[1] Many people are familiar with the piano, but not everyone knows that it represents the evolution of keyboard instruments developed over several centuries. The piano is just one of many types of keyboard instruments used by musicians throughout history.
[2] Keyboard instruments have been in use since the 1300s but did not become well-established among composers and performers until somewhat later. In the 1500s, for example, a keyboard instrument known as the harpsichord rose to prominence. It is one of the earliest keyboard instruments to become favored by musicians and composers of Western classical music, for both solo and ensemble (group) playing. In the 1700s, pipe organs enjoyed great popularity, especially for music played in churches. France, Italy, and Germany all developed distinct organ-building styles. Music composed in these countries often reflects these stylistic features including stronger or sweeter sounds, or differing sound quality. The piano first gained popularity during the 1800s. It was a favorite instrument not only of the so-called Romantic composers, known for their emotional expression, but also of amateur performers. In an era when television and radio did not exist, many people played piano in their homes to pass the time and entertain family members and friends.
[3] Of these three instruments, the harpsichord and piano are the most similar due to their use of strings to produce sound—the pipe organ relies on wind pipes. However, they are completely different in almost every other respect. First, the ,begin italics,mechanism,end italics, which produces the sound is distinct. Harpsichord strings are plucked by a quill when a key is pressed, somewhat like a guitar pick is used to sound a guitar string. The piano, on the other hand, has hammers which strike the strings when the key is pressed, making them resonate. Another noticeable difference lies in the instruments' ability to control ,begin italics,dynamics,end italics,, or the volume of the sound being produced. Harpsichords operate at a relatively consistent volume, no matter how gently or forcefully the keys are pressed. Pianos, on the other hand, are dynamic wonders—a gentle touch produces a soft sound, while more forceful playing can be used to produce a louder sound. Finally, the two instruments differ in the ,begin italics,range,end italics, of sound they can produce from low to high pitches. That is, they have different numbers of keys. The harpsichord has a much narrower range than the piano, or fewer keys from left to right, usually five octaves or fewer (if 12 keys make 1 octave). In contrast, the piano has a full seven octaves plus three additional keys, for a total of 88 keys in all. While these instruments are very different in mechanism, dynamics, and range, both the harpsichord and piano have their place in the Western classical music tradition. Their differences allow them to fulfill distinct but complementary roles and produce music of a completely different sound quality.
Question
The author presents information using a chronological structure in paragraph 2 and a compare/contrast structure in paragraph 3.
Are these structures effective in supporting the author's thesis that musicians have used many keyboard instruments throughout history?
Answer options with 4 options
1.
No, because only the chronological section supports the thesis. It shows the prominence of several instruments, while the compare/contrast section focuses primarily on the differences between the two.
2.
No, because only the compare/contrast section supports the thesis. It describes how the keyboard instruments were alike, while the chronological section merely lists popular instruments.
3.
Yes, both structures support the thesis. The chronological section explains how keyboard instruments developed over time, and the compare/contrast section places them into distinct categories.
4.
Yes, both structures support the thesis. The chronological section provides interesting details about the piano, and the compare/contrast section emphasizes similarities between the piano and the harpsichord.
7 answers
I still keep in mind a certain wonderful sunset which I witnessed when steamboating was new to me. A broad expanse of the river was turned to blood; in the middle distance the red hue brightened into gold, through which a solitary log came floating, black and conspicuous; in one place a long, slanting mark lay sparkling upon the water; in another the surface was broken by boiling, tumbling rings, that were as many-tinted as an opal; where the ruddy flush was faintest, was a smooth spot that was covered with graceful circles and radiating lines, ever so delicately traced; the shore on our left was densely wooded, and the sombre shadow that fell from this forest was broken in one place by a long, ruffled trail that shone like silver; and high above the forest wall a clean-stemmed dead tree waved a single leafy bough that glowed like a flame in the unobstructed splendor that was flowing from the sun. . . .
The world was new to me, and I had never seen anything like this at home. But as I have said, a day came when I began to cease from noting the glories and the charms which the moon and the sun and the twilight wrought upon the river's face; another day came when I ceased altogether to note them. Then, if that sunset scene had been repeated, I should have looked upon it without rapture, and should have commented upon it, inwardly, after this fashion: This sun means that we are going to have wind to-morrow; that floating log means that the river is rising, small thanks to it; that slanting mark on the water refers to a bluff reef which is going to kill somebody's steamboat one of these nights, if it keeps on stretching out like that; those tumbling "boils" show a dissolving bar and a changing channel there; the lines and circles in the slick water over yonder are a warning that the troublesome place is shoaling up dangerously; . . .
(from ,begin underline,Life on the Mississippi,end underline, by Mark Twain)
Question
Which statement ,begin emphasis,best,end emphasis, conveys how the author's viewpoint changes in the passage?
Answer options with 4 options
1.
His fear of nature intensifies as he comes to accept that a river is more dangerous than it is beautiful.
2.
His ability to describe the river with precise language improves as he gains more skills in steamboating.
3.
His way of seeing the river shifts from mysterious wonder to objective analysis as he becomes a steamboating expert.
4.
His enjoyment of the river comes at first as the result of acute observations and later as the result of proven instincts.
from ,begin bold,The Open Boat,end bold,
As the boat bounced from the top of each wave, the wind tore through the hair of the hatless men, and as the craft plopped her stern down again the spray splashed past them. The crest of each of these waves was a hill, from the top of which the men surveyed for a moment a broad, tumultuous expanse, shining and wind-riven.,superscript,1,baseline, It was probably splendid, it was probably glorious, this play of the free sea, wild with lights of emerald and white and amber.
"Bully good thing it's an on-shore wind,,superscript,2,baseline," said the cook. "If not, where would we be? Wouldn't have a show."
"That's right," said the correspondent.
The busy oiler nodded his assent.
Then the captain, in the bow, chuckled in a way that expressed humor, contempt, tragedy, all in one. "Do you think we've got much of a show now, boys?" said he.
Whereupon the three were silent, save for a trifle of hemming and hawing. To express any particular optimism at this time they felt to be childish and stupid, . . . On the other hand, the ethics of their condition was decidedly against any open suggestion of hopelessness. So they were silent.
(from "The Open Boat" by Stephen Crane)
,fill in the blank,
,begin bold,,superscript,1,baseline, riven,end bold, torn apart
,begin bold,,superscript,2,baseline, on-shore wind,end bold, a wind blowing toward the shore
Question
Which evidence from the passage ,begin emphasis,best,end emphasis, supports the inference that the men are distracted?
Answer options with 4 options
1.
the silence of the men after the captain asks his second question
2.
the description of the captain's chuckle as showing contempt and tragedy
3.
the use of "emerald" and "amber," jewel names, to describe the sea's colors
4.
the word "probably" in the description of the sea as "splendid" and "glorious"
(from ,begin underline,History of Modern Philosophy,end underline, by Richard Falckenberg)
Question
Does the author succeed in supporting the claim that "In no other department is a thorough knowledge of history so important as in philosophy"?
Answer options with 4 options
1.
Yes, because he gives examples of why knowledge of history is vital to philosophy.
2.
Yes, because he proves that other departments of thought are not reliant on historical knowledge.
3.
No, because he proceeds to explain why knowledge of history is as important to other disciplines.
4.
No, because he digresses into another topic and does not address historical knowledge.
1 answer