美国国家公共电台 NPR Barbara Cook, Tony Award-Winning Actress And Singer, Dies At 89

 

AUDIE CORNISH, HOST:

Barbara Cook could sing just about anything. And she sang it on Broadway, in cabarets and in concert halls around the world. She was one of the most acclaimed² interpreters of theater tunes³ in American popular songs. Barbara Cook died early this morning at her home in Manhattan of respiratory failure. She was 89 years old. Jeff Lunden has our appreciation⁴.

JEFF LUNDEN, BYLINE⁵: The Atlanta-born soprano with her petite frame, blond hair and piercing blue eyes blazed on Broadway stages from 1951 onward⁶, starring in musicals like "Plain And Fancy" and "Flahooley." But it was her role in Leonard Bernstein's short-lived "Candide" in 1956 with its popular cast recording⁷ which ensured her immortality⁸.

(SOUNDBITE OF SONG, "GLITTER AND BE GAY")

BARBARA COOK: (Singing) Observe how bravely I conceal⁹ the dreadful, dreadful shame I feel.

LUNDEN: In 2002, Barbara Cook told me Bernstein's vocal¹⁰ demands were daunting¹¹.

(SOUNDBITE OF ARCHIVED BROADCAST)

COOK: I was counting the high notes in the score, and there were four E flats over high C. There were six D flats. There were 16 B flats and 21 high Cs. That's just unbelievable. It's unheard of. But that's what was in the score for me to sing. And I did it eight times a week.

(SOUNDBITE OF SONG, "GLITTER AND BE GAY")

COOK: (Vocalizing).

LUNDEN: Cook's next Broadway outing proved to be one of her greatest triumphs. In "The Music Man," she played the spinster-ish (ph) Marian the librarian who falls for con¹ artist, Robert Preston. Meredith Wilson wrote the book, music and lyrics¹² for this thinly veiled autobiographical show set in Iowa.

(SOUNDBITE OF ARCHIVED RECORDING)

COOK: One day he came to me, he said, oh. He says, I know who you are. I know who this character is. He says, I wrote this, and I didn't know it was my mother. This is my mother (laughter).

(SOUNDBITE OF SONG, "TILL THERE WAS YOU")

COOK: (Singing) There were bells on the hill, but I never heard them ringing. No, I never heard them at all till there was you.

LUNDEN: Cook won a Tony Award for her role. But actresses can't play ingenues forever. And as the '60s drew to a close, roles became scarce. Cook succumbed¹³ to what she referred to as her middlescents (ph), battling alcoholism, depression and obesity¹⁴. And she disappeared from the Broadway stage for five years. But in 1975, she reinvented herself as a highly-regarded concert and cabaret artist.

(SOUNDBITE OF SONG, "IT'S BETTER WITH A BAND")

COOK: (Singing) I like to sing, but it's better with a band. Carnegie Hall, a conductor and an orchestra at hand.

LUNDEN: New York Times critic Stephen Holden says that as the years went on, not only did her voice grow deeper, so did her musical interpretations¹⁵.

STEPHEN HOLDEN: High voices really don't express much. They're just beautiful and phenomenal. And it's low voices that you can really get into the dark side of things, or whatever you want to call it. And she goes there and puts all of her life into what she sings.

(SOUNDBITE OF SONG, "I'VE GOT YOU UNDER MY SKIN")

COOK: (Singing) I've got you under my skin. I've got you deep in the heart of me.

LUNDEN: Over the decades, Barbara Cook developed her own philosophy and approach to performance.

(SOUNDBITE OF ARCHIVED RECORDING)

COOK: I think it's absolutely, totally important for a person, first of all, to hopefully know who they are as a performer and to choose songs that illuminate¹⁶ that person and then to be present - to really, really be present, to be there.

LUNDEN: And for those lucky enough to be there, every minute was a thrill. For NPR News, I'm Jeff Lunden in New York.

(SOUNDBITE OF SONG, "DEAR FRIEND")

COOK: (Singing) I make believe nothing is wrong. How long can I pretend?

1 con   

n.反对的观点，反对者，反对票，肺病；vt.精读，学习，默记；adv.反对地，从反面；adj.欺诈的

参考例句：

• We must be fair and consider the reason pro and con.我们必须公平考虑赞成和反对的理由。
• The motion is adopted non con.因无人投反对票，协议被通过。

2 acclaimed   

adj.受人欢迎的

参考例句：

• They acclaimed him as the best writer of the year. 他们称赞他为当年的最佳作者。
• Confuscius is acclaimed as a great thinker. 孔子被赞誉为伟大的思想家。

3 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》

4 appreciation   

n.评价；欣赏；感谢；领会，理解；价格上涨

参考例句：

• I would like to express my appreciation and thanks to you all.我想对你们所有人表达我的感激和谢意。
• I'll be sending them a donation in appreciation of their help.我将送给他们一笔捐款以感谢他们的帮助。

5 byline   

n.署名；v.署名

参考例句：

• His byline was absent as well.他的署名也不见了。
• We wish to thank the author of this article which carries no byline.我们要感谢这篇文章的那位没有署名的作者。

6 onward   

adj.向前的，前进的；adv.向前，前进，在先

参考例句：

• The Yellow River surges onward like ten thousand horses galloping.黄河以万马奔腾之势滚滚向前。
• He followed in the steps of forerunners and marched onward.他跟随着先辈的足迹前进。

7 recording   

n.录音，记录

参考例句：

• How long will the recording of the song take?录下这首歌得花多少时间？
• I want to play you a recording of the rehearsal.我想给你放一下彩排的录像。

8 immortality   

n.不死，不朽

参考例句：

• belief in the immortality of the soul 灵魂不灭的信念
• It was like having immortality while you were still alive. 仿佛是当你仍然活着的时候就得到了永生。

9 conceal   

v.隐藏，隐瞒，隐蔽

参考例句：

• He had to conceal his identity to escape the police.为了躲避警方，他只好隐瞒身份。
• He could hardly conceal his joy at his departure.他几乎掩饰不住临行时的喜悦。

10 vocal   

adj.直言不讳的；嗓音的；n.[pl.]声乐节目

参考例句：

• The tongue is a vocal organ.舌头是一个发音器官。
• Public opinion at last became vocal.终于舆论哗然。

11 daunting   

adj.使人畏缩的

参考例句：

• They were faced with the daunting task of restoring the house.他们面临着修复房子的艰巨任务。
• Starting a new job can be a daunting prospect.开始一项新工作有时会让人望而却步。

12 lyrics   

n.歌词

参考例句：

• music and lyrics by Rodgers and Hart 由罗杰斯和哈特作词作曲
• The book contains lyrics and guitar tablatures for over 100 songs. 这本书有100多首歌的歌词和吉他奏法谱。

13 succumbed   

不再抵抗（诱惑、疾病、攻击等）( succumb的过去式和过去分词 )； 屈从； 被压垮； 死

参考例句：

• The town succumbed after a short siege. 该城被围困不久即告失守。
• After an artillery bombardment lasting several days the town finally succumbed. 在持续炮轰数日后，该城终于屈服了。

14 obesity   

n.肥胖，肥大

参考例句：

• One effect of overeating may be obesity.吃得过多能导致肥胖。
• Sugar and fat can more easily lead to obesity than some other foods.糖和脂肪比其他食物更容易导致肥胖。

15 interpretations   

n.解释( interpretation的名词复数 )；表演；演绎；理解

参考例句：

• This passage is open to a variety of interpretations. 这篇文章可以有各种不同的解释。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• The involved and abstruse passage makes several interpretations possible. 这段艰涩的文字可以作出好几种解释。 来自《现代汉英综合大词典》

16 illuminate   

vt.照亮，照明；用灯光装饰；说明，阐释

参考例句：

• Dreams kindle a flame to illuminate our dark roads.梦想点燃火炬照亮我们黑暗的道路。
• They use games and drawings to illuminate their subject.他们用游戏和图画来阐明他们的主题。