Quiz template · Trivia
Music trivia questions and answers
20 music questions from pop and rock to orchestras, reggae, K-pop and the words on a sheet of music, for players who sing along to anything.
Medium 20 questions 30 s each · about 15 min Checked against two sources
A music round that does not depend on one generation's playlists: ABBA and Queen sit next to Vivaldi, reggae, K-pop and the odd instrument nobody can name. It suits a pub quiz, a party or a break in a music lesson. Allow about 15 minutes for 20 questions, and keep the finale for the hard ones.
How to run it
- Play a few seconds of the song or piece where you can. It lifts the room even when the question is easy.
- Split into teams across ages. The pop questions and the orchestra questions reward different people.
- Question 20 is a number question. Keep it as a tie-breaker if two teams are level at the end.
Questions and answers
1How many strings does a standard violin have?Easy
- AFour
- BFive
- CSix
- DEight
Reveal answer
A. Four
A violin has four strings tuned in fifths, G, D, A and E, and is the smallest, highest-pitched member of its family.
2Which of these is a woodwind instrument?Easy
- ATrumpet
- BClarinet
- CViolin
- DSnare drum
Reveal answer
B. Clarinet
The clarinet is a single-reed woodwind. The trumpet is brass, the violin a string instrument and the snare drum percussion.
3Which singer released the album Thriller in 1982?Easy
- APrince
- BStevie Wonder
- CMichael Jackson
- DLionel Richie
Reveal answer
C. Michael Jackson
Thriller, produced by Jackson and Quincy Jones, came out in November 1982 and is still counted as the best-selling album of all time.
4Who stands in front of an orchestra and keeps the beat, often with a baton?Easy
- AThe composer
- BThe concertmaster
- CThe producer
- DThe conductor
Reveal answer
D. The conductor
The conductor marks the pulse with stylised arm movements so every player follows the same beat. The concertmaster is the lead violinist.
5Which composer wrote The Four Seasons, a set of four violin concertos?Medium
- AAntonio Vivaldi
- BJohann Sebastian Bach
- CFranz Schubert
- DGiuseppe Verdi
Reveal answer
A. Antonio Vivaldi
Vivaldi wrote the four concertos around 1720 and published them in 1725 with a poem for each season.
6Which Swedish group released Dancing Queen in 1976?Easy
- ARoxette
- BABBA
- CAce of Base
- DEurope
Reveal answer
B. ABBA
ABBA's four members were Agnetha Faltskog, Bjorn Ulvaeus, Benny Andersson and Anni-Frid Lyngstad. Dancing Queen topped charts around the world.
7Reggae music began in which country in the late 1960s?Medium
- ATrinidad and Tobago
- BBrazil
- CNigeria
- DJamaica
Reveal answer
D. Jamaica
Reggae grew out of ska and rocksteady in Jamaica and became the island's dominant music. Bob Marley took it to the world in the 1970s.
8K-pop is popular music from which country?Easy
- AJapan
- BSouth Korea
- CThailand
- DPhilippines
Reveal answer
B. South Korea
K-pop is short for Korean pop. It emerged in South Korea in the early 1990s and groups such as BTS made it a global industry.
9How many lines are there on a standard musical staff?Medium
- AFour
- BFive
- CSix
- DSeven
Reveal answer
B. Five
Western notation uses five horizontal lines and the four spaces between them. A clef at the start tells you which pitch each line stands for.
10True or false: a cello is usually played with a bow.Easy
- ATrue
- BFalse
Reveal answer
A. True
The cello is the bass member of the violin family. The player sits with it between the knees and draws a bow across its four strings.
11Which band released Bohemian Rhapsody in 1975?Medium
- AQueen
- BLed Zeppelin
- CThe Who
- DPink Floyd
Reveal answer
A. Queen
Freddie Mercury wrote the six-minute mock opera for Queen's album A Night at the Opera. It spent nine weeks at number one in the UK.
12The kora, a 21-string harp played by hereditary musicians, comes from which part of the world?Hard
- AWest Africa
- BCentral Asia
- CThe Andes
- DScandinavia
Reveal answer
A. West Africa
The kora is played across West Africa, especially in Mali, Senegal and The Gambia, by jali families who keep the region's oral history.
13Beethoven's Ninth Symphony ends with a choir singing which poem?Medium
- AOde on a Grecian Urn
- BOde to Joy
- CThe Raven
- DOde to the West Wind
Reveal answer
B. Ode to Joy
The finale sets Friedrich Schiller's poem An die Freude. The symphony premiered in Vienna in 1824, when Beethoven was almost completely deaf.
14Which singer was known as the Queen of Soul?Easy
- ADiana Ross
- BTina Turner
- CWhitney Houston
- DAretha Franklin
Reveal answer
D. Aretha Franklin
Aretha Franklin earned the title by the end of the 1960s with songs such as Respect and Think, and won 18 Grammy Awards.
15On a sheet of music, what does the Italian word forte tell the player to do?Medium
- APlay faster
- BPlay softly
- CPlay loudly
- DRepeat the section
Reveal answer
C. Play loudly
Forte, written as f, means loud. Its opposite is piano, p, meaning soft, which is where the piano got its name.
5 more questions in the full pack. Play all 20 live, free.
Get all 20 questions, ready to play live - free for 100 playersMade for a pub or party night. See how a trivia night works or read the guide to hosting one.
Questions about this template
Does this music quiz cover one era or all of them?
All of them. Pop and rock questions sit next to classical, jazz, reggae and K-pop, and a few ask about instruments and the marks on a sheet of music, so mixed-age teams all get a turn.
Can we play music clips during the quiz?
Yes, from your own speakers. RiLiFi shows the question and answers on the big screen while players answer on their phones. Play the clip before you start the timer.
Do players need to download an app?
No. Players scan the QR code or open the link, enter the PIN and a name, and answer in their phone's browser. Only the host signs in.
Can I swap in questions about my own playlist?
Yes. Use this template to make a copy, then edit any question, change the timer or points, and add your own before you go live. The free plan covers 100 players in a session.
Sources
Every answer shown here was checked against two sources, listed below. Links last checked 22 October 2026.
- Violin - Wikipediaen.wikipedia.org
- britannica.combritannica.com
- Clarinet - Wikipediaen.wikipedia.org
- britannica.combritannica.com
- Thriller (album) - Wikipediaen.wikipedia.org
- britannica.combritannica.com
- Conducting - Wikipediaen.wikipedia.org
- britannica.combritannica.com
- The Four Seasons (Vivaldi) - Wikipediaen.wikipedia.org
- britannica.combritannica.com
- Dancing Queen - Wikipediaen.wikipedia.org
- britannica.combritannica.com
- Reggae - Wikipediaen.wikipedia.org
- britannica.combritannica.com
- K-pop - Wikipediaen.wikipedia.org
- britannica.combritannica.com
- Staff (music) - Wikipediaen.wikipedia.org
- britannica.combritannica.com
- Cello - Wikipediaen.wikipedia.org
- britannica.combritannica.com
- Bohemian Rhapsody - Wikipediaen.wikipedia.org
- britannica.combritannica.com
- Kora (instrument) - Wikipediaen.wikipedia.org
- britannica.combritannica.com
- Symphony No. 9 (Beethoven) - Wikipediaen.wikipedia.org
- britannica.combritannica.com
- Aretha Franklin - Wikipediaen.wikipedia.org
- britannica.combritannica.com
- Dynamics (music) - Wikipediaen.wikipedia.org
- britannica.combritannica.com
More templates
Start free
Run it live with your group.
Players join from their phones with a PIN. No app to install, free for up to 100 participants per session.
