The Origins of Jazz: Reading Answers & Explanations
IELTS Reading practice test · 13 questionsAcademicmedium
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About this passage
The passage opens: “Jazz is often described as one of the most original art forms to have emerged in modern times, and its history is bound up with the movement, mixing and meeting of peoples. It did not appear suddenly or as the invention of any single person.”
- Passage length: about 760 words
- Questions: 13
- Question types: True / False / Not Given, Multiple Choice, Short Answer
“The Origins of Jazz” is an original IELTS-style practice passage written by IELTS-Bank. It is not taken from an official IELTS or Cambridge test, so these answers only apply to our version.
Answer key at a glance
The Origins of Jazz answers with explanations
Questions 1–6: True / False / Not Given
Do the following statements agree with the information given in the passage? Write TRUE if the statement agrees, FALSE if it contradicts, or NOT GIVEN if there is no information.
- 1
Jazz was invented by a single well-known musician.
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Answer: FALSE
Why: This sentence directly contradicts the statement, so the answer is FALSE.
Evidence · Paragraph 1 “It did not appear suddenly or as the invention of any single person.”
- 2
The city of New Orleans was home to people from many different backgrounds.
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Answer: TRUE
Why: This sentence confirms the statement, so the answer is TRUE.
Evidence · Paragraph 3 “It was a busy, diverse port where people of many backgrounds lived side by side”
- 3
Improvisation means performing a piece of music exactly as it is written.
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Answer: FALSE
Why: This sentence directly contradicts the statement, so the answer is FALSE.
Evidence · Paragraph 4 “…improvisation, the art of inventing music on the spot rather than simply performing a piece exactly as written.”
- 4
Two performances of the same jazz piece are never exactly the same.
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Answer: TRUE
Why: This sentence confirms the statement, so the answer is TRUE.
Evidence · Paragraph 4 “This means that no two performances of the same piece are ever identical”
- 5
The phonograph allowed jazz performances to be heard far from where they were played.
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Answer: TRUE
Why: This sentence confirms the statement, so the answer is TRUE.
Evidence · Paragraph 5 “…the phonograph, or sound-recording machine, which for the first time allowed a performance to be captured and heard again far away”
- 6
Jazz was more popular than any other kind of music in the United States at the time.
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Answer: NOT GIVEN
Why: The statement claims jazz was the most popular music in the U.S., but the passage does not confirm or deny this, only mentioning jazz's development and spread without comparing its popularity to other music.
Closest related text · Paragraph 1 “To understand where jazz came from is to trace how different kinds of music, carried by different communities, flowed into one another until something genuinely new was born.”
Question 7: Multiple Choice
Choose the correct letter, A, B, C or D.
- A. Through a sudden invention by one composer
- B. By copying a single European tradition
- C. By blending several musical traditions that came together in the southern United States
- D. By replacing brass-band music entirely
- 7
According to the passage, how did jazz come into being?
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Answer: C — By blending several musical traditions that came together in the southern United States
Why: This is the part of the passage that supports C — By blending several musical traditions that came together in the southern United States.
Evidence · Paragraph 1 “…it grew gradually out of a blend of musical traditions that came together in the southern United States”
Question 8: Multiple Choice
Choose the correct letter, A, B, C or D.
- A. Because written music was banned there
- B. Because it was a diverse port where music was part of daily life and instruments were available
- C. Because it had the largest concert halls
- D. Because only trained musicians lived there
- 8
Why was New Orleans an especially fertile place for the new music to develop?
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Answer: B — Because it was a diverse port where music was part of daily life and instruments were available
Why: This is the part of the passage that supports B — Because it was a diverse port where music was part of daily life and instruments were available.
Evidence · Paragraph 3 “It was a busy, diverse port where people of many backgrounds lived side by side, and music was woven into daily life... second-hand instruments were widely available”
Question 9: Multiple Choice
Choose the correct letter, A, B, C or D.
- A. The use of brass instruments
- B. Improvisation
- C. Written musical scores
- D. The size of the orchestra
- 9
What does the passage identify as the single most important feature of jazz?
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Answer: B — Improvisation
Why: This is the part of the passage that supports B — Improvisation.
Evidence · Paragraph 4 “The single most important feature of jazz is improvisation, the art of inventing music on the spot”
Question 10: Multiple Choice
Choose the correct letter, A, B, C or D.
- A. A fixed, unchanging sound
- B. A single instrument common to all of them
- C. A shared attitude respecting improvisation and rhythm
- D. A ban on new influences
- 10
What held together the many contrasting styles into which jazz branched?
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Answer: C — A shared attitude respecting improvisation and rhythm
Why: This is the part of the passage that supports C — A shared attitude respecting improvisation and rhythm.
Evidence · Paragraph 6 “What held these varied styles together was less a fixed sound than a shared attitude: a respect for improvisation, a delight in rhythm”
Questions 11–13: Short Answer
Answer the questions below. Choose NO MORE THAN THREE WORDS from the passage for each answer.
- 11
In which port city did jazz above all take shape?(max 2 words)
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Answer: new orleans
Why: The answer “new orleans” is taken from this sentence — copy the word(s) exactly as they appear. It fits the 2-word limit.
Evidence · Paragraph 1 “…and above all in the port city of New Orleans”
- 12
What lively rhythmic quality, closely bound up with improvisation, makes listeners want to move?(max 3 words)
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Answer: swing (also accepted: momentum and swing)
Why: The answer “swing” is taken from this sentence — copy the word(s) exactly as they appear. It fits the 3-word limit.
Evidence · Paragraph 4 “…a lively sense of momentum and swing that makes listeners want to move.”
- 13
In the early days, how was jazz mainly passed on, rather than from written scores?(max 3 words)
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Answer: by ear (also accepted: by ear and example / by example)
Why: The answer “by ear” is taken from this sentence — copy the word(s) exactly as they appear. It fits the 3-word limit.
Evidence · Paragraph 5 “…this music was passed on almost entirely by ear and by example”
Estimated band score for this test
Your raw score out of 13 scaled to the 40-question IELTS Reading (Academic) conversion table. This is the same estimate the practice page shows after you submit. A single passage is a small sample, so treat it as a guide.
| Correct answers | Estimated band |
|---|---|
| 13 / 13 | 9.0 |
| 12 / 13 | 8.5 |
| 11 / 13 | 7.5 |
| 10 / 13 | 7.0 |
| 9 / 13 | 6.5 |
| 8 / 13 | 6.0 |
| 7 / 13 | 5.5 |
| 5–6 / 13 | 5.0 |
| 4 / 13 | 4.0 |
| 3 / 13 | 3.5 |
| 2 / 13 | 3.0 |
| 1 / 13 | 2.0 |
| 0 / 13 | 0.0 |
Full-test score? Use the IELTS band calculator.
Tips for the question types in this test
True / False / Not Given
- Read the statement first and underline the key idea, especially any qualifiers like "all", "only", "never", "always", "more than" or dates and numbers.
- Because the questions follow the order of the passage, scan for the paragraph that deals with the same topic rather than re-reading everything.
Common trap: Confusing "False" with "Not Given": choose False only when the passage actively contradicts the statement; if the passage is silent, it is Not Given.
Full True / False / Not Given strategyMultiple Choice
- Read the question stem carefully before the options so you know exactly what is being asked.
- Because multiple-choice questions follow passage order, locate the relevant section and read it in full — the answer usually depends on more than one sentence.
Common trap: Distractors that use exact words from the passage but distort the meaning.
Full Multiple Choice strategyShort Answer
- Read the instructions and note the exact word limit; going over it means zero marks even if the meaning is right.
- Turn each question into a set of keywords and predict what kind of answer it needs (a person, a date, a place, a noun).
Common trap: Exceeding the word limit (writing four words when only three are allowed).
Full Short Answer strategyPractise “The Origins of Jazz” under exam conditions
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