Music Theory and Musicianship Placement Exam

The placement exam below helps us determine your fluency with some basic concepts in music theory.

Our only goal with the exam is to use its results to place you in the best section of music theory for your current level. You should not feel discouraged if you find the exam extremely difficult or easy! 

Exam Information

You take this exam online whenever you'd like. However, you can attempt it only three times prior to enrolling in your first music theory course. After each attempt, we will contact you with our recommendation for course enrollment. Students majoring or minoring in music at UB begin with an introductory course, MUS 116  "Introduction to Music Theory and Musicianship", or the first-course in the music theory sequence,  MUS 105 "Music Theory and Analysis 1."

We recommend trying the exam for the first time as soon as you can. Doing so will familiarize you with the skills that the exam evaluates, and you'll know what you need to practice if you don't do as well as you'd like. Your final attempt at the exam can occur no later than one week before the beginning of classes. For Fall 2023, that is Monday, August 21.

We do encourage you to practice the skills evaluated on this exam prior to enrolling.   To help you do so, the skills outlined on the page here have links to practice at an excellent site, musictheory.net. If you have other questions, reach out to Brian Moseley, Associate Professor of Music Theory.

Skills Tested

  • Notation: quick identification of pitches in treble and bass clef. Click to practice. 
  • Intervals: quick identification of simple intervals. Click to practice.
  • Key Signatures: quick identification of major or minor key signatures up to 7 sharps or flats. Click to practice.
  • Triads and Seventh Chords: quick identification of major, minor, augmented, or diminished triads; and major, minor, dominant, and diminished (or half-diminished) seventh chords. Click to practice.

Personal Information

(Required)
(Required)
Enrollment Status
Enrollment Status
(Required)
 
 
 
 
 
 
Degree Program
Degree Program
(Required)
 
 
 
 
 

If you'd like, feel free to use this space to let us know of your prior experience with music theory, e.g, you studied some theory in private lessons, as part of an AP music theory course, or on your own.

 

Placement Exam

Instructions: Each section below links to an external website, where a timed exercise begins. Read the directions and follow the links only when you're ready to begin. The timer will start once the page has loaded!

Once the exercise has ended, select "View Report," enter your name in the box, and select "Sign Report." Finally, copy the code and paste it into the box on this page. Then go onto the next section. (The images below show this process.)

We recommend taking the exam on a laptop or desktop computer. If you give yourself a few minutes between sections, the exam should only take 10 to 15 minutes. You should complete each section during the same session.

Zoom image: Select "View Report" Select "View Report".

Select "View Report"

Zoom image: Enter your name, and select "Sign Report." Enter your name, and select "Sign Report.".

Enter your name, and select "Sign Report."

Zoom image: Copy the code. Copy the code.

Copy the code.

Zoom image: Enter the code on the form. Enter the code on the form.

Enter the code on the form.

Notational Fluency

Identify as many pitches on the treble and bass clef staff as you can in the two minutes given. Once you have generated the report code (following the instructions above), paste it into the box below. 

Begin this section by clicking here.

 

Key Signature Identification

Identify as many key signatures as you can in the two minutes given. Once you have generated the report code (following the instructions above), paste it into the box below. 

Begin this section by clicking here.

 

Interval Identification

Identify as many intervals as you can in the two minutes given. Once you have generated the report code (following the instructions above), paste it into the box below. 

Begin this section by clicking here.

 

Triad and Seventh Chord Identification

Identify as many triads or seventh chords as you can in the two minutes given. Once you have generated the report code (following the instructions above), paste it into the box below. 

Begin this section by clicking here.

 

Once you've entered your codes into the blanks above, select the Submit button below.