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This test consists of 5 short answer questions, 10 short essay questions, and 1 (of 3) essay topics.

Short Answer Questions

1. How does George Martin describe the result, when a recording is overcompressed?

2. While recording the twenty-four-bar climax for "A Day in the Life", George Martin told the orchestra to disobey a fundamental rule by doing what?

3. What is the double meaning of the title of Chapter 15?

4. In the recording studio, what is the function of the compressor?

5. What password did the Beatles invent, to warn each other about dubious fans approaching?

Short Essay Questions

1. Discuss two innovations predicted by George Martin in Chapter 15 that have since become reality.

2. What was the first film scored by George Martin, and why does he refer to the process as a nightmare?

3. Briefly summarize George Martin's predictions for the future, as of 1979, regarding the use of digital recording.

4. Describe the early founding of AIR, Associated Independent Recording.

5. What, according to George Martin, is the best way to orchestrate for strings?

6. What is George Martin's explanation for the song, "Lucy in the Sky with Diamonds", contrary to the popular theory that the song is about LSD?

7. What does George Martin define as the golden treadmill?

8. Briefly describe the controversy surrounding John Lennon's comparison of the Beatles and Jesus.

9. Under what circumstances did the Beatles' manager, Brian Epstein, die?

10. What sites did George Martin consider for AIR's second studio, a residential complex, and where was it ultimately constructed?

Essay Topics

Write an essay for ONE of the following topics:

Essay Topic 1

Discuss George Martin's choices, regarding what to include and what to exclude from "All You Need Is Ears". For example, he includes a lengthy description, in Chapter 5, about how he destroyed EMI's relationship with a lesser-known artist, the conductor of The Scottish Festival of Male Voice Praise, and yet he makes no mention of the milestone event, the breakup of the Beatles.

Essay Topic 2

Describe the formation of AIR. Detail the design and construction of its first studio in London and its residential studio in Montserrat.

Essay Topic 3

What are the highlights and lowlights of George Martin's childhood, living in a modest flat and having limited access to formal musical training?

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