitch name does this line represent?

  1. D
  2. G Correct answer.
  3. B
  4. F

Explanation

In treble clef the lines from bottom to top spell E, G, B, D, F, so the second line is G. The spaces spell F, A, C, E. Counting upward line by line confirms G as the second line.

Question 28Music (content domain details not published in the retrieved source)

A key signature contains three flats. Which major key does it indicate?

  1. B flat major
  2. E flat major Correct answer.
  3. A flat major
  4. F major

Explanation

Flats in key signatures are added in the order B, E, A, D, G, C, F, and the major key is named by the second-to-last flat. With three flats (B, E, A), the second-to-last is E, giving E flat major. Each additional flat moves the key down by a fifth.

Question 29Music (content domain details not published in the retrieved source)

Which dynamic marking calls for the quietest level of the choices listed?

  1. mezzo forte
  2. fortissimo
  3. pianissimo Correct answer.
  4. mezzo piano

Explanation

The dynamic scale runs from pianissimo (very soft) through piano, mezzo piano, mezzo forte, forte, and up to fortissimo (very loud). Pianissimo is therefore quieter than mezzo piano, which is in turn quieter than the two forte markings. The prefix -issimo intensifies whatever dynamic it attaches to.

Question 30Music (content domain details not published in the retrieved source)

A note written as a dotted half note lasts for how many quarter-note beats?

  1. Four
  2. Two
  3. Three Correct answer.
  4. Six

Explanation

A half note lasts two quarter-note beats, and the dot adds half of that value, which is one beat, for a total of three. Dots always lengthen a note by half its original duration. Thus a dotted half note fills three quarter-note beats.

Question 31Music (content domain details not published in the retrieved source)

Which instrument family is made up of instruments whose sound is produced by buzzing the lips into a cup- or funnel-shaped mouthpiece?

  1. String
  2. Percussion
  3. Brass Correct answer.
  4. Woodwind

Explanation

Brass instruments such as the trumpet, horn, trombone, and tuba generate sound when the player's vibrating lips set an air column in motion. Woodwinds use a reed or an air stream across an opening, strings use bowed or plucked strings, and percussion uses struck surfaces. Lip buzzing into a mouthpiece is the defining action of the brass family.

Question 32Music (content domain details not published in the retrieved source)

A melody is written so that its first phrase sounds incomplete and seems to ask for a continuation, while the second phrase provides a sense of closure. Which term best describes this pairing of phrases?

  1. Antecedent and consequent Correct answer.
  2. Canon
  3. Ostinato
  4. Sequence

Explanation

An antecedent phrase poses a musical question and typically ends with an open cadence, while a consequent phrase answers it and usually closes with a stronger cadence. Together they form a balanced period. An ostinato is a repeated pattern, a sequence repeats a motif at a new pitch level, and a canon is an imitative texture.

Question 33Music (content domain details not published in the retrieved source)

A piece is written in 2/2 meter. Which note value receives one beat?

  1. Half note Correct answer.
  2. Quarter note
  3. Whole note
  4. Eighth note

Explanation

The lower number of a time signature names the note value that equals one beat. In 2/2 the lower number is 2, meaning the half note is the beat unit, and the upper number tells us there are two such beats per measure. Quarter notes then last half a beat each.

Question 34Music (content domain details not published in the retrieved source)

In a major key, which scale degree most strongly pulls upward toward the tonic and is called the leading tone?

  1. The fourth degree
  2. The seventh degree Correct answer.
  3. The second degree
  4. The sixth degree

Explanation

The leading tone is the seventh degree of the scale, one half step below the tonic in a major key, and its close proximity creates a strong tendency to resolve upward to the tonic. The fourth degree is a half step above the third and tends to resolve down to the third. Scale degrees two and six do not carry this leading function.

Question 35Music (content domain details not published in the retrieved source)

A triad is built on the second scale degree of a major key. Which quality does this chord normally have?

  1. Diminished
  2. Major
  3. Augmented
  4. Minor Correct answer.

Explanation

Diatonic triads in a major key follow a fixed pattern of qualities: major, minor, minor, major, major, minor, diminished on degrees one through seven. The chord on the second degree is therefore minor, as in D minor within C major. This pattern comes from stacking thirds using only notes of the scale.

Question 36Music (content domain details not published in the retrieved source)

A passage moves from a tonic chord to a subdominant chord, then to a dominant chord, and finally back to the tonic. Which Roman numeral progression in a major key represents this?

  1. I–IV–V–I Correct answer.
  2. ii–V–I–vi
  3. I–vi–IV–V
  4. I–V–IV–I

Explanation

The tonic is I, the subdominant is IV, and the dominant is V, so the described order is I–IV–V–I, a very common cadential formula. The progression moves away from and then back to the home chord. Recognizing the function names makes the Roman numerals straightforward.

Question 37Music (content domain details not published in the retrieved source)

A composer takes a short melodic idea and restates it starting on a higher pitch while keeping the same interval pattern. Which term names this device?

  1. Inversion
  2. Retrograde
  3. Augmentation
  4. Sequence Correct answer.

Explanation

A sequence repeats a motif at a new pitch level, preserving its shape and intervals while shifting it up or down. Inversion flips the direction of the intervals, retrograde reverses the order of the notes, and augmentation stretches the rhythmic values. Only sequence describes a restatement at a different pitch with the same contour.

Question 38Music (content domain details not published in the retrieved source)

A four-part choral piece moves all voices together in essentially the same rhythm, with the melody in the top voice and chords supporting it. Which texture does this describe?

  1. Monophonic
  2. Homophonic Correct answer.
  3. Polyphonic
  4. Heterophonic

Explanation

Homophony features a melody accompanied by chords that move largely in the same rhythm, which is exactly how a block-chord chorale setting behaves. Polyphony sets independent melodic lines against each other, monophony is a single unaccompanied line, and heterophony has simultaneous variants of the same melody. The shared rhythm across voices is the key clue.

Question 39Music (content domain details not published in the retrieved source)

Which form consists of an initial statement of a theme followed by a series of contrasting sections that each vary the theme in some way?

  1. Through-composed form
  2. Rondo
  3. Theme and variations Correct answer.
  4. Binary form

Explanation

Theme and variations presents a theme and then a succession of sections, each altering the theme through changes in rhythm, harmony, texture, or ornamentation. A rondo alternates a recurring refrain with contrasting episodes, binary form has two balanced sections, and through-composed form avoids large-scale repetition. The defining feature here is systematic variation of one theme.

Question 40Music (content domain details not published in the retrieved source)

A melody in a major key is harmonized so that it ends with the progression V–vi. Which type of cadence is this?

  1. Perfect authentic cadence
  2. Deceptive cadence Correct answer.
  3. Half cadence
  4. Plagal cadence

Explanation

A deceptive cadence occurs when the dominant chord resolves unexpectedly to the submediant instead of the tonic, giving a sense of surprise rather than closure. A perfect authentic cadence goes from dominant to tonic with both chords in root position. Plagal cadences move from subdominant to tonic, and half cadences pause on the dominant.

Question 41Music (content domain details not published in the retrieved source)

A single melody is written with no harmony and no additional parts. Which texture term applies?

  1. Antiphonal
  2. Polyphonic
  3. Monophonic Correct answer.
  4. Homophonic

Explanation

Monophony describes music consisting of one melodic line with nothing sounding simultaneously with it. Homophony adds chords beneath a melody, polyphony combines independent lines, and antiphonal performance alternates between separate groups. With only one line present, the texture is monophonic.

Question 42Music (content domain details not published in the retrieved source)

A piece in 6/8 time is best understood as having how many main beats per measure, and what note value carries each beat?

  1. Six beats, each an eighth note
  2. Four beats, each a dotted half note
  3. Three beats, each a quarter note
  4. Two beats, each a dotted quarter note Correct answer.

Explanation

6/8 is a compound duple meter: the six eighth notes group into two beats of three eighths each, and three eighth notes equal a dotted quarter note. The beat therefore falls on the dotted quarter. Counting six equal beats would describe simple sextuple meter, which 6/8 is not.

Question 43Music (content domain details not published in the retrieved source)

A composer writes a melody and then has a second voice enter with the same melody a few beats later while the first continues. Which compositional technique is this?

  1. Modulation
  2. Transposition
  3. Ornamentation
  4. Imitation Correct answer.

Explanation

Imitation occurs when one voice restates a melody that another voice has just presented, often overlapping in time, as in a round or fugue. Ornamentation decorates a line with extra figures, transposition shifts a whole passage to another key level, and modulation changes the prevailing key. Overlapping restatement of the same material is the signature of imitation.

Question 44Music (content domain details not published in the retrieved source)

A work is scored for two violins, a viola, and a cello. Which ensemble is this?

  1. String quartet Correct answer.
  2. Piano trio
  3. Brass quintet
  4. Woodwind quintet

Explanation

The string quartet is standardized as two violins, one viola, and one cello, a grouping that became central to chamber music from the classical era onward. A piano trio pairs violin, cello, and piano, while woodwind and brass quintets use wind instruments. The instrumentation given matches the string quartet exactly.

Question 45Music (content domain details not published in the retrieved source)

A piece begins in G major and, without changing the key signature, uses F natural chords that pull the music toward C major for a full section. Which term best describes what has happened?

  1. Modulation to the subdominant Correct answer.
  2. Modulation to the dominant
  3. Transposition
  4. Modal mixture

Explanation

C major is the key a perfect fourth above G major, which is the subdominant relationship. Introducing F natural turns the leading tone of G major into the lowered seventh and establishes C major as a temporary tonal center. A move to the dominant would instead head toward D major and require F sharp and C sharp.

Question 46Music (content domain details not published in the retrieved source)

Which of these describes the standard tuning of the four open strings of a double bass, from lowest to highest?

  1. A, D, G, C
  2. C, G, D, A
  3. G, D, A, E
  4. E, A, D, G Correct answer.

Explanation

The double bass is tuned in fourths, E, A, D, G, from lowest to highest, which places it an octave below the cello's lowest four strings. Violin tuning is G, D, A, E in fifths, and cello tuning is C, G, D, A. The bass's fourths tuning and its E string distinguish it from the rest of the orchestral string section.

Question 47Music (content domain details not published in the retrieved source)

A passage alternates between a soft solo line and a full loud ensemble statement of the same theme. Which term best captures this contrast of performing forces?

  1. Dynamics of instrumentation Correct answer.
  2. Rubato
  3. Timbre
  4. Tessitura

Explanation

The contrast here is produced by changing the number and kind of instruments sounding, which is a matter of instrumentation rather than of written volume markings alone. Rubato concerns flexible tempo, tessitura refers to the general pitch range of a part, and timbre is tone color. The alternation of solo and full ensemble is a textural and instrumental contrast.

Question 48Music (content domain details not published in the retrieved source)

A chord built on the raised seventh degree of harmonic minor, using scale degrees seven, two, and four, produces which quality?

  1. Diminished Correct answer.
  2. Major
  3. Minor
  4. Augmented

Explanation

In harmonic minor the raised seventh creates a half step up to the tonic, and stacking two more thirds above it uses the second and fourth degrees. The interval from the seventh degree to the second is a minor third, and from the seventh to the fourth is a diminished fifth, producing a diminished triad. This chord is the vii° that commonly resolves to the tonic.

Question 49Music (content domain details not published in the retrieved source)

A composer writes a canon in which the second voice enters a perfect fourth above the first and continues at the same speed. Which relationship describes the interval between the two voices at the moment of entry?

  1. A retrograde statement
  2. A tonal answer at the subdominant level Correct answer.
  3. An augmentation of the subject
  4. An inversion of the subject

Explanation

A perfect fourth above the original pitch corresponds to the subdominant scale degree, so the entering voice restates the subject at the subdominant level. In fugal writing this kind of adjustment is called a tonal answer, which keeps the music within the home key. Inversion, retrograde, and augmentation all alter the shape or timing of the line rather than its pitch level.

Question 50Music (content domain details not published in the retrieved source)

A progression in a minor key moves i–iv–V–i, with the dominant chord containing a raised third. Which scale is this progression drawn from?

  1. Harmonic minor Correct answer.
  2. Natural minor
  3. Phrygian mode
  4. Dorian mode

Explanation

The major V chord in a minor key requires a raised seventh scale degree, which is the defining alteration of harmonic minor. Natural minor would produce a minor v chord, weakening the cadence. Dorian and Phrygian modes have different patterns of whole and half steps and would not yield this exact progression.