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VOA慢速英语--三角洲蓝调:美国音乐的诞生

时间:2017-09-16 23:56:15

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(单词翻译)

Delta1 Blues2: The Birth of American Music

“I look at blues as the way of life… it’s a story, a story told with music.”

That voice belongs to Jimmy “Duck” Holmes, a blues musician. He is sitting on an old chair in a dark corner of the Blue Front Cafe playing his guitar. Holmes’s parents owned the restaurant and now it belongs to him.

Photographs, vinyl records, and guitars cover its walls. The objects all speak to the 70-year-old artist’s life and music. The smell of beer and sounds coming from the jukebox in the corner help create the perfect atmosphere for his history with the blues.

Blues music itself tells a story -- a story about America.

History of Blues

When people think of American music, they probably think of rap or rock-and-roll or jazz. What many may not realize is that these “American” sounds are all tied to a common place.

That place is blues music.

The blues was born in the Mississippi Delta area sometime in the late 1800s. The music is rooted in African American slave spiritual and work songs.

Life was hard for black people in the U.S. Slavery technically3 had ended, but poverty and unjust laws kept people from full freedom. Some former slaves stayed in the South and continued to work on farms, often for their former owners. Much of the work was outside in the fields, in the unforgiving heat of the Mississippi sun.

Roger Stolle is a Mississippi blues historian. He says a culture of singing helped people deal with the hardships. People sang spirituals at church and work songs in the fields to make the days go by. Over time, this music developed into what people now call “the blues.”

As the blues grew in popularity, musicians began to perform around the Delta. Some, like B.B. King or John Lee Hooker, would travel to the city of Memphis, Tennessee, to establish professional music careers.

What makes it the blues?

Blues is both American and foreign. Blues historian Scott Barretta says many elements of the blues -- including singing styles, rhythm, instrument playing, and pentatonic scale -- are African and were brought to the U.S. by those who had been enslaved.

Baretta also notes the patterns to the lyrics5.

“The blues follows an “A, A, B lyrical style…What we mean by that, is that when you perform the blues, you’re often singing a verse, repeating the verse, and then there's an answer line. That’s a style of music which we didn’t really see before around 1900.”

When it comes to the words, many musicians sing about difficulties from their own life stories. Holmes is among them.

“I don’t sing about lies, I tell the truth!...True blues, the lyrics are absolutely true. They sing about life experience. Sometimes good, sometimes bad, but they didn’t lie.”

Eighty-five-year-old blues musician Leo “Bud” Welch agrees.

“Well the blues ain't nothing but some good man or woman feeling bad. It’s about life.”

Life of a Blues Musician

Many blues musicians never gained fame. Often they were farmworkers by day and would play at ‘juke joints6’ by night. Juke joints were unofficial businesses where black people could gather to socialize. They would drink, dance and play music at night.

Leo Bud Welch was one of these musicians. He has played the blues since he was 13, about 65 years ago. He only performed music for families and friends. It was not until 2013, when Welch was 81, that he recorded his first album.

For most his life, he earned a living as a farm worker and tree cutter.

“My daddy used to always say, it takes the money to make the mouth right. You ain't got no money you couldn't get nothin’ done.”

The devil’s music

“Most guys who started doing what I’m doing, got killed for they was doing.”

With a voice both playful and serious, Bobby Rush speaks as a blues musician as well as a historian. He grew up playing with famous blues musicians like Muddy Waters, Buddy7 Guy, and Howlin’ Wolf. At 83, he is still performing. He just won his first Grammy award in February for his newest album, Porcupine8 Meat.

Rush’s story, like the story of blues music, parallels the story of civil rights in the U.S.

Rush, whose great-grandmother was a slave, often experienced racism9 early in his career.

“In the past, blues had been something that, it wasn’t good until the white guys did it. When I came along, this was the devil’s music.”

When Rush started performing professionally, he was sometimes forced to play behind curtains because he is black and the audience was mostly white.

Over time, that changed. Martin Luther King, Jr. and other civil rights leaders organized to bring about change through nonviolent resistance. Blacks and whites began protesting racist10 laws together in the south. In 1964, the Civil Rights Act passed, barring discrimination based on race.

Over time these actions affected11 the blues world.

Now, Rush says he feels blessed for his popularity with a racially mixed audience. But he adds that he will always be proud of his roots and the struggles he went through on his road to success.

“I’m a blues singer, I’m a black blues singer, and I love what I do, I love who I am… love all people because they are all part of me.”

The blues legacy12

Blues music had a critical influence in the expansion of the American musical tradition.

Over time, as blues musicians left Mississippi, the sound changed. In the north, Chicago and other cities became famous for the electric guitar style of blues, which helped create rock and roll. In the south, blues music was a building block for jazz, country, and bluegrass. Rhythm and blues and rap music also developed from the Mississippi blues.

Historian Roger Stolle says, today, young people are more interested in learning musical styles like rap than traditional blues. However, there are efforts to document the life of the genre13 and keep it healthy for the future.

The Mississippi Blue Commission has created The Blues Music Trail, a path of historic places throughout Mississippi that informs and entertains visitors about blues music.

The history of the music is also on display at the Delta Blues Museum. And it has programs that connect young musicians with established blues artists.

Also, record labels are trying to preserve the traditional style of Delta blues by recording14 older musicians like Welch and Holmes.

But no matter what happens to the genre, almost every form of popular American music today has been touched by the blues.

And it is almost impossible not to like it, says Bobby Rush.

“The blues itself is the mother of all music …because if you don’t like the blues, you don’t like your mama. Because that’s the root of music, man!”

I’m Phil Dierking.

And I’m Dorothy Gundy.

Words in This Story

beer- n. an alcoholic15 drink made from malt and flavored with hops16?

jukebox - n. a machine that plays music when money is put into it?

lyric4 - n. the words of a song?

verse - n. writing in which words are arranged in a rhythmic17 pattern?

pentatonic scale - n. a musical scale of five tones in which the octave is reached at the sixth tone?

ain’t - contraction18. am not; are not; is not.?

parallel - adj. very similar and often happening at the same time?

blessed - adj. very welcome, pleasant, or appreciated?

genre - n. a particular type or category of literature or art?

preserve - v. to keep something in its original state or in good condition


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点击收听单词发音收听单词发音  

1 delta gxvxZ     
n.(流的)角洲
参考例句:
  • He has been to the delta of the Nile.他曾去过尼罗河三角洲。
  • The Nile divides at its mouth and forms a delta.尼罗河在河口分岔,形成了一个三角洲。
2 blues blues     
n.抑郁,沮丧;布鲁斯音乐
参考例句:
  • She was in the back of a smoky bar singing the blues.她在烟雾弥漫的酒吧深处唱着布鲁斯歌曲。
  • He was in the blues on account of his failure in business.他因事业失败而意志消沉。
3 technically wqYwV     
adv.专门地,技术上地
参考例句:
  • Technically it is the most advanced equipment ever.从技术上说,这是最先进的设备。
  • The tomato is technically a fruit,although it is eaten as a vegetable.严格地说,西红柿是一种水果,尽管它是当作蔬菜吃的。
4 lyric R8RzA     
n.抒情诗,歌词;adj.抒情的
参考例句:
  • This is a good example of Shelley's lyric poetry.这首诗是雪莱抒情诗的范例。
  • His earlier work announced a lyric talent of the first order.他的早期作品显露了一流的抒情才华。
5 lyrics ko5zoz     
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。
6 joints d97dcffd67eca7255ca514e4084b746e     
接头( joint的名词复数 ); 关节; 公共场所(尤指价格低廉的饮食和娱乐场所) (非正式); 一块烤肉 (英式英语)
参考例句:
  • Expansion joints of various kinds are fitted on gas mains. 各种各样的伸缩接头被安装在煤气的总管道上了。
  • Expansion joints of various kinds are fitted on steam pipes. 各种各样的伸缩接头被安装在蒸气管道上了。
7 buddy 3xGz0E     
n.(美口)密友,伙伴
参考例句:
  • Calm down,buddy.What's the trouble?压压气,老兄。有什么麻烦吗?
  • Get out of my way,buddy!别挡道了,你这家伙!
8 porcupine 61Wzs     
n.豪猪, 箭猪
参考例句:
  • A porcupine is covered with prickles.箭猪身上长满了刺。
  • There is a philosophy parable,call philosophy of porcupine.有一个哲学寓言,叫豪猪的哲学。
9 racism pSIxZ     
n.民族主义;种族歧视(意识)
参考例句:
  • He said that racism is endemic in this country.他说种族主义在该国很普遍。
  • Racism causes political instability and violence.种族主义道致政治动荡和暴力事件。
10 racist GSRxZ     
n.种族主义者,种族主义分子
参考例句:
  • a series of racist attacks 一连串的种族袭击行为
  • His speech presented racist ideas under the guise of nationalism. 他的讲话以民族主义为幌子宣扬种族主义思想。
11 affected TzUzg0     
adj.不自然的,假装的
参考例句:
  • She showed an affected interest in our subject.她假装对我们的课题感到兴趣。
  • His manners are affected.他的态度不自然。
12 legacy 59YzD     
n.遗产,遗赠;先人(或过去)留下的东西
参考例句:
  • They are the most precious cultural legacy our forefathers left.它们是我们祖先留下来的最宝贵的文化遗产。
  • He thinks the legacy is a gift from the Gods.他认为这笔遗产是天赐之物。
13 genre ygPxi     
n.(文学、艺术等的)类型,体裁,风格
参考例句:
  • My favorite music genre is blues.我最喜欢的音乐种类是布鲁斯音乐。
  • Superficially,this Shakespeare's work seems to fit into the same genre.从表面上看, 莎士比亚的这个剧本似乎属于同一类型。
14 recording UktzJj     
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。
15 alcoholic rx7zC     
adj.(含)酒精的,由酒精引起的;n.酗酒者
参考例句:
  • The alcoholic strength of brandy far exceeds that of wine.白兰地的酒精浓度远远超过葡萄酒。
  • Alcoholic drinks act as a poison to a child.酒精饮料对小孩犹如毒药。
16 hops a6b9236bf6c7a3dfafdbc0709208acc0     
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 rhythmic rXexv     
adj.有节奏的,有韵律的
参考例句:
  • Her breathing became more rhythmic.她的呼吸变得更有规律了。
  • Good breathing is slow,rhythmic and deep.健康的呼吸方式缓慢深沉而有节奏。
18 contraction sn6yO     
n.缩略词,缩写式,害病
参考例句:
  • The contraction of this muscle raises the lower arm.肌肉的收缩使前臂抬起。
  • The forces of expansion are balanced by forces of contraction.扩张力和收缩力相互平衡。

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