48 music trivia questions and answers
This bank moves between instruments, notation, voices, composers, bands, genres, recording formats, performance directions, and music from several periods.
Updated
Questions 1–20
How many strings does a standard guitar usually have?
easy
Six
Source: Wikipedia https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Guitar?oldid=1363122781#Standard
By what title is Michael Jackson known?
easy
King of Pop
Source: Wikipedia https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Michael_Jackson?oldid=1365789727
What family of instruments includes the violin and cello?
easy
String instruments
Source: Wikipedia https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/String_instrument?oldid=1358450490#Bowing
Which band recorded Hey Jude?
easy
Beatles
Source: Wikipedia https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hey_Jude?oldid=1364208072#Trident_Studios_recording
What is the highest female classical singing voice?
medium
Soprano
Source: Wikipedia https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Soprano?oldid=1352922856
How many black and white keys do modern pianos usually have?
easy
88 black and white keys
Source: Wikipedia https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Piano?oldid=1355393921
Who sang Rolling in the Deep?
easy
Adele
Source: Wikipedia https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rolling_in_the_Deep?oldid=1362147209
What symbol tells a musician to play a note sharply higher?
medium
The sharp symbol
Source: Wikipedia https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sharp_(music)?oldid=1365904422
What is a piece for two pianists on the same piano called?
easy
Piano duet
Source: Wikipedia https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Duet?oldid=1364473217
Which brass instruments use a slide instead of valves?
medium
Trombones
Source: Wikipedia https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Trombone?oldid=1360776099
Freddie Mercury is associated with which band?
easy
Queen
Source: Wikipedia https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Queen_(band)?oldid=1363286202#1980%E2%80%931982%3A_The_Game%2C_Hot_Space_and_stadium_tours
Which singer released the album 21?
easy
Adele
Source: Wikipedia https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/21_(Adele_album)?oldid=1365033642
What instrument consists of a collection of percussion instruments arranged for one musician?
easy
A drum kit
Source: Wikipedia https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Drum_kit?oldid=1365098324
Which composer wrote the Fifth Symphony whose opening is often described as da-da-da-dum?
easy
Ludwig van Beethoven
Source: Wikipedia https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Symphony_No._5_(Beethoven)?oldid=1364875978
What Italian dynamic marking means "soft"?
medium
Piano
Source: Wikipedia https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dynamics_(music)?oldid=1363925464#Purpose_and_interpretation
By which decade had compact discs gained a larger market share than records?
medium
The 1980s
Source: Wikipedia https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Phonograph_record?oldid=1363388406#Overview
What genre grew from African American communities in New Orleans?
medium
Jazz
Source: Wikipedia https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jazz?oldid=1366037228
Which U2 member has received 22 Grammy Awards?
hard
Bono
Source: Wikipedia https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bono?oldid=1363616445
What is Taylor Swift’s global fanbase called?
easy
Swifties
Source: Wikipedia https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Taylor_Swift?oldid=1366009985
What does a conductor use to guide an orchestra besides hand gestures?
easy
A baton
Source: Wikipedia https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Baton_(conducting)?oldid=1350406264
Questions 21–40
Which instrument did Louis Armstrong famously play?
easy
Trumpet
Source: Wikipedia https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Louis_Armstrong?oldid=1365359824#Horn_playing_and_early_jazz
When did five-line musical staves appear in Italy?
hard
The 13th century
Source: Wikipedia https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Staff_(music)?oldid=1365949333#History
Which four musicians comprised the Beatles?
easy
John Lennon, Paul McCartney, George Harrison and Ringo Starr
Source: Wikipedia https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Beatles?oldid=1365620680
Which pop group included Ginger, Sporty, Posh, Scary, and Baby?
easy
The Spice Girls
Source: Wikipedia https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Spice_Girls?oldid=1365604517
Why is a metronome useful to musicians?
easy
Maintain a steady tempo
Source: Wikipedia https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Metronome?oldid=1362031250
What is an album released after an artist’s death called?
medium
A posthumous album
Source: Wikipedia https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Album?oldid=1365601226#Posthumous_album
Which composer wrote The Four Seasons?
medium
Antonio Vivaldi
Source: Wikipedia https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Four_Seasons_(Vivaldi)?oldid=1364836830
Which woodwind instrument is usually made of metal and played with a single reed?
medium
The saxophone
Source: Wikipedia https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Saxophone?oldid=1363300049
Which musical dynamic symbol opens to the right?
medium
Crescendo
Source: Wikipedia https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dynamics_(music)?oldid=1363925464#Changes
Who wrote and first recorded Jolene?
medium
Dolly Parton
Source: Wikipedia https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jolene?oldid=1362915604
Which country is strongly associated with the musical style reggae?
easy
Jamaica
Source: Wikipedia https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Reggae?oldid=1365962231#Cultural_connections
How does a cappella singing differ from accompanied singing?
easy
Without any instrumental accompaniment
Source: Wikipedia https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/A_cappella?oldid=1365603117
Which Fleetwood Mac album was released on 4 February 1977?
medium
Rumours
Source: Wikipedia https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rumours_(album)?oldid=1365838700
Who composed the opera The Magic Flute?
medium
Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart
Source: Wikipedia https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Magic_Flute?oldid=1365787361
What link do hip-hop DJs make by moving a record back and forth under a needle?
medium
Percussive sounds and effects
Source: Wikipedia https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Scratching?oldid=1354392180#Turntablism
Which electronic instrument is played without physical contact by moving the hands near antennas?
hard
The theremin
Source: Wikipedia https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Theremin?oldid=1365072161
What is the lowest standard adult male singing range?
medium
Bass
Source: Wikipedia https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bass_(voice_type)?oldid=1360000167
Which composer continued writing music after becoming profoundly deaf?
easy
Beethoven
Source: Wikipedia https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ludwig_van_Beethoven?oldid=1366046655#Deafness
How many strings does the kokyu usually have?
hard
Three
Source: Wikipedia https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Koky%C5%AB?oldid=1353068207
Where does the direction da capo tell a performer to resume?
hard
From the beginning
Source: Wikipedia https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Da_capo?oldid=1250876939
Questions 41–48
What 1961 album of Robert Johnson recordings did Columbia release?
hard
King of the Delta Blues Singers
Source: Wikipedia https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Robert_Johnson?oldid=1363801381
What kind of dance is the waltz?
easy
A ballroom and folk dance
Source: Wikipedia https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Waltz?oldid=1360223344
Which instrument provides the opening solo in George Gershwin’s Rhapsody in Blue?
hard
Clarinet
Source: Wikipedia https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rhapsody_in_Blue?oldid=1361743493#Form_and_analysis
What is a leitmotif in film or opera music?
hard
Short, recurring musical phrase
Source: Wikipedia https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Leitmotif?oldid=1365638282
What themes do troubadour songs deal with mainly?
hard
Chivalry and courtly love
Source: Wikipedia https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Troubadour?oldid=1361415168
Under the A440 standard, how many hertz is the A above middle C?
hard
440 Hz
Source: Wikipedia https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/A440_(pitch_standard)?oldid=1364018345
Which singer-songwriter released Fast Car as her debut single in 1988?
medium
Tracy Chapman
Source: Wikipedia https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fast_Car?oldid=1365482441
What musical term means a motif or phrase that persistently repeats in one voice?
hard
Ostinato
Source: Wikipedia https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ostinato?oldid=1354202678
How to play
Treat song and album names as titles when reading them, and do not sing or hum unless every round uses that rule. For notation questions, describe the printed symbol only as written so your delivery does not reveal the answer.
Plan the round and team scores
8 turns × 60 seconds = 8 minutes of play, plus instructions and breaks.
60
These are adjustable house rules. Pause whenever the group needs more time.
Team 1: 0
Team 2: 0