On 12th January 2007, an experiment
When some children would stop
This experiment gives way to a comparison of
Jeff was a skilled plumber with 30 years of experience. Everyone who knew him stood in awe of his excellence in plumbing. But little known to them was his craze about music. Yes, Jeff had a great passion for singing since he was a little boy; he even dreamed of going into a music school and being a pop singer like Elvis Presley and holding his private concerts some day. But a sudden car crash took away both of his parents and put an end to all his grand plans for the future. As the big brother and the only man in the home, he had to leave school early and got a job to feed his two little sisters.
Thirty years had rolled by, but the love for singing never faded away. Whenever he was working, he would bring with him a small radio and played songs to which he would sing along. Singing made all the boring repair work great fun and much easier to handle. Sometimes, he created a piece or two of his own when inspiration struck. He once even recorded some of these songs in his small basement studio just for fun.
One day, Jeff received a call from a client, Remus Gall, asking him to help repair the pipes in his kitchen. Jeff accepted the mission readily. Upon arriving at Mr. Gall’s, he was led into the kitchen and began his work. As usual, while doing the repair work, he happily sang along to his small radio. Coincidentally, Remus Gall was a music producer and owner of a small recording company. Remus overheard the plumber’s singing and immediately realized there was something in Jeff’s voice. He was amazed that an ordinary plumber should have such great talent in singing. After the repair work, Remus got the chance to talk with Jeff and introduced his profession to him.
“You’ve really got a beautiful voice.” Remus said sincerely. “Have you ever thought of releasing an album of your own? If so, I would be more than glad to help you.”
注意：
1.续写词数应为150左右；
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Jeff was greatly shocked by what he heard.
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After three months’ hard work, Jeff’s first ever album finally came out.
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3 . A music column by New Music Friday is from https: //www.npr.org, sharing the best albums released every Friday. Readers can enjoy and download the album’s title track online. The column is well enjoyed by the music explorers. Here are some recent hits.
The best releases out Sept. 30
By Stephen Thompson, Keanna Faircloth, Bob Boilen, Tarik Moody
It’s been five years since Björk last released an album, but now the Icelandic icon (偶像) is back with a deeply inventive set called Fossora. Every sound on the record feels as if it’s springing into the mix from a different direction, as her energetic voice shares space with everything from bass clarinets (低音单簧管) to the voices of Björk’s own creation. Fossora was inspired, at least in part, by the death of the singer’s mother, but joy also exists.
The best releases out Sept. 16
By Cyrena Touros, Christina Lee, Tarik Moody, Stephen Thompson
The superstar K-pop girl group BLACKPINK is one of the biggest pop juggernauts in the world, with billions of streams and massive world tours to its name. Born Pink, its second full-length album, promises to further promote BLACKPINK’s domination of the U.S. charts.
The best releases out Sept. 9
By Christina Lee, Ann Powers, Stephen Thompson, Cyrena Touros
Ari Lennox experienced a huge breakthrough with 2019’s much-loved Shea Butter Baby, but her new album age/sex/location promises to be even bigger. She’s been trying many her singles for many months now, and even dropped a five-song EP last Friday, but the album is finally here. It somehow sounds modern even if it recreates the most unforgettable R&B sounds of the’90s and early’00s.
1. Why is Björk’s mother mentioned?| A．She gave Björk an energetic voice. |
| B．She helped Björk to record the new album. |
| C．Her death gave Björk some inventive ideas. |
| D．Her leaving delayed the release of Fossora. |
| A．It is made up of five songs. |
| B．It is adapted from Shea Butter Baby. |
| C．It is intended for single music-lovers. |
| D．It is trying to make another breakthrough. |
| A．Stephen Thompson. | B．Tarik Moody. |
| C．Christina Lee. | D．Ann Powers. |
| A．Rock. | B．Pop. | C．R &. B. |
5 . Since Kelsea Ballerini appeared on the Nashville scene in 2015, she’s been known for her cheerful songs and energetic personality. “I’ve always presented myself as a very happy-go-lucky person,” she says, “but there’s more.” Indeed, in her new poetry book Feel Your Way Through, the “Half of My Hometown” singer, 28, shows how she found strength after a difficult youth.
In her teen years Ballerini struggled with bulimia. “My Parents had just gotten divorced, and I think for me, it was a source of control,”she says of her eating disorder. After passing out several times, she finally sought help at 18. “It’s a journey, and it’s never-ending.” Life in the spotlight (聚光灯) can sometimes worsen her body-image issues, but she’s learned how to deal with them. Today she’s in a much healthier spot, and she is much more gentle with how she talks to herself.
Ballerini faced perhaps her biggest emotional challenge during her second year in high school, when she watched a friend die in a school shooting in her native Knoxville, Tenn.“There’s a moment in everyone’s life when something happens, and you go,’Life is short’, and that was mine,” Ballerini says, adding that she still suffers PTSD from the terrible event. “Fortunately, everyone close to me knows about it, and they help me.”
One of Ballerini’s biggest supporters is her husband, fellow singer Morgan Evans, 36. Because of her parents’ divorce, she says,“I made up my mind that I was never going to get married.” But with Evans, she adds,“I have a healthier idea of marriage. I don’t see it as a fairy tale. It’s work, but it’s worth it.”
1. Why is Ballerini popular?| A．Because she has a sweet voice. |
| B．Because she always has good luck. |
| C．Because her experiences are moving. |
| D．Because her songs always cheer people up. |
| A．Her difficult youth. . | B．Her parents’ divorce. |
| C．Her eating disorder. | D．Her mental challenge. |
| A．She shot her friend dead by accident. |
| B．She has forgotten the school shooting. |
| C．She was saved by her friends on the spot. |
| D．She got emotional problems after the event. |
| A．Every dog has his day. |
| B．Bad times make you strong. |
| C．Failure is the mother of success. |
| D．Nothing is difficult to a willing heart. |
6 . When I was a little girl, one of my favorite things was a shoebox. I
This led me to
It was to Alastair that I first
As I grew
The box threw new
| A．ended | B．mixed | C．filled | D．put |
| A．letters | B．stamps | C．brands | D．pictures |
| A．changed | B．printed | C．decorated | D．sorted |
| A．bed | B．box | C．envelope | D．office |
| A．prepare for | B．come across | C．pick up | D．depend on |
| A．honest | B．magical | C．shameful | D．traditional |
| A．by chance | B．as usual | C．on purpose | D．in person |
| A．proudly | B．normally | C．accurately | D．literally |
| A．ever | B．even | C．never | D．once |
| A．dream | B．belief | C．achievement | D．right |
| A．around | B．down | C．away | D．out |
| A．sing | B．hear | C．record | D．write |
| A．wiser | B．tougher | C．older | D．healthier |
| A．freedom | B．skill | C．nerve | D．pace |
| A．conversations | B．memories | C．decisions | D．adventures |
| A．trust | B．appreciation | C．doubt | D．light |
| A．lost | B．disturbed | C．left | D．passed |
| A．lessons | B．hobbies | C．legends | D．teams |
| A．helpful | B．useful | C．familiar | D．similar |
| A．where | B．whether | C．what | D．when |
7 . When Ludwig von Beethoven died in 1827, he was three years removed from the completion of his Ninth Symphony(交响乐). He had started work on his Tenth Symphony but, due to declining health, wasn’t able to make much headway: All he left behind were some musical sketches.
Ever since then, Beethoven fans and musicologists have puzzled over what could have been. Now, thanks to the work of a team of scientists, Beethoven’s vision will come to life.
The scientists were divided into two parts-the human side and the machine side. The human side deciphered (破译)and transcribed the sketches from the Tenth Symphony, trying to understand Beethoven’s intentions. Meanwhile, the A. I. side faced more challenges.
First, and most fundamentally, they needed to figure out how to take a short phrase and use it to develop a longer, more complicated musical structure, just as Beethoven would have done. Next, because the continuation of a phrase also needs to follow a certain musical form, the A. I. needed to learn Beethoven’s process for developing these forms. The A. I. also needed to learn how to take a melodic line and harmonize it and how to bridge two sections of music together. Finally, once they had a full composition, the A. I. was going to have to figure out how to orchestrate it, which involves assigning different instruments for different parts. And it had to pull off these tasks in the way Beethoven might do so.
The success of the attempt proves they were on the right track. But these were just a couple of minutes of music. There was still much more work to do. At one point, one of the music experts on the team said that the A. I. reminded him of an eager music student who practices every day, learns, and becomes better and better. Now that student, having taken the baton from Beethoven, is ready to present the Tenth Symphony to the world.
1. What can we know about Beethoven’s Tenth Symphony?| A．Beethoven lost his health in an attempt to finish it. | B．It was highly thought of by fans and musicologists. |
| C．It aroused great interests among Beethoven fans. | D．Beethoven didn't start to create it until 1824. |
| A．the difficulties the AI side solved | B．the contributions of the human side |
| C．Beethoven’s music composition process | D．how a symphony was usually created |
| A．It’s a great challenge for the AI technology. |
| B．The human side should imitate Beethoven’s music creating process. |
| C．It is a combined effort of human and AI technology. |
| D．It's more demanding for the machine side than human side. |
| A．skeptical |
| B．positive |
| C．negative |
| D．indifferent |
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Last week, it was announced that a singing competition would held in our school. Our teacher encouraged us to take a active part in it. After a heated discuss, we agreed to sing Defend the Yellow River. Five days later, the competition had started in the school hall. We sang with full passion, wear the uniform. All audience applauded warm at the end of our performance, what made us very happy. Because of our wonderful and inspired performance, we finally won the first place. We not only took pride of our victory, and also were deeply impressed by the meaning of cooperation.
A painter hangs his or her finished pictures on a wall, and everyone can see it. A composer writes a work, but no one can hear it
Singers and instruments have to be able to get every note perfectly in tune. Pianists
The problem
Technique is of no use unless it is combined with musical knowledge and understanding. Great artists are those who are so thoroughly at home in the language of music
| A．America. | B．Australia. | C．Russia. |
