Lesson T5.1.2

T5.1.2 Listening to musicians across a wide range of music Quiz: KS3 Music, Unit 5

20 questions

Written by Revision Ninja · Last reviewed 11 October 2026

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Lesson T5.1.2, Listening to musicians across a wide range of music: 20 multiple choice questions for the KS3 Music (National Curriculum), Unit 5: Listening, written with Revision Ninja.

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The 20 questions

  1. Which instrument is central to a jazz trumpet solo tradition?

    • Harp
    • Tuba
    • Recorder
    • Trumpet

  2. Which musician is known for popularising the sitar in Western music in the 1960s?

    • Louis Armstrong
    • Nina Simone
    • Ravi Shankar
    • Miles Davis

  3. Which musician is famous for the album Kind of Blue?

    • Charlie Parker
    • Miles Davis
    • Duke Ellington
    • Dizzy Gillespie

  4. Which instrument is central to Caribbean steelband music?

    • Steel pan
    • Shakuhachi
    • Accordion
    • Harpsichord

  5. What does a session musician do?

    • Writes lyrics for a single band only
    • Designs the lighting for live gigs
    • Plays on other artists' recordings
    • Conducts an orchestra in concerts

  6. Which genre features DJs sampling and looping recorded sounds?

    • Madrigal
    • Hip hop
    • Baroque opera
    • Gregorian chant

  7. Which voice type is usually the highest in a choir?

    • Bass, the lowest voice part
    • Soprano
    • Tenor, a high male voice
    • Alto, a low female voice

  8. What is a capo on a guitar?

    • A stand that holds the sheet music
    • A clamp that raises the pitch
    • A pedal that sustains notes on the piano
    • A plectrum used for strumming the strings

  9. A listener hears a sitar and tabla in a raga performance. Which tradition is most likely?

    • Indian classical music
    • Irish traditional session music
    • Spanish flamenco guitar and song
    • Japanese koto music from Kyoto

  10. A bebop trumpeter plays fast, complex phrases over chord changes. Which skill is key?

    • Reading a tabla pattern
    • Following a conductor's baton only
    • Playing a fixed folk melody
    • Fast improvising over chord changes

  11. A listener compares a Bollywood track and a Scottish reel. Which feature helps identify the reel?

    • Fast, driving rhythm and a repeated tune
    • Long improvised sitar drones in free time
    • Electronic loops with no melody
    • A slow contemplative chant with no metre

  12. What is melisma?

    • Singing in a deep chest voice only
    • A technique where two singers swap melodies
    • Several notes sung on one syllable
    • Singing without any words at all

  13. A rock guitarist uses distortion to create a gritty tone. What is this changing?

    • Tempo, how fast the music is
    • Pitch, how high or low it sounds
    • Timbre
    • Key, the home note of the music

  14. A listener hears a cathedral organ ringing for several seconds. Which feature is this?

    • Strong syncopation
    • A tight, dry sound
    • Long reverberation
    • A sudden key change

  15. Why should a musician listen to many genres?

    • So they never need to practise
    • To widen their understanding of styles
    • So they can copy one artist note for note
    • So they only learn what sells best

  16. A DJ mixes a 1980s funk recording with a new beat. What skill is most used?

    • Composing a fugue by hand
    • Sampling and layering sounds
    • Transposing a plainsong melody
    • Conducting a string section live

  17. Why does a Caribbean steel pan band sound like both melody and rhythm?

    • Steel pans are only used for silent percussion
    • Pans only play a fixed drone under a sung melody
    • Pans can only play one note at a time
    • Melody and chords on pans, with a groove below

  18. What is the key difference in improvisation between a Hindustani vocal performance and a Western classical aria?

    • A fixed chord progression in every bar
    • Strict use of notated percussion parts
    • Ornaments improvised within a raga
    • A chorus that repeats after every verse

  19. What is the main role of a walking bass in a jazz trio?

    • To provide a silent pause between sections
    • To play the main melody over the drums
    • To set the key for the singer alone
    • To outline chords and keep the pulse

  20. Which genre developed from African American communities in New Orleans in the early 20th century?

    • Opera
    • Plainsong
    • Jazz
    • Madrigal

All KS3 Music quizzes