Question 42-50
For a century and a half the piano has been one of the most popular solo instruments for Western music. Unlike string and wind instruments, the piano is completely self-sufficient ,as it is able to play both the melody and its accompanying harmony at the same time. For this reason, it became the fa- vorite household instrument of the nineteenth century.
The ancestry of the piano can be traced to the early keyboard instruments of the fifteenth and sixteenth centuries-the spinet, the dulcimer, and the virginal. In the seventeenth century the organ, the clavichord, and the harpsichord became the chief instruments of the keyboard group, a supremacy they maintained until the piano supplanted them at the end of the eighteenth century. The clavichord s tone was metallic and never powerful, nevertheless, because of the variety of tone possible to it, many composers found the clavichord a sympathetic instrument for intimate chamber music.The harpsichord with its bright, vigrous tone was the favorite instrument for supporting the bass of the small orchestra of the period and for concert use but the character of the tone could not be varied save by mechanical or structural devices .The piano was perfected in the early eighteenth century by a harpsichord maker inItaly (though musicologists point out several previous instances of the instrument).
This instrument was called a piano e forte (soft Mid loud), to indicate its dynamic versatility; its strings were struck by a recoiling hammer with a felt-padded head. The wires were much heavier in. the earlier instruments. A series of mechanical improvements continuing well into the nineteenth century, including the introduction of pedals to sustain tone or to soften it, the perfection of a metal frame, and steel wire of the finest quality, finally produced an instrument capable of myriad tonal effects from the most delicate harmonies to an almost orchestral fullness of sound, from a <BR>liquid, singing tone to sharp, percussive brilliance.
42. What does the passage mainly discuss ?
(A) The historical development of the piano
(B) The quality of tone produced by various keyboard instrument
(C) The uses of keyboard instruments in various types of compositions
(D) The popularity of the piano with composers
43. Which of the following instruments was widely used before the seventeenth century?
(A) The harpsichord
(B) The spinet
(C) The clavichord
(D) The organ
44. The words "a supremacy" in line 9 are closest in meaning to
(A ) a suggestion
(B) an improvement
(C) a dominance
(D) a development
45.The word "supplanted" in line 10 is closest in meaning to
(A) supported
(B) promoted
(C) replaced
(D) dominated
46.The word "it" in line 12 refers to the
(A) supported
(B) promoted
(C) replaced
(D) dominated
47.According to the passage, what deficiency did the harpsichord have?
(A) It was fragile.
(B) It lacked variety in tone.
(C) It sounded metallic.
(D) It could not produce a strong sound.
48.Where in the passage does the author provide a translation?
(A) Lines 4-5
(B) Lines 13-17
(C) Lines 20-22
(D) Lines 23-28
49. According to the information in the third paragraph , which of the following improvements made it possible to lengthen the tone produced by the piano?
(A) The introduction of pedals
(B) The use of heavy wires
(C) The use of felt-padded hammerhead s
(D) The metal frame construction
50. The word "myriad" in line 26 is closest in meaning to
(A) noticeable
(B) many
(C) loud
(D) unusual <BR
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