Member Associations

of Pennsylvania Music Teachers Association

Willow Grove Chapter

DOROTHY SUTTON PERFORMANCE FESTIVAL

THEORY TEST CONTENT

PRIMER LEVEL

KEY NAMES - piano white key identification

NOTE NAMES – Piano - a 5th above and below middle C; Alto and Bass Clef Instruments – low

G to C above the staff; Guitar, Treble Clef Instruments and Vocal Treble Clef – Middle C up an

octave; Vocal Bass Clef – second space C up to middle C

NOTE VALUES - quarter note, half note, dotted half note, whole note

TIME SIGNATURES - 2/4, 3/4, 4/4

INTERVALS - 2nd, 3rd, 4th, 5th, (white keys)

VOCABULARY - treble clef, alto clef, bass clef, forte, piano, double bar, staccato, legato, interval, tied notes,

steps, skips, one bow, slurred, time signature, measures, beats, bar lines

LEVEL 1

KEY NAMES - sharp and flat piano key identification, including white key sharps and flats

NOTE NAMES – Piano – all notes on the grand staff; Alto and Bass Clef Instruments – C below staff up to E

above staff; Guitar, Treble Clef Instruments and Vocal Treble Clef – Middle C up to top line F; Vocal Bass Clef –

second space C up to F above the staff

NOTE/REST VALUES - pair of eighth notes, quarter rest, half rest, whole rest

TIME SIGNATURES - 2/4, 3/4, 4/4

INTERVALS - up to and including a 6th (white keys)

VOCABULARY - mezzo piano, mezzo forte, fermata, ritardando (rit.), flat, sharp, natural, whole step, half step,

bar line, measure, repeat sign, key signature

LEVEL 2

NOTE NAMES – Piano – all notes on the Grand Staff; Alto and Bass Clef Instruments, Vocal Bass Clef – C below

staff up to high F; Guitar, Treble Clef Instruments and Vocal Treble Clef – Middle C up to top line F

NOTE/REST VALUES - dotted quarter note, single eighth note, eighth rest

TIME SIGNATURES - 6/8

INTERVALS - 7th, octave

KEY SIGNATURES - recognition of C, F, and G major keys

SCALES - be able to write C, F, and G major scales

CHORDS - identification of white key major triads in root position

VOCABULARY - a tempo, crescendo, diminuendo, transpose, ff, pp, 8va, slurs, D.C. al fine, allegro, moderato,

andante, accent, triad, tempo, pianissimo, arpeggio

LEVEL 3

NOTE NAMES – Piano – two ledger lines above and below the Grand Staff; Alto and Bass Clef Instruments,

Vocal Bass and Vocal Treble Clefs – C below the staff up to C above the staff; Guitar, Treble Clef Instruments –

Middle C to C above the staff

NOTE/REST VALUES - eighth note triplet

TIME SIGNATURES - C, 3/8, 9/8, 12/8

INTERVALS - recognition of perfect or major intervals in a white key major scale

KEY SIGNATURES - recognition of D, A, E, and B major keys

SCALES - be able to write D, A, E, and B major scales

CHORDS - identification of major triads in root position: Db, Eb, F#, Ab, and Bb

TRANSPOSING - be able to write 4 measures up or down 1 whole step in the treble clef

VOCABULARY - phrase, tonic note, D.S., ledger line, common time, dolce, adagio, allegretto, molto, poco,

Baroque style (know dates and composers)

LEVEL 4

NOTE NAMES – Piano – Inner ledger lines of Grand Staff; Alto and Treble Clef Instruments, Guitar and Vocal

Treble Clef – G below the staff up to high F; Bass Clef Instruments and Vocal Bass Clef – C below the staff up to

C above the staffPMTA is an affiliate of Music Teachers National Association

PMTA is a 501c3 non profit-education association.

NOTE/REST VALUES - dotted eighth-sixteenth, sixteenth rest

TIME SIGNATURES - cut time (2/2)

INTERVALS - perfect 4th, 5th, 8th, and Major 2nd, 3rd, 6th, 7th, in black key major scales: Db, Eb, F#, Ab, and

Bb

KEY SIGNATURES - F# (Gb), Db, Eb, Ab, Bb major keys and be able to write sharps and flats in the correct

order

SCALES - fingering patterns for white major scales

CHORDS - identification of all minor triads in root position

TRANSPOSING - be able to write 4 measures up or down a 5th from C major

VOCABULARY - Classical and Romantic styles – know dates and composers, con moto, non troppo, simile,

subdominant note, dominant note, alla breve, cantabile, leggiero, vivace, tablature, Renaissance

LEVEL 5

NOTE VALUES - eighth note-two sixteenth notes

INTERVALS - minor 2nd, 3rd, 6th, and 7th

KEY SIGNATURES - relative minors (e.g.) C Major - a minor

TIME SIGNATURES – 5/4

SCALES - be able to write a, e, d, c, and g minor scales, recognition of 3 forms of the minor scales (no writing)

CHORDS - identification of any major or minor triad in 1st and 2nd inversion

TRANSPOSING - be able to write 4 measures from Bb to Ab or Eb

VOCABULARY - tenuto, senza, meno mosso, una corda, Contemporary style, sequence, portato, largo,

cadence, presto, prestissimo

LEVEL 6

NOTE VALUES – sixteenth note triplet, four beamed thirty-second notes

INTERVALS - augmented and diminished

KEY SIGNATURES - parallel minors (e.g.) G Major 1 sharp - g minor 2 flats

SCALES - be able to write 3 forms of minor scales, whole tone scales, and chromatic scales

CHORDS - augmented and diminished chords in root position

TRANSPOSING - be able to write 4 measures up or down a 5th from an Ab major melody

VOCABULARY - subito, accelerando, agitato, rubato, risoluto, sans ralentir, con forza, m.d. (main droit), m.g.

(main gauche), modulate, Impressionist style, lento, prestissimo, atonal, parallel chords, know the charactistics for

all styles of music

LEVEL 7- Piano Only!

INTERVALS - Major, minor, augmented and diminished intervals, including double sharps and double flats

KEY SIGNATURES - all major and minor scales, relative minor, parallel minor

SCALES - be able to write and identify any major or minor scale including fingerings (natural, harmonic and

melodic forms of the minor scales), write and recognize whole tone scales, chromatic scales and pentatonic

scales

CHORDS - Major, minor, augmented and diminished triads in root position, 1 st and 2 nd inversion positions,

dominant or diminished 7 th chords in root position e.g. (C 7 or C dim7)

TRANSPOSING - from any key to any other key

HARMONIC ANALYSIS - be able to analyze a simple passage of music in a major key, identify and write the

chord symbols below using Roman Numerals – (the following chords will be used) I , I 6 , I 6/4 , ii , ii 6 , ii 6/4 , IV ,

IV6 , IV6/4 , V , V6 , V6/4 or V7

VOCABULARY - authentic cadence, half cadence, plagal cadence, articulation, cadenza, canon, con fuoco,

counterpoint, enharmonic key, maestoso, marcato, morendo, piu, poco a poco, sforzando, spiritoso, syncopation,

transcription, binary form, ternary form, homophony, polyphony

LEVEL 8 - Piano Only!

CHORDS – major seventh, dominant seventh, minor seventh, and diminished seventh including all inversions e.g.

(F7, C Maj 6/5, D min 4/3, or A dim 4/2)

MODES – Ionian, Dorian, Phrygian, Lydian, Mixolydian, Aeolian, and Locrian. Be able to write any mode starting

on any key. For example C Dorian would be written: C D Eb F G A Bb C

CADENCES – authentic, plagal, half, and deceptive

METER – identify simple or compound, duple, triple, or quadruplePMTA is an affiliate of Music Teachers National Association

PMTA is a 501c3 non profit-education association.

ORNAMENTS – identify appoggiatura, trill, turn, mordent and grace note

HARMONIC ANALYSIS – these additional chords may be used: V 6/5, V 4/3, V 4/2, vi, vi 6, and vi 6/4

NON-HARMONIC TONES – be able to identify the following: anticipation, appoggiatura, lower neighbor, upper

neighbor, passing tone and suspension

VOCAL AND INSTRUMENTAL FORMS, DANCES AND OCCASIONAL PIECES – be able to match the

following to their appropriate definition: aria, ballade, berceuse, bolero, cantata, capriccio, chamber music, etude,

fugue, impromptu, invention, lied, madrigal, mazurka, minuet, musette, nocturne, oratorio, opera, overture, partita, polonaise, prelude, recitative, rhapsody, rondo, serenade, scherzo, solo concerto, sonata, symphony, suite,

tarantella, theme and variations, toccata and waltz

VOCABULARY – a cappella, ad libitum, allargando, assai, C clef, doloroso, episode (as in a fugue), 15ma,

glissando, grave, hemiola, leading tone, leitmotiv, libretto, l'istesso, loco, mediant, monophony, ostinato, pedal

point, peu á peu, Picardy third, pizzicato, rinforzando, rubato, secondary dominant, sequence, simile, slentando,

smorzando, solfege, sotto voce, stretto, subject (as in a fugue), submediant, supertonic, timbre and vibrato






Print this form, complete, enclose check and mail to: Olga Bondarchuk-Huque, 9260 Darlington Road, Philadelphia, PA 19115. Must be postmarked by Monday, September 30, 2019.