2020年经济学人 音乐总监斯蒂芬·克劳伯里爵士(1)

Sir Stephen Cleobury, musical director for 37 years of King's College, Cambridge, died on November 22nd, aged¹ 70

斯蒂芬·克劳伯里爵士曾任剑桥大学国王学院音乐总监37年，他于11月22日去世，享年70岁。

Snow seldom falls in England at Christmas time. Yet cards habitually² show woods, cottages and robins³ sunk deep in it, with more star-flakes descending⁴. For Christmas Eve—once the wrapping is done, the turkey timetable worked out, the door locked for the late-night journey to church—brings with it an enveloping⁵ quiet that seems closest to the stillness of snow.

圣诞节期间英国很少下雪。然而，卡片上习惯性地印着森林、农舍和知更鸟，它们深深地陷进雪里，还有更多落下来的星星。圣诞节前夕——一旦包装完毕，火鸡的时间表就制定出来了，深夜去教堂的路上，门是锁着的，四周笼罩着一种静谧，这似乎是最接近雪的寂静。

Traditionally this quiet is broken by carolling. It may be the local waits, clustered under a streetlamp with gloves and torches, but more often over the past few decades it has meant the broadcast service of Nine Lessons and Carols by the choir⁶ of King's College, Cambridge. Seamlessly, in their red and white robes in the candlelit choir-stalls, the choristers fill listeners' heads not only with their favourite Victorian hymns— "Once in royal David's city","The first nowell", "Hark! The herald⁷",

传统上，这种宁静会被颂歌打破。可能是当地的等待者的歌声，他们聚集在路灯下，带着手套和火把歌唱，但在过去几十年里，它更多指的是剑桥大学国王学院唱诗班的九堂课和颂歌的广播服务。 不间断地，唱诗班歌手穿着红白相间的长袍，站在烛光唱诗班里，不仅用他们最喜欢的维多利亚时代的赞美诗来抚慰听众，《大卫王城往事》，《第一个圣诞》，《听！传令官》，

all stirring tears with memories of Christmases past— but also with the rhythmic⁸, driving freshness of true carols, the dancing medieval folk tunes⁹ rescued from the hills and lanes of Derbyshire or Sussex by Cecil Sharp and Ralph Vaughan Williams in the early 20th century, just at the point of disappearing. When Stephen Cleobury took up this precious task in 1982, as the new director of music at King's, he was terrified. (Being given to understatement, that was not a word he used lightly.)

所有激动的泪水都带着对过去圣诞节的回忆—— 但也歌唱着有节奏的、强劲的、新鲜的真正的颂歌，从山上拯救出来的中世纪民间舞蹈曲调，还有塞西尔·夏普和拉尔夫·沃恩·威廉姆斯在20世纪初创作的《德比郡或苏塞克斯郡的小巷》，当时它们正处于消失的边缘。1982年，当斯蒂芬·克利奥伯里在以国王学院音乐总监的身份接下这项宝贵的任务时，他吓坏了。(他惯于轻描淡写，所以这个词用得并不轻松。)

1 aged   

adj.年老的，陈年的

参考例句：

• He had put on weight and aged a little.他胖了，也老点了。
• He is aged,but his memory is still good.他已年老，然而记忆力还好。

2 habitually   

ad.习惯地，通常地

参考例句：

• The pain of the disease caused him habitually to furrow his brow. 病痛使他习惯性地紧皱眉头。
• Habitually obedient to John, I came up to his chair. 我已经习惯于服从约翰，我来到他的椅子跟前。

3 robins   

n.知更鸟，鸫( robin的名词复数 )；（签名者不分先后，以避免受责的）圆形签名抗议书（或请愿书）

参考例句：

• The robins occupied their former nest. 那些知更鸟占了它们的老窝。 来自《现代汉英综合大词典》
• Benjamin Robins then entered the fray with articles and a book. 而后，Benjamin Robins以他的几篇专论和一本书参加争论。 来自辞典例句

4 descending   

n. 下行 adj. 下降的

参考例句：

• The results are expressed in descending numerical order . 结果按数字降序列出。
• The climbers stopped to orient themselves before descending the mountain. 登山者先停下来确定所在的位置，然后再下山。

5 enveloping   

v.包围，笼罩，包住( envelop的现在分词 )

参考例句：

• Always the eyes watching you and the voice enveloping you. 那眼睛总是死死盯着你，那声音总是紧紧围着你。 来自英汉文学
• The only barrier was a mosquito net, enveloping the entire bed. 唯一的障碍是那顶蚊帐罩住整个床。 来自辞典例句

6 choir   

n.唱诗班，唱诗班的席位，合唱团，舞蹈团；v.合唱

参考例句：

• The choir sang the words out with great vigor.合唱团以极大的热情唱出了歌词。
• The church choir is singing tonight.今晚教堂歌唱队要唱诗。

7 herald   

vt.预示...的来临，预告，宣布，欢迎

参考例句：

• In England, the cuckoo is the herald of spring.在英国杜鹃鸟是报春的使者。
• Dawn is the herald of day.曙光是白昼的先驱。

8 rhythmic   

adj.有节奏的，有韵律的

参考例句：

• Her breathing became more rhythmic.她的呼吸变得更有规律了。
• Good breathing is slow,rhythmic and deep.健康的呼吸方式缓慢深沉而有节奏。

9 tunes   

n.曲调，曲子( tune的名词复数 )v.调音( tune的第三人称单数 )；调整；（给收音机、电视等）调谐；使协调

参考例句：

• a potpourri of tunes 乐曲集锦
• When things get a bit too much, she simply tunes out temporarily. 碰到事情太棘手时，她干脆暂时撒手不管。 来自《简明英汉词典》