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NCEA Level 3 Making Music study materials
NCEA Level 3 Making Music study resources

NCEA Level 3 Making Music practice questions

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Question 1Composition and songwriting

In contemporary songwriting, which section normally carries the main repeated hook and usually keeps the same words on each appearance?

  1. The pre-chorus
  2. The bridge
  3. The chorus Correct answer.
  4. The verse

Explanation

The chorus functions as the song's main hook: it normally repeats with identical or near-identical lyrics and returns after each verse. A verse advances the narrative with new words each time, while a bridge typically appears once for contrast.

Question 2Composition and songwriting

When arranging an SATB choral score, which clef is conventionally used for the tenor line?

  1. Bass clef
  2. Soprano clef with an 8 above it
  3. Alto clef
  4. Treble clef with an 8 below it Correct answer.

Explanation

Tenor parts are usually written in treble clef with a small 8 beneath it, meaning the music sounds an octave lower than written. This keeps most tenor notes within the staff while preserving the standard SATB score order.

Question 3Composition and songwriting

In a DAW, what does the quantise function change on recorded MIDI notes?

  1. Their pitches to the nearest scale degree
  2. Their velocities to a set dynamic level
  3. Their timing against a rhythmic grid Correct answer.
  4. Their lengths to fill a whole bar

Explanation

Quantisation moves note starts, and sometimes note ends, to the nearest chosen rhythmic subdivision so that a performance lines up with the grid. It does not automatically correct pitch, dynamics or note length unless those parameters are specifically included.

Question 4Composition and songwriting

In the key of G major, which chords form the progression I–V–vi–IV?

  1. G–Em–C–D
  2. G–Am–Bm–C
  3. G–D–Em–C Correct answer.
  4. G–C–D–Em

Explanation

In G major the diatonic triads are G (I), Am (ii), Bm (iii), C (IV), D (V), Em (vi) and F#dim (vii°). Therefore I–V–vi–IV is G–D–Em–C, a very common pop progression.

Question 5Composition and songwriting

Which melodic development technique repeats a motif at a new pitch level while preserving its original interval pattern?

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

Explanation

A sequence restates a motif higher or lower while keeping the same sequence of intervals, so the shape is recognisable in a new key area. Inversion turns the contour upside down, retrograde reverses the order and augmentation lengthens note values.

Question 6Composition and songwriting

In songwriting, what does prosody describe when a lyric is set to a melody?

  1. Matching speech stress to musical accent Correct answer.
  2. The tempo chosen for the chorus
  3. The use of rhyme at the end of phrases
  4. The number of syllables in each line of text

Explanation

Prosody concerns how the stresses and rhythms of speech align with the musical metre and accents, so important syllables fall on strong beats. Good prosody makes the words sound natural rather than forced against the melody.

Question 7Composition and songwriting

A rock arrangement already uses drums, bass, rhythm guitar and lead vocal. Which change most directly adds energy to the final chorus without altering the chord progression?

  1. Adding a sustained keyboard pad at a fixed volume
  2. Removing the bass guitar for the whole section
  3. Changing the section to a slower half-time feel
  4. Layering the same chords on a higher guitar Correct answer.

Explanation

Doubling the chordal part in a higher octave increases brightness and density while keeping the same harmony and groove. That added layer is an arrangement-level contrast rather than a harmonic change.

Question 8Composition and songwriting

In a lead sheet, what does the chord symbol C/E specify?

  1. A C major chord with an E in the bass Correct answer.
  2. A chord built on E with a C added as the seventh
  3. An E minor chord with a C in the bass
  4. A C major chord played only in the right hand

Explanation

A slash chord such as C/E means the chord named before the slash is played over the bass note named after it, so C major is voiced above an E bass. This is a first-inversion C major chord.

Question 9Composition and songwriting

A song in A minor uses an A major chord at a final cadence, even though A major is not diatonic to A natural minor. Which technique does this illustrate?

  1. Modulation to the relative major
  2. Sequence
  3. Pedal point
  4. Modal mixture Correct answer.

Explanation

Using a chord that belongs to the parallel major while remaining in the minor key is modal mixture, often called a borrowed chord. In A minor, A major is borrowed from A major and may intensify a dominant or final cadence.

Question 10Composition and songwriting

A passage in G major introduces an A7 chord and then resolves to D major, which becomes the new tonic. Which harmonic device has occurred?

  1. A plagal cadence that confirms the original key
  2. A modal mixture within the original major key
  3. A rhythmic diminution of the tonic harmony
  4. A secondary-dominant move to the dominant Correct answer.

Explanation

A7 is the dominant seventh of D and contains C#, which is outside G major, so it pulls the music towards D. Resolving to D and confirming it as the new tonic is a modulation to the dominant, prepared by a secondary dominant.

Question 11Composition and songwriting

In a typical verse–chorus song form, which section usually appears only once, introduces new melodic and lyrical material, and provides contrast before the final choruses?

  1. The instrumental solo, which repeats the verse chord progression.
  2. The pre-chorus, which links the verse to the chorus each time.
  3. The outro, which fades out over the chorus progression.
  4. The bridge, which introduces new material and appears once. Correct answer.

Explanation

The bridge, sometimes called the middle eight, normally introduces new melodic, harmonic or lyrical material and appears once, setting up the return of the chorus. A pre-chorus recurs before each chorus and does not provide this one-off contrast.

Question 12Composition and songwriting

A songwriter writes a chord chart in which one chord lasts for two bars, then the next chord lasts for half a bar. What does this variation describe?

  1. The articulation of the progression.
  2. The melodic contour of the progression.
  3. The tessitura of the progression.
  4. The harmonic rhythm of the progression. Correct answer.

Explanation

Harmonic rhythm is the rate at which chords change, measured in bars or beats. A chord lasting two bars followed by one lasting half a bar is a clear change in harmonic rhythm, not in melody, range or articulation.

Question 13Composition and songwriting

In a standard 12-bar blues in C, which chord is normally played in bars 5 and 6?

  1. C7
  2. A7
  3. G7
  4. F7 Correct answer.

Explanation

A standard 12-bar blues uses I in bars 1–4, IV in bars 5–6, I in bars 7–8, V–IV–I in bars 9–11 and V in bar 12. In C the IV chord is F7, so bars 5 and 6 are F7.

Question 14Composition and songwriting

A composer shapes a verse melody so it begins low, rises to its highest note near the middle of the phrase, then falls to a lower note at the end. Which term best describes this melodic shape?

  1. A pedal point sustained through the phrase
  2. An arch contour Correct answer.
  3. A riff repeated in the low register
  4. A sequence

Explanation

An arch contour rises to a peak and then falls, which matches the described shape. Composers use it to give a phrase a natural sense of climax and release.

Question 15Composition and songwriting

When setting a lyric, a composer assigns one melody note to each syllable of the text throughout a phrase. Which term describes this text setting?

  1. Melismatic
  2. Syllabic Correct answer.
  3. Strophic
  4. Through-composed

Explanation

Syllabic setting gives one note per syllable. Melismatic setting gives several notes to a single syllable, while through-composed and strophic describe whole-song form rather than the syllable-to-note relationship.

Question 16Composition and songwriting

A four-part phrase in B-flat major ends with the chords F major to B-flat major, and the soprano finishes on D. Which cadence is this?

  1. Plagal cadence
  2. Perfect authentic cadence with the tonic in the soprano
  3. Interrupted cadence
  4. Imperfect authentic cadence Correct answer.

Explanation

An authentic cadence moves V to I, and it is imperfect when the soprano ends on the third or fifth of the tonic chord rather than the tonic. Here F to B-flat is V–I and the soprano's D is the third.

Question 17Composition and songwriting

A song in C major uses a B-flat major chord (B-flat–D–F) instead of the diatonic G major. Which mode on C contains B-flat and therefore supplies this chord directly?

  1. C harmonic minor
  2. C Lydian
  3. C Mixolydian Correct answer.
  4. C whole-tone

Explanation

C Mixolydian lowers the seventh of C major to B-flat, so the triad built on that degree is B-flat major, the flat-VII chord. The other scales listed do not contain both B-flat and F natural, so they cannot supply the complete triad.

Question 18Composition and songwriting

A writer adds a second melodic line that sounds at the same time as the lead vocal, moves mostly in contrasting rhythm, and remains subordinate to the vocal. What is this line called?

  1. An ostinato
  2. A hook
  3. A countermelody Correct answer.
  4. A pedal point

Explanation

A countermelody is a secondary melodic line that combines with the main melody, often in contrasting rhythm, while staying subordinate to it. An ostinato is a repeated pattern, a pedal point is a sustained note and a hook is the main memorable idea.

Question 19Composition and songwriting

A composer takes a two-bar motif and rewrites it so that every note lasts twice as long as before, keeping the same pitch order. Which development technique is this?

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

Explanation

Augmentation doubles the duration of each note while keeping the pitch order, making the motif sound longer and broader. Diminution halves the values, inversion flips the intervals and retrograde reverses the order.

Question 20Composition and songwriting

A passage in C major moves to A minor by treating the A minor chord as a link: it functions as vi in C major and then as i in A minor. Which term describes this chord?

  1. A pedal point
  2. A pivot chord Correct answer.
  3. An added-sixth chord
  4. A secondary dominant

Explanation

A pivot chord is diatonic to both the old and new key, so it can function in each and smooth the modulation. A minor is vi in C major and i in A minor, making it a textbook pivot.

Question 21Composition and songwriting

In lyric writing, which term describes the repetition of the same initial consonant sound in nearby stressed syllables, as in 'the silver sea slid shoreward'?

  1. Onomatopoeia
  2. Assonance
  3. Alliteration Correct answer.
  4. Internal rhyme

Explanation

Alliteration is the repetition of the same consonant sound at the start of nearby stressed syllables. Assonance repeats vowel sounds, onomatopoeia uses words that imitate sounds, and internal rhyme places rhyme within a single line.

Question 22Composition and songwriting

A songwriter writes the chord symbol Cmaj7. Which note is added to the C major triad to form this chord?

  1. A
  2. B Correct answer.
  3. B♭
  4. D

Explanation

A major seventh chord adds the seventh degree of the major scale to the triad. In C major the triad is C–E–G, and the seventh degree is B, so Cmaj7 is C–E–G–B.

Question 23Composition and songwriting

In a funk groove, a bass line accents the off-beats while the drums keep the main pulse. Which term best describes this accent pattern?

  1. Tremolo picking
  2. Syncopation Correct answer.
  3. Rubato phrasing
  4. A backbeat pattern

Explanation

Syncopation deliberately stresses weak or off-beat positions, creating rhythmic tension against the pulse. A backbeat is a drum accent on beats two and four, not a bass line placed between beats.

Question 24Composition and songwriting

In a C major melody, a single D is sounded between two E notes in the same voice and is left by step in the same direction. Which non-chord tone is this?

  1. Neighbour tone
  2. Suspension
  3. Appoggiatura
  4. Passing tone Correct answer.

Explanation

A passing tone fills the gap between two chord tones a third apart and is approached and left by step in the same direction. Here D passes between E and E, so it functions as a passing tone.

Question 25Composition and songwriting

A film composer repeats a one-bar melodic figure in the low strings throughout a scene while the other parts change. Which term describes this repeating figure?

  1. Sequence
  2. Cadenza
  3. Countermelody
  4. Ostinato Correct answer.

Explanation

An ostinato is a short musical figure repeated persistently while other parts change around it. A sequence transposes a motif, a countermelody is a secondary melodic line, and a cadenza is an unaccompanied solo flourish.

Question 26Composition and songwriting

A composer takes a motif that rises by a third and falls by a second, then rewrites it to fall by a third and rise by a second. Which development technique is used?

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

Explanation

Inversion reverses the direction of each interval in a motif while keeping the same interval sizes. The rising third and falling second therefore become a falling third and a rising second.

Question 27Composition and songwriting

In an arrangement, the bass line descends while the vocal melody ascends at the same time. Which type of motion occurs between these two parts?

  1. Contrary motion Correct answer.
  2. Parallel motion
  3. Similar motion
  4. Oblique motion

Explanation

Contrary motion occurs when two parts move in opposite directions at the same time. Similar motion is movement in the same direction with different intervals, parallel motion is the same direction with the same interval, and oblique motion keeps one part stationary.

Question 28Composition and songwriting

In the key of C major, an E7 chord resolves to A minor. Which harmonic function does E7 have in this progression?

  1. vii°7/IV
  2. IV/vi
  3. V/V
  4. V/vi Correct answer.

Explanation

In C major the chord on vi is A minor, and its dominant is E7. A secondary dominant is labelled V/vi because E7 temporarily tonicises A minor without changing the overall key.

Question 29Composition and songwriting

In a jazz ii–V–I progression in C major, the G7 is replaced by a dominant seventh chord whose root is a tritone away. Which chord is used?

  1. A♭7
  2. D♭7 Correct answer.
  3. D7
  4. F♯7

Explanation

A tritone substitution replaces a dominant seventh chord with another dominant seventh whose root lies a tritone away. G and D♭ are a tritone apart, and D♭7 shares the guide tones B♭ and F with G7, so D♭7 resolves smoothly to Cmaj7.

Question 30Composition and songwriting

In a harmonic minor scale, which interval occurs between the sixth degree and the raised seventh degree?

  1. Augmented second Correct answer.
  2. Minor third
  3. Major second
  4. Perfect fourth

Explanation

In harmonic minor the seventh degree is raised to create a leading tone, which widens the gap between the sixth and seventh degrees to an augmented second. In A harmonic minor, for example, F to G♯ is an augmented second.

Question 31Composition and songwriting

A songwriter sets four verses to exactly the same music, with no separate chorus or bridge. Which form does the song use?

  1. Through-composed
  2. 32-bar AABA
  3. Strophic Correct answer.
  4. Ternary

Explanation

In strophic form the same music is repeated for each verse, so the melody and harmony stay constant while the lyrics change. Through-composed, ternary and AABA forms all introduce contrasting musical sections rather than repeating one block unchanged.

Question 32Composition and songwriting

In a four-line lyric, line 1 rhymes with line 3 and line 2 rhymes with line 4. Which rhyme scheme is shown?

  1. AABB
  2. ABAB Correct answer.
  3. ABCB
  4. ABBA

Explanation

Labelling each new rhyme with a successive letter gives ABAB when lines 1 and 3 share one rhyme and lines 2 and 4 share another. AABB rhymes adjacent pairs, ABBA encloses the rhyme, and ABCB rhymes only lines 2 and 4.

Question 33Composition and songwriting

A vocalist sings the single word 'free' across five different pitches before moving to the next syllable. Which term describes this setting?

  1. Strophic
  2. Melismatic Correct answer.
  3. Recitative
  4. Syllabic

Explanation

A melisma occurs when one syllable is stretched over several notes, which is exactly what happens to the word 'free' here. Syllabic setting gives each syllable one note, while strophic describes verse form and recitative describes speech-like narrative singing.

Question 34Composition and songwriting

A songwriter wants a short section that lifts energy and prepares the listener for each chorus, using a rising melody and a build in the drums. Which section is being described?

  1. Pre-chorus Correct answer.
  2. Instrumental outro
  3. Verse
  4. Bridge

Explanation

A pre-chorus sits between the verse and the chorus and its usual job is to build tension leading into the chorus. A bridge normally appears later and provides contrast, while an outro closes the song and a verse carries the narrative.

Question 35Composition and songwriting

A composer sets the lyric 'the ground falls away' with a melody that drops rapidly from a high note to a low note. Which technique is being used?

  1. Syncopation
  2. Melodic sequence
  3. Word painting Correct answer.
  4. Rhythmic ostinato

Explanation

Word painting, also called text painting, matches the music to the literal meaning of the words, so a falling image is reflected in a descending melodic line. Sequence, ostinato and syncopation describe repetition, pattern and rhythm rather than text illustration.

Question 36Composition and songwriting

A two-bar melodic idea is repeated several times, each time starting one scale step higher than the last while keeping the same shape. Which term best describes this device?

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

Explanation

A sequence repeats a motif at a higher or lower pitch level while keeping its rhythmic and intervallic shape. Inversion flips the direction of intervals, augmentation stretches note lengths, and retrograde reverses the order of notes.

Question 37Composition and songwriting

A four-bar phrase in G major ends with the chords D major moving to E minor, and the melody closes on B. Which cadence is this?

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

Explanation

A deceptive cadence moves from V to vi instead of V to I, so in G major D major (V) resolves to E minor (vi). A perfect authentic cadence would go V–I, a plagal cadence IV–I, and a half cadence ends on V.

Question 38Composition and songwriting

In a 32-bar AABA popular song form, which description best fits the B section?

  1. It is a repeated chorus heard after every verse
  2. It is an instrumental introduction that sets the key
  3. It is a contrasting middle section heard once before A returns Correct answer.
  4. It restates the opening melody with new words and returns after every verse

Explanation

In AABA form the B section is a contrasting middle eight or bridge that appears once, after which the A material returns. Restating the opening melody with new words describes the repeated A sections, not the B section.

Question 39Composition and songwriting

A melody uses only the notes C, D, E, G and A and contains no semitone steps. Which scale is it built from?

  1. Natural minor scale
  2. Harmonic minor scale
  3. Whole-tone scale
  4. Major pentatonic Correct answer.

Explanation

The major pentatonic scale on C is C–D–E–G–A, built from the major scale with the fourth and seventh degrees omitted, so no semitones occur. Natural minor and harmonic minor scales contain semitone steps, and the whole-tone scale uses a different set of notes.

Question 40Composition and songwriting

A melody note is held over from the previous chord, creating a dissonance that then resolves downward by step. Which harmonic device is being used?

  1. Suspension Correct answer.
  2. Anticipation
  3. Appoggiatura
  4. Pedal point

Explanation

A suspension is prepared by holding a note over from the previous chord, then resolving it downward by step. An appoggiatura is approached by leap, a pedal point is a sustained bass note, and an anticipation arrives before its chord.

Question 41Composition and songwriting

A songwriter writes a piece in which each new section introduces completely new melodic and lyrical material, and no section is repeated later in the song. Which form is this?

  1. Verse–chorus
  2. Through-composed Correct answer.
  3. Strophic
  4. Binary

Explanation

Through-composed form continues with new material rather than returning to earlier sections. Strophic form repeats one musical stanza, binary form has two related sections, and verse–chorus form brings back a recurring chorus.

Question 42Composition and songwriting

Which term describes an imperfect rhyme such as 'shape' and 'keep', where the final consonants match but the stressed vowels differ?

  1. Internal rhyme
  2. Perfect rhyme
  3. Eye rhyme
  4. Slant rhyme Correct answer.

Explanation

Slant rhyme, or near rhyme, matches some sounds but not the full stressed vowel-and-consonant pattern of perfect rhyme. 'Shape' and 'keep' share the final /p/ but have different vowel sounds.

Question 43Composition and songwriting

A melody climbs steadily to a high point near the middle of a phrase and then falls steadily back toward its starting pitch. Which term describes this melodic contour?

  1. Descending
  2. Ascending
  3. Static
  4. Arch Correct answer.

Explanation

An arch contour rises to a peak and then falls, shaping the phrase like an arch. Ascending and descending describe only one direction, while static means little pitch movement.

Question 44Composition and songwriting

In the key of G major, a songwriter uses the progression G–C–D–G. Which harmonic function does the C chord have in this progression?

  1. Tonic
  2. Subdominant Correct answer.
  3. Leading-tone
  4. Dominant

Explanation

In G major the tonic is G, the subdominant is C (IV), and the dominant is D (V). The C chord therefore functions as the subdominant within this progression.

Question 45Composition and songwriting

A chord progression has one chord per bar for two bars, then two chords per bar for the next two bars. Which element of the songwriting has changed?

  1. Time signature
  2. Tempo
  3. Instrumentation
  4. Harmonic rhythm Correct answer.

Explanation

Harmonic rhythm describes how quickly chords change within the metre. Adding more chords per bar speeds up the harmonic rhythm without necessarily changing the time signature or tempo.

Question 46Composition and songwriting

A guitarist plays the notes C–E–G–C but places E in the bass. Which term describes this voicing of the C major chord?

  1. First inversion Correct answer.
  2. Second inversion
  3. Root position
  4. Open voicing

Explanation

A C major triad in first inversion has E, the third of the chord, in the bass. Root position would put C in the bass, and second inversion would put G in the bass.

Question 47Composition and songwriting

A song is in A minor, and its chorus moves to the relative major key. Which key does the chorus move to?

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

Explanation

The relative major of A minor is C major because both keys share the same key signature, with no sharps or flats. D major, E major and F major are not the relative major of A minor.

Question 48Composition and songwriting

A songwriter sets the three syllables of 'beautiful' to three notes of equal length and dynamic. To match natural speech stress, which syllable should be given the strongest accent?

  1. The first syllable Correct answer.
  2. The third syllable
  3. Each syllable equally
  4. The second syllable

Explanation

Natural speech stress in 'beautiful' falls on the first syllable, BEAU-, so the first note should carry the strongest accent. Accenting a later syllable would distort the word's natural prosody.

Question 49Composition and songwriting

In 6/8 time, a composer accents quavers 1, 3 and 5 so that the bar temporarily feels like three groups of two. What is this device called?

  1. Polyrhythm
  2. Hemiola Correct answer.
  3. Augmentation
  4. Syncopation

Explanation

A hemiola temporarily regroups the metre so that 6/8 feels like three groups of two quavers, close to 3/4. The accents on 1, 3 and 5 create that cross-metre effect.

Question 50Composition and songwriting

In an arrangement, a viola section plays a newly composed melodic line beneath the lead vocal; it has its own rhythm and contour and is not merely a repeated pattern. Which term best describes this line?

  1. Countermelody Correct answer.
  2. Ostinato
  3. Drone
  4. Riff

Explanation

A countermelody is an independent melodic line that accompanies the main melody and has its own shape and rhythm. An ostinato or riff is a repeated pattern, while a drone sustains a note.