Chapter 24: Process as Meaning: Bach and the Fugue
MULTIPLE CHOICE
1. Which of the following keyboard instruments were important during the Baroque?
a. the harpsichord c. the harpsichord and the organ
b. the piano d. the piano and the organ
2. The ______ is a keyboard instrument whose strings are plucked by quills.
a. organ c. harpsichord
b. piano d. clavichord
3. The harpsichord is different from the piano because:
a. it sometimes has two keyboards rather than one.
b. its strings are plucked rather than struck.
c. it is not capable of a wide dynamic range.
d. all of the answers shown here
4. The keyboard instrument that uses various sets of pipes to create contrasting colors is:
a. the harpsichord. c. the clavichord.
b. the organ. d. the piano.
5. What is a toccata?
a. a variation on a repeated harmonic pattern
b. an improvisatory, virtuosic keyboard work
c. a movement based on strict counterpoint
d. a four-movement keyboard work containing a fugue
6. The _____ is a keyboard form based on the principle of voices imitating each other.
a. fugue c. suite
b. prelude d. toccata
7. What is the principal element of a fugue?
a. a beautiful melody c. a chorale tune
b. imitation d. arpeggios
8. After the fugue subject is stated, the second entrance of the subject is called the:
a. episode. c. fugato.
b. answer. d. stretto.
9. The opening section of a fugue, in which all voices successively introduce the subject, is called
the:
a. episode. c. exposition.
b. answer. d. closing section.
10. In a fugue, the areas of relaxation where the subject is not heard are called:
a. answers. c. episodes.
b. countersubjects. d. strettos.
11. Which of the following is a contrapuntal device that alters the original theme of a fugue?
a. toccata c. prelude
b. concerto d. diminution
12. In a fugue, the technique of stating the theme in faster rhythmic values is called:
a. augmentation. c. stretto.
b. retrograde. d. diminution.
13. Which of the following is a set of forty-eight preludes and fugues by Bach?
a. the Brandenburg Concertos c. The Well-Tempered Clavier
b. A Musical Offering d. The Art of Fugue
14. Bach’s last demonstration of contrapuntal mastery was:
a. The Art of Fugue. c. The Well-Tempered Clavier.
b. A Musical Offering. d. the Brandenburg Concertos.
15. How many voices, or individual lines, are there in Bach’s Contrapunctus I, from The Art of Fugue?
a. two c. four
b. three d. five
16. In which voice is the subject first heard in Contrapunctus I, from The Art of Fugue?
a. the top voice, or soprano
b. the second voice from the top, or alto
c. the second voice from the bottom, or tenor
d. the bottom voice, or bass
TOP: Baroque Fugue MSC: Factual
TRUE/FALSE
1. The three main keyboard instruments of the Baroque were the harpsichord, organ, and piano.
2. The strings of a harpsichord are plucked by quills.
3. The advantage of the harpsichord was its ability to produce crescendos and diminuendos.
4. The organ uses multiple keyboards.
5. A fugue is a contrapuntal composition in which a single subject is the focal point that unifies the
work.
6. A fugue is a form intended exclusively for solo keyboard performance.
7. At the beginning of a fugue, the countersubject is stated alone.
8. Johann Sebastian Bach’s The Art of Fugue is now generally considered to be a keyboard work.
ESSAY
1. Discuss the fugue, its structure, and its polyphonic devices.
ANS:
Answers will vary.
PTS: 1 DIF: 2 REF: Essentials: pp. 125–127
TOP: Baroque Fugue MSC: Applied