1. What instrument did the speaker play when she was young?
| A．The piano. | B．The guitar. | C．The violin. |
| A．In London. | B．In Sydney. | C．In New York. |
| A．They’ll meet famous performers. |
| B．They’ll have a brighter future. |
| C．They’ll get a chance to travel the world. |
| A．Three. | B．Four. | C．Seven. |
注意：请将答案写在答题卡上相应题号的横线上。每个空格只填一个单词。
Many people believe that classical music is not relevant to young people today. However, this issue (问题) frequently causes heated debate.
Some people say that classical music is associated only with old people. For example, if you look at the audience at a classical concert, the majority is over the age of fifty.
Others say it is more popular than we first imagine. Many young people listen to classical music without realizing. It is often used in films and advertisements. For example, a famous piece of classical music was used as the theme music for the 1990 World Cup. Not many people could have given its name, but millions enjoyed it.
Also, some people point out that young people produce new music based on classical ideas: for example, it is said that rap (说唱) music was invented by a classical musician in 1912, but it is now used by young people in pop music.
However, young people point to the fact that classical music has been outstripped (超越) by technology. To play a classical instrument, such as a violin, you need to study hard and practise for hours. Nowadays, you don’t need to get aching arms from practising. A teenager can write and make music using a computer program in the comfort of their own bedroom.
A final point to bear in mind is that the term “classical music” is used to refer to a great variety of music, from jazz to pieces for large orchestras (管弦乐队). This makes it even more difficult to say whether classical music is relevant to young people.
So, it may be only a minority of young people who play classical instruments, but when it comes to enjoying classical music, it depends on the piece of music. It may be more relevant to young people in the modern world than they realize!
Title | Classical Music | |
Introduction | The issue of whether classical music is | |
Opinions | Evidence | |
★Classical music is associated only with the | ☆ | |
★Many young people don’t some music they listen to is classical. | ☆Classical music is often found in films and advertisements. | |
★Classical ideas provide a for producing new music. | ☆Young people now | |
★ | ☆A young man can write and make music on a computer | |
★“Classical music” can refer to various | ☆Classical music ranges from jazz to pieces for large orchestras. | |
Conclusion | Classical music may still be (80) | |
Wandering sounds, irregular rhythms and a carrier of gentle emotions. This is the musical language of guqin, a plucked seven string instrument created in ancient China.
The earliest piece of guqin in China,
The guqin was favored by the literati in ancient China. The most renowned guqin
This deep understanding formed a strong bond between them,
4 . Tonal languages use pitch (音调) to distinguish words that otherwise might sound the same. In Mandarin, for instance, mă means horse whereas mã means mother. Nontonal languages like Spanish sometimes include pitch changes to suggest emotion, for example, but not to change a word’s meaning.
As a Mandarin speaker and musician, Jingxuan Liu wondered about the crossover (融合) between language and music. While studying at Duke University, Liu helped analyze the musical abilities of nearly half a million people from 203 countries. Her colleagues had launched an online game in which participants completed several musical tasks, including identifying matching melodies at different pitches and finding beat tracks that fit songs’ rhythms.
On average, native speakers of the 19 represented tonal languages were better at the melody task compared with speakers of 29 nontonal languages. And the effect wasn’t small a tonal first language strengthened melodic understanding by about half the amount that music lessons did, which was also surveyed. But tonal languages speakers tended to be worse at the rhythm task.
Humans must be choosy about what they pay attention to. Pitch patterns are quite important in tonal languages, which might explain the balancing act in music. “You’ve got a finite resource of attention, and you’ve got to divide up that somehow,” says study coauthor Courtney Hilton, a scientist at the University of Auckland in New Zealand.
Prior research on language and music often compared just two tongues, usually English and Mandarin. But other cultural influences, such as Eastern and Western music styles, could have affected results. By examining a wide range of people, the new study included languages never estimated in this way and reached more generalizable conclusion.
“Our result here is showing that the language someone speaks which is an important part of culture — also shapes cognition,” Hilton says.
1. Why did Liu’s colleagues launch the online game?| A．To attract more students to do the research. |
| B．To learn about different people’s musical abilities. |
| C．To confirm the role of music in people’s language learning. |
| D．To find the difference between tonal languages and nontonal ones. |
| A．Finding beat tracks. | B．Suggesting emotion. |
| C．Distinguishing word meanings. | D．Figuring out matching melodies. |
| A．Valued. | B．Limited. | C．Special. | D．Potential. |
| A．Ground-breaking. | B．Brain-washing. | C．Inefficient. | D．Unreliable. |
5 . Some live performance rooms on this planet are wonderful. They can make even a single note sound wonderful. Here are four famous concert halls around the world. Enjoy!
Cidade das Artes (Rio de Janeiro, Brazil)
Opened in 2013, this is one of the largest modern concert halls in South America. This building was designed by Christian de Portzampare. Named “City of Arts”, this is a cultural building group that hosts art exhibitions, dance events, comedy shows and workshops. The Cidade has excellent sound qualities as a result of being designed by the Chinese engineer XuYaping.
Wiener Musikverein (Vienna Austria)
Designed by Theophil Hansen, this neoclassical building opened its doors in 1870 and is the home of the Vienna Philharmonic Orchestra, one of the most popular orchestras (交响乐团) in the world. It was here in 1913 that the famous concert Skandalkonzert took place. This is also the place where every New Year’s day a famous traditional symphonic concert is performed.
Teatro all a Scala (Milan, Italy)
One of the most important concert halls for operatic music was completed in 1778. This building also hosts a museum and one of the world’s most famous academies (学院) where young talents are trained for ballet performances. This concert hall was rebuilt over the TeatroRegio Ducale which was destroyed by a fire in 1776. It saw the premieres (初次演出) of some of the most impressive works in the history of the opera, such as Madama Butterfly and Turandot by Giacomo Puccini.
Carnegie Hall (New York, USA)
Designed by William Burnet Tuthill, it is one of the most famous concert halls in the world for both classical music and popular music. It opened its doors in 1791 with a concert conducted in part by Pyotr Tchaikovsky. Many famous works had their world premieres here, including Antonin Dvorak’s New World Symphony and George Gershwin’s An American in Paris.
1. What is special about Cidade das Artes?| A．Visitors can perform dances there. |
| B．It has the longest history of the four. |
| C．A Chinese engineer joined in its design. |
| D．Every New Year’s concert is performed. |
| A．In Cidade das Artes. | B．In Wiener Musikverein. |
| C．In Teatro all a Scala. | D．In Carnegie Hall. |
| A．They were built in the seventeenth century. |
| B．They got destroyed in the human activities. |
| C．They were aimed at training ballet performers. |
| D．They saw premieres of many famous works. |
6 . The arts, especially music, should be part of every school’s lessons at every grade level. Students would be much smarter if they had some musical experience. They could improve their classroom skills, like paying attention and following directions. People develop all these skills when they learn music. Making music also lets children use their imagination. It provides students with a chance to try out their own ideas.
Music not only makes children better students, but also gives them something positive(积极的) to do. In a music program, children can be part of a band. Parents can enjoy listening to their children’s music instead of seeing them glued to a computer or TV screen. In a school band, students get to be part of a team. They can get along well with old friends and make new friends through music.
Music builds self-confidence, too. It gives children a sense of achievement and success. Making music is something for them to be proud of, and it lets kids practice performing in front of audiences. Music gives children an opportunity for self-expression, and that helps develop their self-confidence. Once again, music is important because it can make children better students, give them something positive to do, and build their characters. That is why music should be offered in every single grade in every school.
1. How could music make students smarter?| A．By improving their memory and attention. |
| B．By improving their classroom skills and imagination. |
| C．By making them brave, knowledgeable and modest. |
| D．By learning music, making music and trying out their own ideas. |
| A．Unwilling to turn on. | B．Always looking for. |
| C．Unwilling to leave. | D．Always playing. |
| A．Music brings children success. | B．Music gives children self-expression. |
| C．Music helps children achieve their dream. | D．Music develops children’s self-confidence. |
| A．Music Is a Must as a Course at School | B．Music Builds Children’s Self-confidence |
| C．Music Makes Students Much Smarter | D．Learning Music Is Very Important |
7 . For a long time Gabriel didn’t want to be involved in music at all. In his first years of high school, Gabriel would look pityingly at the music students,
This
| A．visiting | B．marching | C．pacing | D．struggling |
| A．rising up | B．coming up | C．driving up | D．turning up |
| A．betray | B．accept | C．avoid | D．appreciate |
| A．Therefore | B．However | C．Thus | D．Moreover |
| A．part | B．nature | C．basic | D．spirit |
| A．missed | B．disliked | C．enjoyed | D．denied |
| A．transparent | B．obvious | C．false | D．similar |
| A．because | B．but | C．though | D．so |
| A．ear | B．taste | C．heart | D．voice |
| A．occurred to | B．took to | C．appealed to | D．held to |
| A．change | B．chance | C．mission | D．function |
| A．proved | B．showed | C．stressed | D．meant |
| A．pushing | B．dragging | C．lifting | D．rushing |
| A．admiring | B．pitying | C．annoying | D．teasing |
| A．over | B．aside | C．behind | D．out |
8 . Born in an unknown village in Huarong county, Hunan province, Yi had few opportunities to play instruments when he was young.
At the age of 6, when most performers have already begun studying the piano at music academies, Yi learned the traditional stringed instrument the erhu from a group of people lodging at his home. It was not until much later that he first saw a piano when he visited his cousin’s house in Huarong.
“My family was too poor to buy a piano for me, so I often used to visit my cousin, even though it took about an hour to travel the 20 kilometers to his home over rocky roads just for the opportunity to sit at the keyboard,” Yi said.
Yi first arrived in Shenzhen 19 years ago and worked in factories, on construction sites and in kitchens. He had not played a piano for nearly 30 years.
The public pianos in Huaqiangbei offered him a fresh start. On a hot summer’s day, while taking a break from work at a nearby construction site, Yi and his son passed one of the instruments. Encouraged by his son, Yi decided to give it a try.
He rubbed his hands nervously on his clothes, but the moment he placed his fingers on the keys, he felt more comfortable and his confidence returned. Although his masterly performance at the piano keyboard quickly made him an online sensation in China and overseas, Yi is not the only one to benefit from the pianos in Huaqiangbei.
Inspired by the British artist Luke Jerram, who has placed more than 2,000 street pianos in over 70 cities worldwide since 2008 with the words “Play Me, I’m Yours” printed on their sides, the public piano project in Huaqiangbei was launched by the local government in 2018.
Zhang Chen, deputy director of the Huaqiangbei subdistrict office, said: “Huaqiangbei is located in the commercial district in the center of Shenzhen. We have been trying to provide diverse facilities to bring high-quality public cultural services to the area. We are surprised that the public piano project has attracted so many people to play the instruments, and others to watch them perform.”
1. What do we learn about young Yi from the passage?| A．He smoothed the path to piano lessons. |
| B．He was fascinated by musical instruments. |
| C．He received musical training at the age of 6. |
| D．He familiarized himself with erhu at his cousin’. |
| A．Awkward. | B．Confident. | C．Amazed. | D．Refreshed. |
| A．The artist’s popularity. | B．The project’s origin. |
| C．The artist’s creativity. | D．The project’s challenge. |
| A．A city culture featuring the piano needs changing. |
| B．The street piano project fuels urban development. |
| C．Huaqiangbei gets in tune with its cultural ambitions. |
| D．Shenzhen takes the lead in promoting cultural prosperity. |
9 . Having spent more than a decade on the dance floor, ROME — Niccolo Filippi, a 23-year-old Italian dance performer, recently decided to explore Chinese culture and its traditional dance forms and believes that this experience will not only boost his career, but also broaden his horizons beyond the world of dance.
His interest in diversifying his skills grew after he stumbled upon a short video of traditional Chinese-styled dance on YouTube. “I saw it as an art that combines tradition and modernity, which was mostly the reason why I liked it,” says Filippi.
Ever since, he has been closely following Chinese dance performers and watching numerous videos to learn more about the traditional style that he admires. “I prefer the traditional style because of its light movements. It also reflects my personality with elegance,” he adds.
Filippi’s chance came when he was invited to perform for a Chinese New Year celebration in the central Italian city of Florence. He has since fully committed himself to the art form, learning several pieces and putting his newfound passion into practice.
“The biggest difference that I found (compared to other disciplines) is the change of mood and emotional expressions among dances,” says Filippi, adding that he needed to shift from the dynamic moves of hip-hop to the graceful and fluid movements of Chinese dance. Despite various obstacles, Filippi’s efforts have not gone unnoticed. Two of his friends shared videos of his performances on social media, and the response was overwhelming. One video garnered 500,000 views, while the other received 200,000 views.
Filippi believes that learning about different cultures is priceless, and he sees it as a means of personal growth. “I like to think of a person as a book,” he says. “Embracing different traditions and cultures, such as Chinese culture and many others, is like adding new chapters to my book, making it more diverse and wonderful.”
1. What is the main reason why Filippi falls in love with traditional Chinese dance?| A．Its potential to boost his career. | B．Its mix of traditional and modern elements. |
| C．Its graceful and light movements. | D．Its true reflection of his elegant personality. |
| A．By listing numbers. | B．By giving an example. |
| C．By sharing a story. | D．By making a comparison. |
| A．Filippi thinks little of learning from other cultures. |
| B．People prefer to write down their past experiences. |
| C．Accepting various cultures boosts personal growth. |
| D．A book with chapters on traditions is more wonderful. |
| A．Chinese-styled dance videos go viral on social media. |
| B．An Italian’s dance journey towards specialization starts. |
| C．Filippi’s desire for Chinese culture extends beyond dance. |
| D．An Italian dancer shows passion for Chinese-styled dance. |
1. How long does the festival run in total?
| A．For 3 days. | B．For 4 days. | C．For 5 days. |
| A．A band. | B．A short film. | C．A poet. |
| A．A ticket. | B．A piece of clothing. | C．A drum stick. |
