Piano托福听力原文翻译及问题答案

Piano托福听力原文翻译及问题答案

一、Piano托福听力原文：

Narrator:Listen to part of a lecture in a music history class.

MALE PROFESSOR:Up until now in our discussions and readings about the Baroque and early Classical periods,we've been talking about the development of musical styles and genres within the relatively narrow social context of its patronage by the upper classes.Composers,after all,had to earn a living,and those who were employed in the services of a specific patron,well—I don't have to spell it out for you—the likes and dislikes of that patron—this would have had an effect on what was being composed and performed.

Now,of course,there were many other influences on composers—uh such as the technical advances we've seen in the development of some of the instruments—uh you remember,the transverse flute,the clarinet,and so on.But I think,if I were asked to identify a single crucial development in European music of this time,it would be the invention of the piano…which,interestingly enough,also had a significant effect on European society of that time—and I’ll get to that in a minute.Now,as we know,keyboard instruments existed long before the piano—the organ,which dates back to the Middle Ages,as do other keyboard instruments,such as the harpsichord,which is still popular today with some musicians.But none of these has had as profound an impact as the piano.

Uh the piano was invented in Italy in 1709.The word“piano”is short for“pianoforte”,a combination of the Italian words for“soft”and“loud.”Now,unlike the harpsichord,which came before it,the piano is a percussion instrument.You see,the harpsichord is actually classified as a string instrument,since pressing a key of a harpsichord causes a tiny quill that’s connected to the key to pluck the strings that are inside the instrument,much the same as a guitar pick plucks the strings of a guitar.

But,pressing the keys of a piano causes tiny felt-covered hammers to strike the strings inside the instrument,like drumsticks striking the head of a drum.This striking action is why the piano is a percussion instrument instead of a string instrument.

Okay,so why is this so important?Well,the percussive effect of those little hammers means that the pianist,unlike the harpsichordist,can control the dynamics of the sound—how softly or loudly each note is struck—hence the name pianoforte—“soft and loud.”Now artistically—for both composers and performers—this was a major turning point.This brand-new instrument,capable of producing loud and soft tones,greatly expanded the possibilities for conveying emotion.This capacity for increased expressiveness,in fact,was essential to the Romantic style that dominated nineteenth-century music—uh,but I’m getting ahead of myself.Uh,before we get back to the musical impact of this development,I want to take a look at the social impact that I mentioned earlier.Now,in the late 1700s and the early 1800s,the development of the piano coincided with the growth of the middle class in Western Europe.Of course,folk music—traditional songs and dances—had always been part of everyday life.But,as mass-production techniques were refined in the nineteenth century,the price of pianos dropped to the point that a larger proportion of the population could afford to own them.

As pianos became more available,they brought classical music—the music which previously had been composed only for the upper classes—into the lives of the middle-class people as well.One way in particular that we can see the social impact of this instrument is its role in the lives of women of the time.Previously,it was uh,quite rare for a woman to perform on anything but maybe a harp,or,or maybe she sang,

but suddenly,in the nineteenth century,it became quite acceptable—even,to some extent,almost expected—for a middle-class European woman to be able to play the piano…partly because,among upper-middle-class women,it was a sign of refinement,but it was also an excellent way for some women to earn money—by giving piano lessons.

And some women—those few who had exceptional talent,and the opportunity to develop it—their lives were dramatically affected.Uh,later we’ll be listening to works by a composer named Robert Schumann,but let's now talk about his wife,Clara Schumann.

Clara Schumann was born in Germany in 1819.She grew up surrounded by pianos;her father sold pianos,and both her parents were respected piano teachers.She learned to play the instrument when she was a small child,and gave her first public recital at age 9.Clara grew up to become a well-known and respected piano virtuoso—a performer of extraordinary skill—who not only gave concerts across Europe,but also was one of the first important female composers for the instrument.

二、Piano托福听力中文翻译：

旁白：在音乐历史课上听一节课的一部分。

男教授：到目前为止，在我们关于巴洛克和早期古典时期的讨论和阅读中，我们一直在谈论在上流社会赞助的相对狭窄的社会背景下音乐风格和流派的发展。毕竟，作曲家必须谋生，而那些受雇于特定赞助人服务的人，我不必为你详细说明赞助人的好恶，这会对创作和表演产生影响。

当然，对作曲家还有很多其他的影响，比如我们在一些乐器的发展中看到的技术进步，横笛，单簧管，等等。但我认为，如果我被要求确定这一时期欧洲音乐中的一个关键发展，那就是钢琴的发明……有趣的是，它对当时的欧洲社会也产生了重大影响，我马上就会谈到这一点。现在，我们知道，键盘乐器早在钢琴——可以追溯到中世纪的风琴之前就存在了，其他键盘乐器也存在，比如大键琴，今天仍然受到一些音乐家的欢迎。但这些都没有钢琴有如此深远的影响。

钢琴是1709年在意大利发明的。单词“piano”是“pianoforte”的缩写，是意大利语单词“soft”和“loud”的组合现在，与之前的大键琴不同，钢琴是一种打击乐器。你看，大键琴实际上被归类为弦乐乐器，因为按下大键琴的一个键会产生一根连接到键上的小羽毛管来拨动乐器内部的弦，这与吉他拾音器拨动吉他的弦非常相似。

但是，按下钢琴的键会使覆盖毡的小锤子敲击乐器内部的琴弦，就像鼓槌敲击鼓头一样。这种引人注目的动作就是为什么钢琴是打击乐器而不是弦乐器。

好吧，为什么这这么重要？好吧，这些小锤子的打击效果意味着钢琴家，不同于大键琴演奏家，可以控制声音的动态，每个音符敲击的声音是多么的轻柔或响亮，因此被称为pianoforte——“柔和而响亮”对于作曲家和表演者来说，这是一个重要的转折点。这种全新的乐器能够发出响亮柔和的音调，极大地拓展了表达情感的可能性。事实上，这种增强表现力的能力对主导19世纪音乐的浪漫风格是至关重要的，呃，但我正在超越自己。在我们回到这一发展对音乐的影响之前，我想先看看我之前提到的社会影响。现在，在1700年代末和1800年代初，钢琴的发展与西欧中产阶级的发展同步。当然，民间音乐传统歌舞一直是日常生活的一部分。但是，随着大规模生产技术在19世纪的改进，钢琴的价格下降到一个程度，即更大比例的人口有能力拥有钢琴。

随着钢琴的普及，他们将古典音乐——以前只为上层阶级创作的音乐——也带入了中产阶级的生活。我们能够看到这一文书的社会影响的一个特别方式是它在当时妇女生活中的作用。以前，一个女人除了竖琴或者唱歌之外，很少用其他乐器表演，

但突然间，在十九世纪，它变得相当可以接受，甚至在某种程度上，人们几乎期望欧洲中产阶级女性能够弹钢琴……部分原因是，在中上层女性中，这是优雅的标志，但对于一些女性来说，上钢琴课也是一种很好的赚钱方式。

而一些女性——那些少数拥有非凡天赋的女性，以及发展天赋的机会——她们的生活受到了巨大的影响。嗯，稍后我们将听一位名叫罗伯特·舒曼的作曲家的作品，但现在我们来谈谈他的妻子克拉拉·舒曼。

克拉拉·舒曼1819年出生于德国。她在钢琴声中长大；她的父亲卖钢琴，她的父母都是受人尊敬的钢琴老师。她从小就学会了演奏这种乐器，9岁时第一次公开演奏。克拉拉成长为一位著名而受人尊敬的钢琴演奏家——一位技艺非凡的演奏家，她不仅在欧洲各地举办了音乐会，而且还是该乐器的首批重要女作曲家之一。

三、Piano托福听力问题：

Q1:1.What is the lecture mainly about?

A.Professional pianists of the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries

B.The influence of the piano on music and society

C.A comparison of the piano and harpsichord

D.A comparison of musical styles before and after the invention of the piano

Q2:2.What does the professor mention as Influences on musical styles before the invention of the piano?

A.The preferences of particular patrons

B.The low numbers of available instruments

C.Increases in the number of music schools

D.Reductions in the costs of producing instruments

Q3:3.Why does the professor describe how a piano works'?

A.To explain why pianos are easy to play

B.To explain why pianos are expensive to construct

C.To explain why pianos are not classified as string instruments

D.To explain why pianos do not require frequent tuning

Q4:4.According to the professor,why did the piano become more popular than the harpsichord?

A.Piano music was easier to compose than harpsichord music.

B.Piano music was better for accompanying the popular new dances of the 1700s.

C.The piano had a more attractive size and shape than the harpsichord.

D.The piano could express a wider range of emotions than the harpsichord.

Q5:5.Why does the professor discuss Clara Schumann?

A.She influenced the design of the modern piano.

B.She grew up in an environment that encouraged female musicians.

C.Her musical talents were inherited from her parents.

D.Her background and Robert Schumann's background were similar.

Q6:6.What does the professor imply when he says this:I don't have to spell it out for you.

A.He will not write a term on the blackboard.

B.The students do not have to take notes.

C.The situation was described in the reading.

D.The students can easily guess what he means.

四、Piano托福听力答案：

A1:正确答案：B

A2:正确答案：A

A3:正确答案：C

A4:正确答案：D

A5:正确答案：B

A6:正确答案：D

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