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Unit notes and practice questions

Grade 9 Performing and Visual Arts unit 1: Historical and cultural context

Everything here is for unit 1 of the Grade 9 Performing and Visual Arts textbook: what the chapter covers, the short notes, practice questions with their answers, and the lesson video where one exists.

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Cards
10
Practice questions on unit 1
1–62
The textbook pages for unit 1

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The Temari lesson on unit 1

A short video lesson on this chapter, made by Temari. It loads only when you press play.

Building the Tizita scale from the major scale · 4 min · 2 past exam questions worked through

Parts of the lesson

Tap a part to play the lesson from there.

Short notes for unit 1

The cards filed under this chapter on the Grade 9 Performing and Visual Arts page. Open one at a time.

Work or ModeClassificationLiturgical Purpose or Character
DuagaChant BookSundays and holidays throughout liturgical cycle
Tsome DiguaChant BookLent fasting season only
Me'erafChant BookSabbath vigils, prayers, and hymns
ZimareChant BookSung after Holy Communion
MewasitChant BookFunerals, requiems, and Easter Eve
Ge'ezSacred ModeFirst melodic mode: plain, dry, and solemn
EzelSacred ModeSecond melodic mode: gentle, sweet, and tender
AraraiSacred ModeThird melodic mode: melancholic and plaintive

When you use it

Use this card to identify the five volumes of Ethiopian liturgical chant (Zema) and the three sacred melodic modes introduced by St. Yared.

Watch out

Do not confuse the three sacred liturgical modes (Ge'ez, Ezel, Ararai) with the four modern secular pentatonic qegnet modes (Tizita, Bati, Ambassel, Anchihoye).

Drafted from Grade 9 Performing and Visual Arts, pages 1-62, then checked twice before it went up

InstrumentAcoustic ClassDistinguishing Construction
MasinqoChordophoneSingle horsehair string with bow
KrarChordophone5 to 6 strings, bowl lyre
BegenaChordophone10 strings box harp, buzzing sound
WashintAerophoneEnd-blown bamboo flute, 4 to 6 holes
MeleketAerophoneLong trumpet, bamboo and cow horn
KeberoMembranophoneConical double-headed hand drum
NegaritMembranophoneHemispherical kettledrum with sticks
TsinatsilIdiophoneSistrum with sliding metal discs
MekuamiyaIdiophoneT-shaped prayer staff struck vertically
TomIdiophoneLamellophone, thumb piano

When you use it

Use this card to classify Ethiopian traditional musical instruments into standard acoustic families and identify their physical structures.

Watch out

Do not confuse Negarit (struck with sticks) with Kebero (struck with hands), and remember that Begena has 10 strings whereas Krar has 5 to 6 strings.

Drafted from Grade 9 Performing and Visual Arts, pages 1-62, then checked twice before it went up

Practice questions on unit 1

10 multiple-choice questions written against this chapter, each with its answer and the reason. Try one before you open the answer.

Question 1

Which Ethiopian city is known for its many prehistoric cave paintings?

  1. A.Dire Dawa
  2. B.Axum
  3. C.Harar
  4. D.Gondar
Show the answer and why

Answer: A Dire Dawa

Why

The text says Dire Dawa is known for its many prehistoric cave paintings, dating back an estimated 5000 years. Axum and Harar are mentioned in other parts of the unit, but not for cave paintings.

Question 2

The Aksum Stelae is about how tall?

  1. A.4 metres
  2. B.14 metres
  3. C.24 metres
  4. D.160 metres
Show the answer and why

Answer: C 24 metres

Why

The text says the Aksum Stelae is a 4th-century, 24-metre-tall stelae/obelisk. The figure 160 is its weight in tonnes, not its height.

Question 3

According to the text, how many strings does the Begena have?

  1. A.4
  2. B.6
  3. C.10
  4. D.24
Show the answer and why

Answer: C 10

Why

The text says: Begenna as a musical instrument has 10 strings. The Krar has 5 to 6 strings, so 6 is not the Begena's number.

Question 4

Which instrument is a double-headed drum used in Ethiopian traditional music?

  1. A.Masinko
  2. B.Kebero
  3. C.Negarit
  4. D.Washint
Show the answer and why

Answer: B Kebero

Why

The text describes the Kebero as a double-headed conical hand drum. The Masinko is a fiddle, the Negarit is a kettledrum played with sticks, and the Washint is a flute.

Question 5

Afework Tekle went to England in 1947 when he was 15 years old for higher education. In what year was he born?

  1. A.1930
  2. B.1932
  3. C.1934
  4. D.1947
Show the answer and why

Answer: B 1932

Why

The text gives his life dates as 1932 to 2012. Also, 1947 minus 15 years is 1932, which matches.

Question 6

The text says St. Yared wrote how many volumes of Ethiopian Chant music?

  1. A.three
  2. B.five
  3. C.seven
  4. D.ten
Show the answer and why

Answer: B five

Why

The text says St. Yared wrote five volumes of Ethiopian Chant music. The number ten is linked to the symbols he formed, not the volumes.

Question 7

The Tizita major scale is obtained from the diatonic major scale by omitting which degrees?

  1. A.3rd and 6th
  2. B.4th and 7th
  3. C.2nd and 5th
  4. D.1st and 8th
Show the answer and why

Answer: B 4th and 7th

Why

The text says: Tizita major scale is obtained from every major scale by omitting the 4th and 7th degree. The 3rd and 6th degrees are lowered in the Tizita minor scale, not omitted.

Question 8

How is the Negarit always played, according to the text?

  1. A.with the hands
  2. B.with a wooden stick or mallet
  3. C.by blowing air into it
  4. D.by plucking a string
Show the answer and why

Answer: B with a wooden stick or mallet

Why

The text says the Negarit is always played with a wooden stick (one or two) or mallet, but not with hands. It is a kettledrum, so it is not played by blowing or plucking.

Question 9

The text lists four main modes of Ethiopian music that use a pentatonic scale. Which of these is NOT one of the four main modes?

  1. A.Tezeta
  2. B.Bati
  3. C.Ambassel
  4. D.Tizita
Show the answer and why

Answer: D Tizita

Why

The four main modes are Tezeta, Bati, Ambassel and Anchihoye. The text says Tizita is a song of reminiscence that takes its name from the modal system, so it is a song, not one of the four modes.

Question 10

The text says the first modern Amharic play was organised by a group of young performers at a hotel in Addis Ababa. Which hotel was it?

  1. A.Terrasse Hotel
  2. B.Haile Selassie I Theatre
  3. C.Menelik II School
  4. D.Cinema Marconi
Show the answer and why

Answer: A Terrasse Hotel

Why

The text says the young Abyssinian performer's group organised a play made up of folk music and dance at the Terrasse Hotel in Addis Ababa. The other places are theatres or schools, not the hotel.

The app holds 21 questions on this unit, marked as you go. These are the first 10.

The textbook pages for unit 1

Unit 1 runs from page 1 to page 62 of the Ministry of Education edition.

Ministry of Education edition, English, 192 pages

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All Grade 9 Performing and Visual Arts short notes

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