美国国家公共电台 NPR Meeting After A Moment Of Musical Connection, 17 Years Later

 

LULU GARCIA-NAVARRO, HOST:

There are times when we can connect surprisingly deeply with a stranger and then never see them again, a missed connection. A while ago, we asked you to call in with your missed connection stories and let us help you find that person. Greta Pane¹ called in about an encounter² she had through the wall of a piano practice room almost 20 years ago.

Greta is a postdoctoral fellow in English literature at Boston University now. But back then, she was an undergrad student at the University of Pennsylvania. She played piano intensely³ during high school. And when she got to college, she would play in one of the practice rooms in the basement of the music department. Sometimes, she would be there alone for hours at a time.

GRETA PANE: And one day, I was playing Rachmaninoff's "Prelude⁴ In G Minor⁵." And when I stopped, the person in the practice room next to me started to play it and then stopped. And I realized that this person was playfully imitating me.

(SOUNDBITE OF RENDITION OF RACHMANINOFF'S "PRELUDE IN G MINOR")

GARCIA-NAVARRO: So Greta started testing the mystery pianist behind the wall.

PANE: They know Rachmaninoff's Prelude. But do they know Chopin's "Fantaisie-Impromptu"?

(SOUNDBITE OF RENDITION OF CHOPIN'S "FANTAISIE-IMPROMPTU")

PANE: So I started to play the first few bars of that and stopped. Then, this person took it up and played it back to me very, very well. I thought, OK, this person can play the "Fantaisie-Impromptu." But can they play the third movement of Beethoven's "Moonlight Sonata⁶?" And this person immediately started to play it and then stopped.

(SOUNDBITE OF RENDITION OF BEETHOVEN'S "MOONLIGHT SONATA")

PANE: And so we went back and forth⁷ like this for a while. And I went through my entire repertoire⁸, and this person could play every single piece.

(SOUNDBITE OF RENDITION OF BEETHOVEN'S "MOONLIGHT SONATA")

GARCIA-NAVARRO: Greta didn't want to disturb the mystery pianist. But on her way out, she checked the practice room log⁹ for the name of the person in the other room. There was a name there, but she couldn't read it. The handwriting was too bad.

PANE: When you learn a piece like this, it becomes part of you. It becomes part of your body's memory, and the feelings that you give it are your own. So to hear someone else also playing these same pieces - it's like the auditory equivalent¹¹ of seeing your double.

GARCIA-NAVARRO: Greta thought about this missed connection for a long time - 17 years, actually. Other than their repertoire, what else would they have had in common? Would they have been friends? She regretted not knocking on the practice room door. So when Greta Pane called in with her story, we wanted to help. It took weeks. We reached out to UPenn. The director of performance there directed us to a longtime teacher who said there was only one student that could have done this, so we called him up.

NOAH FARBER: My name is Noah Farber. I'm a pianist in the Philadelphia area. I specialize¹² in dance accompaniment. I also do a little choral accompaniment. And I'm a bit of a composer, although I don't really earn money doing that.

GARCIA-NAVARRO: Greta, meet Noah. Noah, meet Greta (laughter).

FARBER: Hi, Greta.

PANE: Hi. Hi, Noah.

GARCIA-NAVARRO: Noah thinks he remembers playing those romantic period pieces back and forth with Greta 17 years ago. In fact...

FARBER: Well, I did actually do it with a few other people, I'm ashamed to admit.

GARCIA-NAVARRO: Noah, why were you playing with other people, even though you couldn't see them?

FARBER: Yeah, well, because, I guess, for fun. I guess there was a bit of a musical connection there. I mean...

GARCIA-NAVARRO: That's kind of what you felt, Greta, right?

PANE: Yeah, exactly. It is kind of unusual when you have the opportunity to transform these moments when you're in the cell of the practice room by yourself into a moment actually of communication or connection.

FARBER: Yes.

PANE: That's what I think I felt Noah was doing.

GARCIA-NAVARRO: Music is Noah's job. But even though that moment meant so much to Greta, music is not such a big part of her life anymore. We wanted to leave Greta with a little musical gift. So we asked Noah to play one of the pieces from their missed connection.

FARBER: Sure. It's Chopin's "Fantaisie-Impromptu In C Sharp Minor." (Playing piano).

Does it sound familiar?

PANE: (Laughter) Very.

GARCIA-NAVARRO: That was Greta Pane of Boston and Noah Farber of Philadelphia. Thank you both so very much.

FARBER: You're welcome. Thank you.

PANE: Thank you.

FARBER: (Playing piano).

GARCIA-NAVARRO: And if you want to help with your missed connection, email us a voice memo¹⁰ with your story. The address is [email protected]. This is WEEKEND EDITION from NPR News, connecting you to the world. I'm Lulu Garcia-Navarro.

FARBER: (Playing piano).

1 pane   

n.窗格玻璃，长方块

参考例句：

• He broke this pane of glass.他打破了这块窗玻璃。
• Their breath bloomed the frosty pane.他们呼出的水气，在冰冷的窗玻璃上形成一层雾。

2 encounter   

v.遇到，偶然碰到；遭遇；n.遭遇；意外的相见

参考例句：

• It was a bloody encounter between the two armies. 这是那两军之间的一次激烈的遭遇战。
• A fortunate encounter brought the two friends together after a long separation.两位老朋友长期分离这次才有幸相遇。

3 intensely   

adv.强烈地

参考例句：

• I was intensely curious to know more about him. 我迫不及待地想更多地了解他的情况。
• Her parents were intensely ambitious for her and her younger sister. 她的父母对她和她妹妹有着很高的期望。

4 prelude   

n.序言，前兆，序曲

参考例句：

• The prelude to the musical composition is very long.这首乐曲的序曲很长。
• The German invasion of Poland was a prelude to World War II.德国入侵波兰是第二次世界大战的序幕。

5 minor   

adj.较小(少)的，较次要的；n.辅修学科；vi.辅修

参考例句：

• The young actor was given a minor part in the new play.年轻的男演员在这出新戏里被分派担任一个小角色。
• I gave him a minor share of my wealth.我把小部分财产给了他。

6 sonata   

n.奏鸣曲

参考例句：

• He played a piano sonata of his own composition.他弹奏了一首自作的钢琴奏鸣曲。
• The young boy played the violin sonata masterfully.那个小男孩的小提琴奏鸣曲拉得很熟练。

7 forth   

adv.向前；向外，往外

参考例句：

• The wind moved the trees gently back and forth.风吹得树轻轻地来回摇晃。
• He gave forth a series of works in rapid succession.他很快连续发表了一系列的作品。

8 repertoire   

n.(准备好演出的)节目，保留剧目；(计算机的)指令表，指令系统， <美>(某个人的)全部技能；清单，指令表

参考例句：

• There is an extensive repertoire of music written for the flute.有很多供长笛演奏的曲目。
• He has added considerably to his piano repertoire.他的钢琴演奏曲目大大增加了。

9 log   

n.记录，圆木，日志；v.伐木，切，航行

参考例句：

• They log for a living.他们以伐木为生。
• And then what do you do with that log?然后你要拿那些记录做什么呢？

10 memo   

n.照会，备忘录；便笺；通知书；规章

参考例句：

• Do you want me to send the memo out?您要我把这份备忘录分发出去吗？
• Can you type a memo for me?您能帮我打一份备忘录吗？

11 equivalent   

adj.（to）相等的，等价的；n.相等物，等值物

参考例句：

• Nodding your head is equivalent to saying "yes".点头就等于说“赞同”。
• You will receive the full equivalent of your money.你将收到与你的款项价值完全同等的物品。

12 specialize   

v.专化，特化 ；(in)专攻；专门研究

参考例句：

• What did you specialize in?你的主修科目是什么？
• After his first degree he wishes to specialize.获得学士学位之后，他希望专攻某科。