Division Categories & Requirements

OVERVIEW
The Music Quiz Bowl is a team-based academic competition that tests students’ knowledge of music theory, history, aural skills, and musicianship. Teams compete in multiple rounds of timed questioning designed to challenge musical understanding and quick recall. The event encourages collaborative learning and provides students with an engaging way to deepen their theoretical and historical musical knowledge.

ELIGIBILITY
• Teams consist of three to four members.
• There is no limit on the number of teams that may enter from a studio.
• All team members must also participate in the festival Solo Division.
• There is no age limit for participants.
• Team classification is determined by the highest Solo Division level represented on the team.

TEAM PARTICIPATION RULES
• A contestant may participate on only one team.
• A Class D entrant may participate on either:

• an E–F–G team, or

• a B–C–D team.

• An E–F–G team may include only one Class D participant.

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CLASSIFICATION LEVELS
Teams are classified according to the Solo Division levels of the participants.
• LEVEL I
EFG Solo participants (one Class D entrant permitted per team)
• LEVEL II
BCD Solo participants
• LEVEL III
A through Virtuoso Solo participants

COMPETITION FORMAT
• Preliminary rounds begin Friday afternoon.
• The number of teams entered determines Friday scheduling.
• Oral questioning elimination round may occur Friday from 2:00–3:00 PM if required.
• The three highest individual scores from each team are used to determine advancement to semi-final rounds.
• Semi-final rounds occur on Friday and may include up to four teams per level.
• Final rounds are held on Saturday for Level I, Level II, and Level III teams.

QUESTION FORMAT
Each round consists of a set number of questions.
• Teams have 10 seconds to answer each question.
• If a team misses a question, the opposing team may choose to:

• accept the same question, or

• request a new question.

If the opposing team accepts the question:
• The question will not be repeated.
• The team has 5 seconds to answer.

QUESTION CONTENT
Questions may include topics related to:
• music history
• music theory
• aural perception
• general musicianship
The difficulty level of questions corresponds to the team’s classification level.

STUDY MATERIALS
A collection of core questions used during the past ten years is available to all studios upon request from the Festival Secretary.

STUDY GUIDE

• LEVEL I EXPECTATIONS

Students should be able to:
• Name notes on the lines and spaces of G and F clef
• Identify melodic intervals of minor 2nd, Major 2nd, Major 3rd
• Write those intervals above a given note
• Identify half steps and whole steps
• Identify Major and minor triads, including sharp and flat names
• Convert minor triads to major and vice versa
• Identify Major key signatures up to four sharps and four flats
• Write the rest or note equivalent for given rhythmic values

• Complete measures using a single note or rest in meters such as:

• 6/8, common time, 2/4, 3/8, 3/4

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Students should also know the following terms:

• treble clef, staccato, mf, ledger lines, allegro, crescendo, p, interval, ritardando, una corda, diminuendo, andante, accelerando, harmonic, minor, whole step, legato

 
Students should recognize the composers:

• Bach, Haydn, Mozart, Beethoven, Prokofiev

Students should be able to:

• Draw all Major scales up to three sharps and three flats.

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• LEVEL II EXPECTATIONS

Students should be able to:
• Name notes above the treble and bass staffs
• Identify intervals from minor 2nd through Major 6th
• Write those intervals above a given note
• Identify any:

• Major triad

• minor triad

• dominant seventh chord

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• Draw:

• Major triads

• minor triads

• diminished triads

• augmented triads

• dominant seventh chords
   

• Identify any major or minor key signature
• Complete measures using a single note or rest in any meter

Students should know the following musical terms:

• double sharp, grace note, alto, tenor, authentic cadence, enharmonic, tonic, alla breve, binary, ternary, soprano, opus, fp, stz, bass, cadenza, k numbe

Students should know the composers:

• Haydn, Chopin, Mendelssohn, Johann Strauss, Brahms, Sousa, Joplin, Rachmaninoff, Debussy, Ravel

• LEVEL III EXPECTATIONS

Students should be able to:
• Write the tonic, supertonic, mediant, and other scale degrees for Major and minor scales
• Identify or write any interval
• Construct a triad on any scale degree of a scale
• Construct diminished seventh chords
• Complete measures with a single note or rest in any meter
 
Students should know the following terms:

• deceptive cadence, meno, più, dolce, plagal cadence, chorale, drone, senza, oratorio, Alberti bass, libretto, rondo, modulation, cantabile, marcato, simile, Baroque suite, subject

Students should know the following composers:

• Handel, Beethoven, Schubert, Tchaikovsky, Dvorak, Gershwin, Stravinsky, Copland, Zwilich, Tower

​Students should be able to:

• Draw the whole tone scale

• Draw the chromatic scale

• Draw model scales