VOA慢速英语--美洲土著吹奏者分享真实的声音和故事

Native American Flutist Shares Authentic¹ Sounds and Stories

Native American flute² players perform at music festivals around the world. But few belong to any Native tribe or nation. That concerns award-winning flutist Darren Thompson. He is a member of the Lac du Flambeau Band of Lake Superior Chippewa in northern Wisconsin.

Thompson told VOA, "The Native American flute is the name of the instrument, so anybody who picks one up and plays it can call himself a Native American flute player."

This week, Thompson is performing at the National Museum of the American Indian (NMAI) in New York. He will share music and stories connected to the history and struggles of the Ojibwe people.

Playing an inauthentic flute violates the U.S. Indian Arts and Crafts Act. The law, passed in 1990, bans the sale of goods falsely identified as "Native American." But there is nothing to stop non-Native performers from falsely claiming Native American heritage.

Thompson said, "It's not so much the fact that they are playing the flute that bothers me. It's the fact that a lot of them are non-Native and try to play the part of a Native, wearing what they think is Indian attire³...”

Thompson grew up hearing traditional Ojibwe music. But it was not an important part of his life until he left the reservation.

He said, "I went to Marquette University, where there weren't any other Native kids. I was still in Wisconsin, but it was a foreign environment."

His longing⁴ for home led Thompson to the music of Navajo/Ute flutist Raymond Carlos Nakai. Nakai’s music brought back childhood memories.

"One of the first stories I ever heard came from the elders, who talked about trees," Thompson said. "I remember them saying trees sing to us and give us guidance. I think I was four, and that story came to mind 15 years later when I first heard Nakai playing."

Thompson bought his first flute from a non-Native seller at a cultural event. He taught himself to play. As he learned, he says he felt moved to connect to the music of his ancestors.

He added, "I went out to museums to research actual instruments that were seized 200 years ago and taken into collections."

Traditionally, players made their own instruments from a single piece of wood. No two instruments would have been exactly alike.

Thompson said, "The length of the instrument would be the distance from that person's armpit to his first knuckle⁵. The width would be the same as the width of his thumb.”

The number of open holes carved into the flute also differs. Thompson owns several flutes⁶. He made a few of them himself. Some have only four holes, while others have five or six.

The result is a sound unique to each player — a deep and clear sound that Thompson says "touches a lot of people."

He has wanted to perform at NMAI for at least 10 years.

Thompson said, "NMAI has a program called ‘The Art of Storytelling.’ My performance is unique, in that I try to reintroduce stories and music from history. Songs I've learned that were recorded in the early 1900s, before our culture got erased⁷."

I’m Jonathan Evans.

Words in This Story

inauthentic – adj. not real, accurate, or sincere; not authentic

elders – n. people who have authority because of age and experience

heritage – n. the traditions, achievements, beliefs, etc., that are part of the history of a group or nation

attire – n. clothing

erase(d) – v. to remove any thought or memory of something

reintroduce – v. to begin using something again

unique – adj. very special or unusual

actual – adj. real and not merely possible or imagined : existing in fact

1 authentic   

a.真的，真正的；可靠的，可信的，有根据的

参考例句：

• This is an authentic news report. We can depend on it. 这是篇可靠的新闻报道, 我们相信它。
• Autumn is also the authentic season of renewal. 秋天才是真正的除旧布新的季节。

2 flute   

n.长笛；v.吹笛

参考例句：

• He took out his flute, and blew at it.他拿出笛子吹了起来。
• There is an extensive repertoire of music written for the flute.有很多供长笛演奏的曲目。

3 attire   

v.穿衣，装扮[同]array；n.衣着；盛装

参考例句：

• He had no intention of changing his mode of attire.他无意改变着装方式。
• Her attention was attracted by his peculiar attire.他那奇特的服装引起了她的注意。

4 longing   

n.（for）渴望

参考例句：

• Hearing the tune again sent waves of longing through her.再次听到那首曲子使她胸中充满了渴望。
• His heart burned with longing for revenge.他心中燃烧着急欲复仇的怒火。

5 knuckle   

n.指节；vi.开始努力工作；屈服，认输

参考例句：

• They refused to knuckle under to any pressure.他们拒不屈从任何压力。
• You'll really have to knuckle down if you want to pass the examination.如果想通过考试，你确实应专心学习。

6 flutes   

长笛( flute的名词复数 )； 细长香槟杯（形似长笛）

参考例句：

• The melody is then taken up by the flutes. 接着由长笛奏主旋律。
• These flutes have 6open holes and a lovely bright sound. 笛子有6个吹气孔，奏出的声音响亮清脆。

7 erased   

v.擦掉( erase的过去式和过去分词 )；抹去；清除

参考例句：

• He erased the wrong answer and wrote in the right one. 他擦去了错误答案，写上了正确答案。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• He removed the dogmatism from politics; he erased the party line. 他根除了政治中的教条主义，消除了政党界限。 来自《简明英汉词典》