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CHAPTER 69 Icons in Sound: Tavener and Postmodern Ortho-
doxy
MULTIPLE CHOICE
1. Which of the following characterizes spiritual minimalism?
a. It is inspired by religious beliefs.
b. It has simple chains of tonal progressions.
c. It is nonpulsed music.
d. All answers shown here.
2. Which of the following composers are associated with spiritual minimalism?
a. Arvo Pärt, John Tavener, Henryk Górecki
b. Henryk Górecki, John Adams, Steve Reich
c. Henryk Górecki, Philip Glass, Brian Eno
d. John Tavener, Henryk Górecki, Philip Glass
3. Which composer fused Russian Orthodox rituals with folk music and Gregorian chant?
a. Arvo Pärt c. Steve Reich
b. Henryk Górecki d. Jennifer Higdon
4. John Tavener was a(n) ________ composer.
a. American c. German
b. English d. Polish
5. During the mid-1970s, Tavener converted to
a. Catholicism. c. Judaism.
b. Lutheranism. d. Greek Orthodoxy.
6. Tavener’s Song for Athene was performed at the funeral service for
a. John Lennon. c. Princess Diana.
b. John F. Kennedy. d. Michael Jackson.
7. What honor was bestowed on John Tavener in 2000?
a. He won the Nobel Prize.
b. He won the Pulitzer Prize for music.
c. He won a Grammy for lifetime achievement.
d. He was elevated to the British knighthood.
8. How does Greek Orthodox chant differ from Western Christian chant?
a. It includes microtones.
b. It incorporates irregular rhythmic patterns.
c. It is not sung in Latin.
d. All answers shown here.
9. Tavener’s Hymn to the Mother of God is sung several times a year, most notably
a. at Christmas. c. during Lent.
b. at Easter. d. during Advent.
10. Which of the following characterizes Tavener’s Hymn to the Mother of God?
a. major and minor harmonic progressions
b. drones that create dissonances
c. post-Romanticism
d. intricate counterpoint
11. Which of the following describes the accompaniment for Tavener’s Hymn to the Mother of God?
a. It is written for four pianos.
b. It is written for full orchestra.
c. It is written for a percussion ensemble.
d. There is no instrumental accompaniment.
12. What is the form of Tavener’s Hymn to the Mother of God?
a. strophic c. A-B-A-B
b. A-B-A d. sonata-allegro
13. Spiritual minimalism developed at the hands of ________ composers.
a. American c. Asian
b. European d. Middle Eastern
14. Which of the following is Tavener’s MOST monumental large-scale religious work?
a. Hymn to the Mother of God c. The Veil of the Temple
b. Song for Athene d. The Beautiful Names
15. John Tavener’s work received wider attention because it was recorded on the Apple Records label, which was owned by
a. the Rolling Stones. c. Bob Dylan.
b. the Beatles. d. David Bowie.
16. Intervals smaller than half steps are called
a. microtones. c. minor steps.
b. small steps. d. spiritual tones.
17. What is a microtone?
a. intervals larger than half steps c. intervals produced by computers
b. intervals smaller than half steps d. intervals generated by sine waves
18. When did the Eastern Christian Church separate from the Western Christian Church?
a. 1963 c. 1492
b. 1054 d. 1750
19. Which of the following characterizes Tavener’s Hymn to the Mother of God?
a. major and minor harmonic progressions
b. highly consonant
c. procedures of minimalism
d. homophony
20. Which of the following characterizes Tavener’s Hymn to the Mother of God?
a. major and minor harmonic progressions c. neo-Romanticism
b. heterophony d. slow-moving counterpoint
21. The text for Tavener’s Hymn to the Mother of God is attributed to
a. the pope. c. Saint John Damascene.
b. Martin Luther. d. Saint John the Baptist.
22. Who wrote A Hymn to the Mother of God?
a. Arvo Pärt c. Philip Glass
b. Henryk Górecki d. John Tavener
23. What inspired Tavener’s choral writing?
a. the music of Bach
b. Lutheran chorales
c. medieval and Renaissance polyphony
d. Italian opera
24. What is characteristic of Tavener’s choral works?
a. the presence of drones c. the use of fugues
b. the use of major/minor harmony d. his use of Latin texts
25. Continuous pitches held while other musical lines interweave are called
a. drones. c. microtones.
b. minimalism. d. harmony.
1. Despite the secularization of the world as a whole, a number of composers still write music with spiritual goals.
2. Spiritual minimalism is characterized by a strong rhythmic pulse.
3. Górecki’s Symphony No. 3 is written with a slow-moving tonal language.
4. The Estonian composer Arvo Pärt incorporates the fervent mysticism of Russian Orthodox rituals into his works.
5. Latin is the official language of the Eastern Christian Church.
6. The chants for the Greek Orthodox and Western Christian churches retained similar melodies and compositional procedures.
7. John Tavener’s music assimilates the patterns of repetition of Orthodox rituals.
8. The text of Tavener’s Hymn to the Mother of God is attributed to Saint John Damascene.
9. Tavener’s Hymn to the Mother of God contains no links to medieval and Renaissance polyphony.
10. In keeping with non-Western musical tradition, Tavener avoids triads in his music.
11. John Tavener was born in Athens, Greece.
12. The Beatles recorded several compositions by John Tavener.
13. John Tavener converted to Judaism in the mid-1970s.
14. Tavener’s choral works make use of drones.
15. Tavener wrote the music for Princess Diana’s funeral.
16. Greek Orthodox chant includes the use of microtones.
1. What is spiritual minimalism? Who are the leading composers in this movement?
2. How is John Tavener’s religious background reflected in his music? Include examples from the textbook in your answer.
3. Discuss the differences between the Greek Orthodox and Western Christian chant traditions.
4. Compare Tavener’s Hymn to the Mother of God to Josquin’s Ave Maria . . . virgo serena. What do these works have in common?
