VOA慢速英语2013--Crowds Enjoy Pitchfork Music Festival

 

Crowds Enjoy Pitchfork Music Festival

Welcome to American Mosaic¹ from VOA Learning English!

I’m Steve Ember.

On the show today, we play songs from artists who performed at last weekend’s Pitchfork Music Festival.

We also visit an independent craft brewery⁴ in Washington DC to learn about the American beer industry.

But first, we hear about a group of military moms who are using music to help others.

A Swingin Singin Group

A singing group that began as a way to help mothers of soldiers deal with the horrors of war is now bringing cheer to civilians⁵ and others. The Swingin’ Blue Stars formed just after the terrorist attacks of September 11, 2001.

Almost 12 years later, the group is still performing.

Christopher Cruise has more.

Cindy Shon started the Swingin’ Blue Stars. She says the group was never meant to be a long-term project. It was supposed to help her stop worrying about her son. He was deployed⁶ to Afghanistan after the September 11th attacks against the United States.

Cindy Shon had joined the Blue Star Moms, a support group for women with children in the armed forces. She organized some other women to sing Christmas carols at a nearby hospital for military veterans. Then, they started getting more calls to sing for other former armed forces members.

Francie Roberts sings with the Swingin’ Blue Stars. She says the performances helped her overcome the fear of getting bad news about a loved one.

"It just took our mind off of it, learning the songs and knowing where we’re going to perform because you just never know if he’s going to be alive or if I’m going to lose him.”

Soon the small group of women was performing again and again. They learned some songs from the 1940s and 50s. The shows were especially popular with veterans from World War II and the Korean War.

Francie Roberts’ son Blake spent 16 months in Iraq with the United States Army.

She says people hearing the Swingin’ Blue Stars seemed to understand how the mothers felt.

“Afterwards, everybody would come up and shake our hands, and just give us that extra encouragement that they’ll be back. Our kids will be back. So we needed to hear that.”

The sons and daughters of the original members of the Swingin’ Blue Stars came home safely.

Now, Cindy Merino says the women perform songs with special meaning for older military veterans.

“Sometimes they’ll be enjoying it and laughing and the next song they will be crying. And then they’ll come up to us and say thank you so much for that, that was the last song I danced to with my husband. It just brings back so many memories for them. It really is amazing."

The Swingin’ Blue Stars have performed all over the San Francisco area. They have also sung at the new Pearl Harbor visitors’ center in Hawaii and the USS Midway in San Diego.

Sandy Lewis says that 20 years ago, she could not have imagined being a singer. But it is rewarding to see how her group makes people happy.

“It’s not about having a huge audience, it’s just get that one guy out there with that twinkle in his eye and bring that smile to his face, and we would sing forever.”

I’m Christopher Cruise.

The Craft of Beermaking...

Independent beer-making companies, called craft breweries⁷, are growing fast in the United States. The industry started to develop in the late 1970s, when Americans who wanted more choices started making their own beer at home.

The Brewers Association, an industry group, says the country had only eight craft breweries in 1980. Last year, there were more than 2,300. The Brewers Association says more than 1,500 others are under development.

One of these new breweries is Atlas⁸ Brew² Works, in Washington, DC. Will Durgin and Justin Cox are the creators of the company. They plan to begin selling their products in just a few weeks.

Will Durgin is the head brewer³ at Atlas Brew Works. He knows everything about the brewing⁹ process, where malted barley¹⁰ is fermented¹¹.

“This tall vessel¹² right here is the mash¹³ tun, and if you think of brewing beer as like roughly analogous¹⁴ to making coffee in a basket coffee maker¹⁵, this would be the basket of the basket coffee maker.”

From start to finish, the process lasts about two weeks. Then, the product is ready to be packaged, put in boxes, and shipped to buyers.

“And it goes into the kettle where we boil it for an hour, add hops¹⁶ there. Hops provide bitterness and aroma¹⁷. They also have some preservative¹⁸ qualities. Hops added early in the boil provide more bitterness, hops added late in the boil provide more aroma.”

Historically, American craft beers were known for their strong and often bitter taste. Now, more new breweries are experimenting with other flavors.

Chris Van Orden writes for a website that specializes in craft breweries in the DC area. He says American craft brewers usually “go big” with bold flavors. But now, he says, there are more products to choose from.

“Beer just has a sort of unparalleled breadth of flavors. In one simple, elemental drink there’s a billion decisions that went into making a beer, and every single one of them changes the outcome.”

Colorado, Oregon, and California are already well-known for their craft breweries. But independent beer-makers are also expanding to other areas, like North Carolina and the District of Columbia. Many public drinking places are supporting this growth by offering local products. They are also selling craft beers from across the country. Chris Van Orden calls this an important development.

“You can’t open up a bar these days that serves beer and have it be an afterthought.”

Large businesses still largely control the American beer market. And many popular craft beers are still imported from Europe. But today, most Americans live within 10 miles of a brewery. With even more opening for business, there are more choices than ever.

Belle¹⁹ and Sebastian, Solange Knowles and Bjork

The Pitchfork Music Festival took place last weekend at Union Park in Chicago. Crowds enjoyed three days of performances by musicians and groups from around the world.

Many of the performers became popular because of the Pitchfork music website.

Madeline Smith plays songs from some of the artists who attended the festival...

For many people, Pitchfork is an expert on independent music. The website provides interviews with musicians and criticism of albums. It also offers new music from independent artists you might not otherwise hear. And its yearly music festival showcases many of these artists.

One of the performers this year was the pop group Belle and Sebastian, a band from Glasgow, Scotland. Belle and Sebastian are currently planning their ninth album. The band’s 2008 album, “The Life Pursuit,” was a success with critics, with songs like “Funny Little Frog.”

Another performer at the Pitchfork Music Festival comes from a famous family. Solange Knowles is hoping to establish her own music career. But she is best known for being the younger sister of Beyonce Knowles. The older sister is known for her powerful voice and catchy²⁰ pop songs. Solange Knowles has a more relaxed, easy style that includes R&B and electronic beats. But she also has some hits, like her song “Sandcastle Disco.”

One of the biggest acts at the festival was the Icelandic singer Bj?rk. She performed the final concert on the first night of the festival. Bj?rk is known as an artist who experiments with her sound. Each one of her eight albums sounds somewhat different from the others – but her voice is always distinctive²¹. On her 2011 album, “Biophilia,” she added electronic elements to her sound. One of her songs includes sounds from a Tesla coil, a device that makes electricity.

We leave you with one of Bj?rk’s most famous songs, “Hyperballad,” from her 1995 album “Post.”

Our program was written by Madeline Smith, who was also the producer.

1 mosaic   

n./adj.镶嵌细工的，镶嵌工艺品的，嵌花式的

参考例句：

• The sky this morning is a mosaic of blue and white.今天早上的天空是幅蓝白相间的画面。
• The image mosaic is a troublesome work.图象镶嵌是个麻烦的工作。

2 brew   

v.酿造，调制

参考例句：

• Let's brew up some more tea.咱们沏些茶吧。
• The policeman dispelled the crowd lest they should brew trouble.警察驱散人群，因恐他们酿祸。

3 brewer   

n. 啤酒制造者

参考例句：

• Brewer is a very interesting man. 布鲁尔是一个很有趣的人。
• I decided to quit my job to become a brewer. 我决定辞职，做一名酿酒人。

4 brewery   

n.啤酒厂

参考例句：

• The brewery had 25 heavy horses delivering beer in London.啤酒厂有25匹高头大马在伦敦城中运送啤酒。
• When business was good,the brewery employed 20 people.在生意好的时候，这家酿造厂曾经雇佣过20人。

5 civilians   

平民，百姓( civilian的名词复数 )； 老百姓

参考例句：

• the bloody massacre of innocent civilians 对无辜平民的血腥屠杀
• At least 300 civilians are unaccounted for after the bombing raids. 遭轰炸袭击之后，至少有300名平民下落不明。

6 deployed   

（尤指军事行动）使展开( deploy的过去式和过去分词 )； 施展； 部署； 有效地利用

参考例句：

• Tanks have been deployed all along the front line. 沿整个前线已部署了坦克。
• The artillery was deployed to bear on the fort. 火炮是对着那个碉堡部署的。

7 breweries   

酿造厂，啤酒厂( brewery的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• In some cases, this is desirable, but most breweries prefer lighter-type beers. 在一些情况下，这是很理想的，但是大多数啤酒厂更倾向于生产酒度较低的啤酒。
• Currently, there are 58 breweries producing Snow Beeracross the country. 目前，全国共有58个雪花啤酒厂。

8 atlas   

n.地图册，图表集

参考例句：

• He reached down the atlas from the top shelf.他从书架顶层取下地图集。
• The atlas contains forty maps,including three of Great Britain.这本地图集有40幅地图，其中包括3幅英国地图。

9 brewing   

n. 酿造, 一次酿造的量 动词brew的现在分词形式

参考例句：

• It was obvious that a big storm was brewing up. 很显然，一场暴风雨正在酝酿中。
• She set about brewing some herb tea. 她动手泡一些药茶。

10 barley   

n.大麦，大麦粒

参考例句：

• They looked out across the fields of waving barley.他们朝田里望去,只见大麦随风摇摆。
• He cropped several acres with barley.他种了几英亩大麦。

11 fermented   

v.（使）发酵( ferment的过去式和过去分词 )；（使）激动；骚动；骚扰

参考例句：

• When wine is fermented, it gives off gas. 酒发酵时发出气泡。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• His speeches fermented trouble among the workers. 他的演讲在工人中引起骚动。 来自辞典例句

12 vessel   

n.船舶；容器，器皿；管，导管，血管

参考例句：

• The vessel is fully loaded with cargo for Shanghai.这艘船满载货物驶往上海。
• You should put the water into a vessel.你应该把水装入容器中。

13 mash   

n.麦芽浆，糊状物，土豆泥；v.把…捣成糊状，挑逗，调情

参考例句：

• He beat the potato into a mash before eating it.他把马铃薯捣烂后再吃。
• Whiskey,originating in Scotland,is distilled from a mash of grains.威士忌源于苏格兰，是从一种大麦芽提纯出来的。

14 analogous   

adj.相似的；类似的

参考例句：

• The two situations are roughly analogous.两种情況大致相似。
• The company is in a position closely analogous to that of its main rival.该公司与主要竞争对手的处境极为相似。

15 maker   

n.制造者，制造商

参考例句：

• He is a trouble maker，You must be distant with him.他是个捣蛋鬼，你不要跟他在一起。
• A cabinet maker must be a master craftsman.家具木工必须是技艺高超的手艺人。

16 hops   

跳上[下]( hop的第三人称单数 )； 单足蹦跳； 齐足（或双足）跳行； 摘葎草花

参考例句：

• The sparrow crossed the lawn in a series of hops. 那麻雀一蹦一跳地穿过草坪。
• It is brewed from malt and hops. 它用麦精和蛇麻草酿成。

17 aroma   

n.香气，芬芳，芳香

参考例句：

• The whole house was filled with the aroma of coffee.满屋子都是咖啡的香味。
• The air was heavy with the aroma of the paddy fields.稻花飘香。

18 preservative   

n.防腐剂；防腐料；保护料；预防药

参考例句：

• New timber should be treated with a preservative.新采的圆木应进行防腐处理。
• Salt is a common food preservative.盐是一种常用的食物防腐剂。

19 belle   

n.靓女

参考例句：

• She was the belle of her Sunday School class.在主日学校她是她们班的班花。
• She was the belle of the ball.她是那个舞会中的美女。

20 catchy   

adj.易记住的，诡诈的，易使人上当的

参考例句：

• We need a new slogan.The old one's not catchy enough.我们需要新的口号，旧的不够吸引人。
• The chorus is very catchy to say the least.副歌部分很容易上口。

21 distinctive   

adj.特别的，有特色的，与众不同的

参考例句：

• She has a very distinctive way of walking.她走路的样子与别人很不相同。
• This bird has several distinctive features.这个鸟具有几种突出的特征。