HKDSE Music Practice Paper: Theory, Listening Analysis And Composition Techniques (12 Questions, 100 Marks, 75 Minutes, With Answers)

HKDSE Music Practice Paper: Theory, Listening Analysis and Composition Techniques (12 Questions, 100 Marks, 75 Minutes, with Answers)

2026-11-04

HKDSE Music: theory, listening analysis and composition techniques in one full mock paper

HKDSE Music paper: equal temperament, note values, key signatures, intervals, ensembles, sonata form, cadences, melodic inversion and sequence, SATB ranges and thematic development.

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Section A: Theory Fundamentals, Rhythm and Metre (32 marks)

Section A: Theory Fundamentals, Rhythm and Metre

#	Question	Answer and marking notes
1	The frequency of A4 is 440 Hz. In twelve-tone equal temperament each semitone multiplies the frequency by the twelfth root of two. (a) Calculate the frequencies of A5 and E5, correct to one decimal place. (4 marks) (b) Explain why the frequency ratio of an octave is always 2:1, and state how many cents an octave contains. (4 marks)	Answer: (a) A5 = 440 x 2^(12/12) = 880.0 Hz; E5 lies seven semitones above A4, so 440 x 2^(7/12) is about 659.3 Hz. (b) An octave spans twelve semitones, so the ratio is 2^(12/12) = 2:1 and the upper note is exactly twice the frequency of the lower one; an octave equals 1200 cents and each semitone 100 cents. Marking: 2 marks for the working, 1 mark per value; 2 marks for the octave ratio, 2 marks for cents.
2	A piece is in 4/4 time, lasts 16 bars and is marked crotchet = 120. (a) Find the total number of beats and the playing time in seconds. (4 marks) (b) If the same music were notated in 6/8 with the same number of bars, how many quavers would it contain, and how many crotchets would one bar be worth? (4 marks)	Answer: (a) Four beats per bar over 16 bars gives 64 beats; at crotchet = 120 there are two beats per second, so 64 / 2 = 32 seconds. (b) 6/8 has six quavers per bar, so 16 bars give 96 quavers; six quavers equal three crotchets, so each bar is worth three crotchets. Marking: 2 marks for the beat total, 2 for the time; 2 marks for quavers, 2 for the crotchet equivalent.
3	Every key signature follows a fixed pattern of accidentals. (a) Write out the key signatures of D major and B flat major, naming every sharp or flat. (4 marks) (b) How does the number of sharps change when the music moves from D major to A major, and what is the fixed order of sharps? (4 marks)	Answer: (a) D major has two sharps, F# and C#; B flat major has two flats, Bb and Eb. (b) D major has two sharps and A major three, so one sharp (G#) is added; the order of sharps is fixed as F, C, G, D, A, E, B and the order of flats is the reverse. Marking: 2 marks per key with correct note names; 2 marks for the change, 2 for the order.
4	Starting on C4, build a major third, a perfect fifth, a major sixth and a perfect octave above it. (a) Give the number of semitones and the resulting note for each interval. (4 marks) (b) Convert those semitone counts into cents and compare the equal-tempered perfect fifth with the pure fifth. (4 marks)	Answer: (a) Major third, 4 semitones (E4); perfect fifth, 7 semitones (G4); major sixth, 9 semitones (A4); perfect octave, 12 semitones (C5). (b) The figures are 400, 700, 900 and 1200 cents; the equal-tempered fifth is 700 cents while the pure fifth is about 702 cents, so the tempered fifth is narrower by roughly 2 cents. Marking: 1 mark per interval; 2 marks for the conversion, 2 for the comparison.

Section B: Listening Analysis and Musical Structure (36 marks)

Section B: Listening Analysis and Musical Structure

#	Question	Answer and marking notes
5	Two chamber works are played: excerpt A for string quartet, excerpt B for wind quintet. (a) Name the instruments of each ensemble and compare the number of players. (5 marks) (b) Discuss how a string quartet shares melody and accompaniment in terms of timbre and balance. (4 marks)	Answer: (a) String quartet: first violin, second violin, viola and cello, four players; wind quintet: flute, oboe, clarinet, bassoon and horn, five players, one more than the quartet. (b) The first violin usually carries the theme, the second violin and viola fill the inner parts and the harmony, and the cello supplies the bass; because all four instruments share one timbre family the balance is easy to keep and the melody passes between the parts. Marking: 2 marks per ensemble, 1 for the comparison; 2 marks each for melody and accompaniment.
6	A movement in sonata form lasts 96 bars: the exposition takes 3/8 of the whole, the development 1/4, and the rest is the recapitulation. (a) Calculate the number of bars in each part and check the total. (5 marks) (b) Explain the main tonal difference between the recapitulation and the exposition, and the purpose of that arrangement. (4 marks)	Answer: (a) Exposition 96 x 3/8 = 36 bars; development 96 x 1/4 = 24 bars; recapitulation 96 – 36 – 24 = 36 bars; 36 + 24 + 36 = 96, so the total checks. (b) In the exposition the second subject is in the dominant, whereas in the recapitulation it returns in the tonic, so the whole movement ends in one key; the purpose is to resolve the tonal contrast and give a sense of completion. Marking: 1 mark per part, 2 for the check; 2 marks for the keys, 2 for the purpose.
7	(a) Arrange these dynamic marks from softest to loudest: mf, pp, f, mp, p, ff. (4 marks) (b) Adagio is normally 66 to 76 beats per minute and Allegro 120 to 168; find the gap between the fastest and slowest speeds and explain how a conductor uses the contrast. (5 marks)	Answer: (a) pp, p, mp, mf, f, ff. (b) 168 minus 66 leaves a gap of 102 beats per minute; the conductor shapes phrases in the unhurried breathing of Adagio and tightens the pulse in Allegro to create drive, the two extremes differing by more than double. Marking: 4 marks for a fully correct order (1 mark off per error); 2 marks for the gap, 3 for the discussion.
8	In C major, I = C-E-G, IV = F-A-C, V = G-B-D and vi = A-C-E. (a) State how many common tones I shares with V, with IV and with vi. (5 marks) (b) Explain the difference in harmonic effect between an authentic cadence (V-I) and a deceptive cadence (V-vi). (4 marks)	Answer: (a) I and V share one common tone (G); I and IV share one (C); I and vi share two (C and E). (b) The authentic cadence moves from dominant to tonic and closes firmly; the deceptive cadence turns to vi, darkening the colour and postponing the close, which is why it often appears where a phrase is left open. Marking: 1 mark per pair, 2 for the working; 2 marks per cadence.

Section C: Composition Techniques and Harmony (32 marks)

Section C: Composition Techniques and Harmony

#	Question	Answer and marking notes
9	A motif rises from C4 to E4 and then to G4. (a) Write the inversion of the motif about C4, naming the direction, the semitones and the notes. (4 marks) (b) Explain the compositional use of sequence and of inversion. (4 marks)	Answer: (a) The original rises 4 semitones (C4 to E4) then 3 semitones (E4 to G4); the inversion falls 4 semitones to Ab3 and then 3 semitones to F3, giving C4-Ab3-F3. (b) A sequence repeats a figure at different pitches, extending the idea and adding emphasis, while inversion keeps the interval pattern but reverses direction, making familiar material sound fresh; both are common in a development section. Marking: 2 marks for direction, 2 for note names; 2 marks each for the two devices.
10	Normal SATB ranges are soprano C4-A5, alto G3-D5, tenor C3-G4 and bass E2-C4. (a) Calculate the compass of each voice in semitones. (4 marks) (b) State two voice-leading faults that must be avoided in four-part writing and explain why. (4 marks)	Answer: (a) Soprano 21 semitones; alto 19; tenor 19; bass 20. (b) Avoid consecutive fifths and consecutive octaves, because two parts moving in parallel perfect intervals lose independence and the harmony sounds hollow; also avoid voice crossing and awkward leaps, which blur the individual lines. Marking: 1 mark per voice; 2 marks per fault with its reason.
11	(a) Describe the features of monophonic, homophonic and polyphonic (counterpoint) texture. (4 marks) (b) A piece in 4/4 at crotchet = 90 is played for 30 seconds; how many beats sound, and how many complete bars is that with what remainder? (4 marks)	Answer: (a) Monophonic texture has a single melodic line with no accompaniment; homophonic texture sets one melody against chordal accompaniment; polyphonic texture, or counterpoint, combines two or more melodies of equal standing, as in a fugue. (b) 90 / 60 = 1.5 beats per second, so 30 seconds give 45 beats; at four beats a bar that is 11 complete bars with 1 beat left over. Marking: 1 mark per texture, 1 for the comparison; 2 marks for the beats, 1 each for the bars and the remainder.
12	A theme lasts 4 bars; the composer repeats it as a sequence three times at different pitches, then uses diminution to halve its note values twice in succession. (a) Calculate the total length after the sequences and the number of bars in the diminished passage. (4 marks) (b) Explain how augmentation, diminution and modulation each change the tension of a piece. (4 marks)	Answer: (a) After the sequences the theme spans 4 x (1 + 3) = 16 bars; diminution gives 4, then 2, then 1 bar, seven bars in all. (b) Augmentation lengthens the note values so phrases open out and tension accumulates; diminution tightens the rhythmic density for urgency and drive; modulation changes the tonal colour and pushes the tension into a new region, often preparing the climax before the return. Marking: 2 marks for 16 bars, 2 for 7 bars; roughly 1 mark for each device.

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