VOA标准英语2009-Music of the 1940s Enlivens New Museum

By Greg Flakus
New Orleans
15 November 2009

 

 
World War II was a time of death and destruction, but it was also a time when the spirit of young Americans was kept aloft by the music and dance. Radio stations played swing music as well as ballads¹ sung by Bing Crosby, Billie Holiday, Frank Sinatra and others. That era has been recreated at the newly expanded National World War II Museum in New Orleans, where it is finding a new audience among people who were born long after the war ended.

At the Stage Door Canteen, museum visitors can go back in time to the Swing Era.

The National World War Two Museum's Entertainment Manager, Victoria Reed, says this theater was modeled on venues² established by the entertainment industry for lonely soldiers and sailors during the war. "The American Theater Wing, of course, had the Stage Door Canteen in New York and they were so successful there that Stage Door Canteens popped up all over the world. In Paris, there is a big picture up there of the Paris Stage Door Canteen. Of course, Bette Davis made the one in Hollywood very famous. Mickey Rooney says it was a gift. It was their way of giving back with their music and their talent," she says.

Reed says she and the young performers in the stage show have fallen in love with this music that was so special to their grandfathers and great grandfathers. "When you think of World War Two, music was such an integral part of that era. I think the songs really had a lot to do with the soldiers' lives when they went overseas--'I'll Be Seeing You' and 'It's Been a Long, Long Time'--those songs will stay in us forever, they were so well written and they had such beautiful melody lines."

When the new museum building was dedicated³ on November 6, Victoria Reed and two friends were on hand, in  homage⁴ to the Andrews Sisters, performing as "The Victory Belles⁵."

The World War II veterans who were on hand loved the music and the attention from the girls.

There was also Big Band music in the main hall, to the delight of veterans like William Ray, who served in the U.S. Army in Europe as a teenager. "We heard all of this music then and I know many of the words because when you are overseas and they play the music, you remember the words, they mean so much to you," he says.

Some of the old vets⁶ and their wives took to the floor. "We are not a generation that dances the way they did in the forties. One of the World War II veterans said to me 'I like to dance better than I like to eat.," says Ms. Reed.

But many young people are now discovering the joys of jitterbug and swing.

Here in New Orleans there are several clubs featuring 1940s-style music and dance.

But no one appreciates three-part harmony and Big Band stylings more than the people who experienced the era firsthand, the old men and women of the World War II generation.

1 ballads   

民歌，民谣，特别指叙述故事的歌( ballad的名词复数 )； 讴

参考例句：

• She belted out ballads and hillbilly songs one after another all evening. 她整晚一个接一个地大唱民谣和乡村小调。
• She taught him to read and even to sing two or three little ballads,accompanying him on her old piano. 她教他读书，还教他唱两三首民谣，弹着她的旧钢琴为他伴奏。

2 venues   

n.聚集地点( venue的名词复数 )；会场；（尤指）体育比赛场所；犯罪地点

参考例句：

• The band will be playing at 20 different venues on their UK tour. 这个乐队在英国巡回演出期间将在20个不同的地点演出。
• Farmers market corner, 800 meters long, 60 meters wide livestock trading venues. 农牧市场东北角，有长800米，宽60米的牲畜交易场地。 来自互联网

3 dedicated   

adj.一心一意的；献身的；热诚的

参考例句：

• He dedicated his life to the cause of education.他献身于教育事业。
• His whole energies are dedicated to improve the design.他的全部精力都放在改进这项设计上了。

4 homage   

n.尊敬，敬意，崇敬

参考例句：

• We pay homage to the genius of Shakespeare.我们对莎士比亚的天才表示敬仰。
• The soldiers swore to pay their homage to the Queen.士兵们宣誓效忠于女王陛下。

5 belles   

n.美女( belle的名词复数 )；最美的美女

参考例句：

• Every girl in Atlanta was knee deep in men,even the plainest girls were carrying on like belles. 亚特兰大的女孩子个个都有许多男人追求，就连最不出色的也像美人一样被男人紧紧缠住。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• Even lot of belles, remand me next the United States! 还要很多美女，然后把我送回美国！ 来自互联网

6 vets   

abbr.veterans （复数）老手，退伍军人；veterinaries （复数）兽医n.兽医( vet的名词复数 )；老兵；退伍军人；兽医诊所v.审查（某人过去的记录、资格等）( vet的第三人称单数 )；调查；检查；诊疗

参考例句：

• I helped train many young vets and veterinary nurses too. 我还帮助培训了许多年青的兽医和护士。 来自互联网
• In fact, we've expanded mental health counseling and services for our vets. 实际上，我们已经扩大了退伍军人的心理健康咨询和服务。 来自互联网