1. What is the speaker mainly talking about?
A.His feeling after receiving an award. |
B.His experience about traveling around. |
C.His preference for different music types. |
A.Ireland. | B.Scotland. | C.England. |
A.A single song. | B.A three -song collection. | C.A twelve-song collection. |
A.A young musician. | B.One fan of the speaker’s. | C.The host of the ceremony. |
2 . There are lots of children across the US who are living in residential treatment facilities (疗养中心). Many of these young people have
“People seldom know that they’re there,” said Mike Ball, whose nonprofit, Lost Voices, works with these teens. Bal first
As a writer and music lover, Ball knew songwriting could have a
“I’m often
A key
The program has
A.supplied | B.experienced | C.sacrificed | D.ignored |
A.learned about | B.looked for | C.joked with | D.belonged to |
A.forced | B.invited | C.permitted | D.expected |
A.tough | B.strange | C.positive | D.regular |
A.in time | B.on purpose | C.in need | D.on board |
A.books | B.controls | C.offers | D.delays |
A.embarrassed | B.disappointed | C.surprised | D.ashamed |
A.concern | B.love | C.goal | D.answer |
A.doubting | B.admiring | C.sharing | D.repeating |
A.part | B.trip | C.origin | D.view |
A.confirmed | B.called | C.followed | D.trained |
A.slowly | B.freely | C.sadly | D.tirelessly |
A.agreements | B.directions | C.questions | D.feelings |
A.benefited | B.missed | C.honored | D.reported |
A.awkward | B.pointless | C.abnormal | D.worthwhile |
3 . Cute lion heads, loud gongs (锣) and drums, an excited crowd- these are all parts of the lion dances you often see during Chinese holidays or at the openings of new shops and restaurants. Ancient Chinese people thought the lion stood for (代表) braveness. It can drive away bad things and bring good luck. As one of the most well- known folk dances in China, the lion dance has been performed for more than 2,000 years. It was very popular during the Tang Dynasty(618﹣907).
Wang Rentao, 41, has been performing the lion dance for 28 years. Born in Zhongkeng village in Dongguan, Guangdong, Wang watched villagers perform it when he was young. “It’s a historical tradition here and the love for lion dance is in everyone’s blood,” Wang said.
Now the head of the village’s lion dance performers, Wang is proud of the group’s achievements. “We’ve won many prizes and taken part in many important events, including the celebration of the 70th birthday of New China at Tian’anmen Square, ” Wang said.
Wang’s group is famous for dancing on quincuncial pile (梅花桩), one of the most difficult lion dance skills. Performers jump from one pile to another at a height of about 2.5 meters. The distance between the piles can be as far as 1.8 meters.
“The training is really difficult. Performers need to have lots of good practice of kung fu skills first. Even with that, they can fall from the pile and get hurt,” Wang said. “But that’s also the amazing part of lion dance, the part that makes it valuable heritage.”
The lion dance is popular not just in China, but in overseas Chinese communities. Many overseas (海外的) Chinese see the lion as a symbol of China. The lion dance reminds them of the culture of their homeland.
1. What did the lion stand for in ancient China?A.Bad things | B.Good luck | C.Kindness | D.Braveness |
A.For more than 200 years. | B.For no more than 200 years. |
C.For over 2,000 years. | D.For less than 2,000 years. |
A.遗产 | B.资源 | C.友谊 | D.经历 |
A.You can’t see lion dance at Tian’anmen Square |
B.Not everyone in Zhongkeng village loves lion dance |
C.The lion dance was very popular during the Han Dynasty. |
D.In the eyes of many overseas Chinese, the lion is a symbol of China. |
1. When was Now and Then recorded by Lennon?
A.In 1970. | B.In 1977. | C.In 1979. |
A.The use of advanced technology. |
B.The living will of Lennon. |
C.The request of fans. |
A.It consists of classics. | B.It was finished in 1967. | C.It doesn’t include Now and Then. |
A.It would make their album a hit. |
B.It allowed the members to get together. |
C.It offered a chance to remember Lennon. |
5 . Mary Dickins had been a member of the audience at poetry nights before and knew “the poetry clap”. She made a polite tapping of fingers. But when she made her debut (首次演出) as a performer at the age of 62 at the legendary Bang Said the Gun night in south London, she said, “It was so wild — like nothing I had ever seen before.” The audience stamped their feet and shook shakers. “It felt transformative. I thought, ‘I’ve got to have more of this,’ ” Dickins said. Becoming a performance poet has given her a place on a stage of her own making.
All her life she has written, mostly without being seen or heard. Her mother died when she was nine, and, after she went into a care home at 13, Dickins’ writing stayed in notebooks. Really, she says, a lot of her adult life has been about getting over childhood shyness. At university — she studied education — she met her husband of 40 years, but in three years of seminars she did not say a word. Some of this results from her years at the children’s home. She says, “It gave me a sense of what it’s like to be excluded. I never fitted in anywhere.”
After she graduated, she discovered that she loved working with people with learning disabilities. She became an expert in inclusive education. “That was my niche (称心的职业),” she says. She published books and returned to the University of North London as a senior lecturer in early childhood studies.
Dickins now sees that in adulthood she has been giving herself permission to be silly. “The sillier I allow myself to be, the better the writing is,” she says. Her observations are humorous.
“Putting things into words and giving shape to your emotions is an important part of coming to terms with the things that happen in life,” she says.
Does she still feel like an outsider?
“I think I’ve made it into a virtue. I celebrate the fact that I don’t fit into a box. Finally! You have to wait till you’re 62 to feel confident!” she says. “But I have a sense of who I am and I'm proud of it. I wouldn’t be anyone else now — and it took me a long time to say that.”
1. How did Dickins feel about her debut?A.Calm. | B.Awkward. | C.Stressed. | D.Encouraged. |
A.Her immature writing style. | B.Her experience at the care home. |
C.Her struggle with her university studies. | D.Her difficult relationship with her husband. |
A.It makes her land a good job. | B.It sharpens her sense of humor. |
C.It enables her to get on well with her life. | D.It helps her overcome her learning disabilities. |
A.Mary Dickins’ New Start after 60 | B.Mary Dickins’ First Performance |
C.Mary Dickins’ Troubled Writing Career | D.Mary Dickins’ Impact on Performance Poets |
6 . 75-year-old hip-hop (街舞) grandma Stephanie Walsh has gained worldwide attention with her intense dance moves and incredible energy. Better known as “Ms. Stephanie” online, Walsh has been featured on social media accounts with some videos drawing more than 11 million people to watch.
Walsh believes the videos gained popularity because she is 75. “It’s because I’m a senior,” said Walsh. “You don’t usually see someone my age doing hip-hop and moving like that. ”But actually, it’s more than that. Just as her profile claims, Walsh’s videos are “inspiring the world to dance like no one is watching. ”
“Dance isn’t just your body, it’s what you’re feeling inside about the dance and it’s what comes out here in your face,” Walsh said. “What I want to put through my movement is how much fun it is and how much joy it gives you.”
From a young age, Walsh loved to dance but her family didn’t have the money for classes. When she was nearly 30, she got her daughter ballet lessons, which her daughter hated. So, she took her daughter out and started classes herself right away.
Walsh believes her lifelong passion for dance is what motivates her today. “Everybody has to have a passion in their life,” she said. “It’s like that saying, ‘A life without passion is a life half lived.’ I believe that.”
Walsh dances for fun and fitness, but also for therapy (心理治疗). She struggled through countless hardships, and she has more than enough reasons to keep her down. But they don’t. She turns to her faith, her friends and of course, dance, to shine as an inspiration to those around her.
Gilbert, one of Walsh’s followers, says she inspires him every day. “She’s a beautiful soul who teaches me that it doesn’t matter about your age or your size. As long as you feel good, that’s all that matters,” says Gilbert. “I am truly thankful that Walsh is teaching me at the age of 32 to live my life full and stop being so scared.”
1. What motivates Walsh to do hip-hop?A.Its great social benefit. | B.Its growing popularity. |
C.Her enthusiasm for dance. | D.Her hunger for reputation. |
A.Her advanced age. | B.Her smooth moves. |
C.Her endless energy. | D.Her confident claim. |
A.Be active in social media. |
B.Set a good example to others. |
C.Take full advantage of his talent. |
D.Adopt a positive approach to life. |
A.Optimistic About Life: The Way to Survive |
B.Forever Young in Dance: An Inspiring Figure |
C.Embracing Social Media: The Key to Success |
D.Dancing with the Young: An Amazing Journey |
1. Why does Bruce come to Gloria?
A.To issue an invitation. |
B.To help her organize a school dance. |
C.To inquire about studying abroad. |
A.In a restaurant. | B.In a dance studio. | C.At her cousin’s place. |
A.Practice tennis with her. | B.Get in touch with Alice. | C.Search for information online. |
1. How many foreign students are visiting in the speaker’s school now?
A.About 13. | B.About 20. | C.Over 30. |
A.To teach more foreign students. |
B.To exchange ideas about culture. |
C.To help foreign students enjoy their time. |
A.Before September 15th. |
B.In the last week of September. |
C.In the first week of December. |
A.In the library. |
B.In the garden. |
C.On the playground. |
9 . Behind the Mask
Wearing the face of Patih Manis, a character in Bali’s dance dramas, means more than simply putting on a tapel, or mask.
“When you dance with a tapel and perform its character, you undergo a transformation,”says I Made Bandem, a scholar and teacher of Balinese arts – and a dancer for seven decades. “You must’marry’that mask and make ritual (仪式) offerings to create unity between yourself and the tapel. Many dancers will sleep with the mask beside them, so that they can learn its true character.”
Hand – carved tapel are essential to Topeng Pajegan and Topeng Panca, dance dramas often held at temple festivals and family rituals across this Indonesian island. The masks, along with delicate costumes, music that makes you sleep, and staccato movements – sometimes only of the fingers – have attracted Balinese audiences since the 17th century. The stories staged in Pajegan and Panca tell the history of the Balinese people, and the characters never change: Their appearance, movements, roles, and even the order in which they emerge remain the same. Yet in spite of this structure, topeng leave room for a great deal of artistic freedom. With no written text and no required musical arrangement, the entire performance which can last around four hours will be an improvisation – dancers and musicians drawing signals from one another.
It’s believed that every mask used for performance has a spirit. And if the correct offerings and taboos have been observed and the dancers have devoted themselves to mental, physical, and spiritual training, then during a dance drama their bodies will become a medium for the tapel’s spirit.
“A dancer strives to achieve taksu, which is a combination of presence, power, and passion, ”says Bandem.“This is what we pray for before we perform; it is through taksu that we bring the ancestors and their stories to life.”
1. What can we learn about tapel from the first two paragraphs?A.Tapel refers to a character’s name. |
B.Tapel is supposed to be with the dancers all along. |
C.Tapel builds a bridge between the dancer and the true character. |
D.Tapel experiences dramatic changes when worn by a dancer. |
A.Well-designed costumes. | B.Balinese stories. | C.Uplifting music. | D.Artistic freedom. |
A.A performance created casually. | B.A performance with full preparation. |
C.A performance given perfectly terribly. | D.A performance without deliberate preparation. |
A.Taksu is a Balinese dancer’s pursuit. | B.The story behind the mask. |
C.Tapel’s spirit is impossible to overlook. | D.Taksu is a medium to connect the past and the present. |
10 . A recent research study suggests that learning music doesn’t make you smarter.
For a while, there was an idea found on the Internet and in various magazines that suggested that babies could become smarter if they listened to Mozart, or to other classical music. Inspired, some parents bought classical CDs for their babies in the hope that this would boost their intelligence. But this so-called “Mozart Effect” has been challenged repeatedly.
But is taking music lessons surely different from just listening to music? Wouldn’t taking music lessons make kids smarter? That’s exactly the question that many researchers over the years have tried to answer. Some of their studies concluded that it does, and some found that it doesn’t. For example, one study showed that music education did not improve reading skills, while another one found a small effect of music on young children’s ability to learn words.
The researchers of the new study, Giovanni Sala (Fujita Health University) and Fernand Gobet (London School of Economics), looked at the data behind 54 carefully selected studies, and after carefully comparing the data from different papers, they concluded that children who took music lessons did not score higher on tests that measure their intelligence or academic ability than kids that didn’t learn music.
If music doesn’t make you smarter, how does that explain other research that shows that music lessons help students’ school performance? It seems like there is something about music lessons that makes students able to perform better in their other classes. That doesn’t have to be intelligence, and it’s likely not. Music lessons could have helped in different ways: They could have led to a change in homework habits, they could have increased confidence, or they could have improved social skills. And finally, they also mention that music education could still be very beneficial to students’ performance in non-music subjects if the music is combined with these classes. So feel free to keep making music, and keep encouraging children to learn music.
1. What can we learn about the “Mozart Effect”?A.It is most likely to be ineffective. |
B.It was first presented by Mozart. |
C.It helps parents take good care of their children. |
D.It will draw more and more researchers’ attention. |
A.Listening to music benefits kids a lot. |
B.Whether music education suits all kids remains unknown, |
C.Listening to music fails to help kids in language learning. |
D.Whether taking music lessons makes kids smarter is controversial. |
A.They did 54 small studies in all. |
B.They observed children in music classes. |
C.They examined plenty of previous research. |
D.They did a long-term survey of musical students. |
A.Intelligence determines one’s school performance. |
B.Music lessons should be encouraged for children. |
C.A student’s intelligence can be increased with effort. |
D.Students should avoid listening to music while studying. |