1 . Music is an international language that is beautiful to people all over the world. It seems to be a natural need for us.     1    

Music plays a significant role in education. Studies have indicated that music physically develops the part of the brain known to be involved with language.     2     Therefore the development of one promotes the growth of the other, and musical training not only develops a child's language skills but also promotes the learning of a second language. Music also causes improvement in brainpower. The thought patterns that are formed while studying music may help improve the ability to learn other subjects.

    3     First, music is beneficial with its ability to reduce stress. And stress is associated with many illnesses, which can be prevented with stress reduced. When people are very stressed, there is a tendency to avoid listening to music.     4     But as we know, productivity increases when stress is reduced.

Additionally, music can have positive influence on mood, and many people will turn to certain songs to improve their moods. The main reason behind this phenomenon is that music has the ability to express one's feelings better than any other medium.     5     It also increases self-confidence.

A．So how does it help us?

B．The two are so closely related.

C．Let's see how people enjoy music.

D．Perhaps it feels like a waste of time.

E．The key is to choose the right type of music.

F．Music has some sort of psychological effect.

G．Good music also makes us remember the moments when we were happy.

2 . A young woman turns around and around quickly, and jumps high. In the background, a young girl reads a rejection (拒绝) letter from a ballet school.“ You have the wrong body for ballet,” it says, “and at thirteen, you are too old. ”This was one of the most popular advertisements (广告) of 2014 and it describes American ballet Theatre's principal (主要的) dancer Misty Copeland.

This was not a real letter. But Copeland says it is very similar to letters from her childhood. While many dancers start at the age of three. Copeland only began to study ballet in 1995 as a thirteen-year-old.

People often told her that she was too old, or that she didn't have the perfect body type (She is only 157 cm tall). Her family moved a lot, and it was sometimes difficult for her to attend ballet classes. But Copeland loved dancing and did not want to give up. She stayed with her ballet teacher during the week and spent time with her family only at the weekend. This was a difficult life, but she worked hard and won her first national competition when she was fourteen years old. Copeland joined the American Ballet Theatre in 2000 and performed in many ballets over the next few years. In 2007, she became a solo (单独的) performer, and in 2015 she became its principal dancer.

Copeland is now a dancer, author and Broadway performer. She also stars in the 2015 film A Ballerina's Tale. So what's next? According to Copeland, anything is possible: "My career (职业) really is just now beginning.'

1. How old was Copeland when she became the principal dancer?

A．13	B．14
C．25	D．33

2. Why was it difficult for Copeland to attend ballet classes?

A．Because her family moved a lot.

B．Because she was not a good dancer.

C．Because she had no invitation letter.

D．Because she had the wrong body type.

3. Which of the following is TRUE according to the passage?

A．Copeland became successful because of the advertisement.

B．Copeland had to spend a lot of time away from her parents.

C．Copeland won her first national competition as a solo performer.

D．Copeland has ended up her career as an actress on Broadway.

4. What's the writer’s opinion of Copeland?

A．Copeland sets an example who never gives up.

B．Copeland was too old to start ballet at thirteen.

C．Copeland has made her achievements by accident.

D．Copeland was lucky to get support from the ballet school.

3 . If you ever visit an English village, make sure to look out for morris dancing. Undoubtedly one of the strangest traditions of English culture, morris dancing is a form of folk dancing that dates back to the 15th century. If you ever get the opportunity, you really have to see it.

Men and women wearing old-fashioned, shabby（破烂的）clothing dance in the streets of towns and villages across the country during the holiday periods. Women wear long skirts and men wear short trousers with bells attached to them. They dance to traditional folk music which is often played on traditional musical instruments.

Some groups carry heavy black sticks with which they beat against each other while they dance. Other groups wave handkerchiefs in the air while they perform. The dances are usually performed near a pub so that when they’re over, the dancers and audience can sing some traditional folk songs over beer. The celebrations will often continue long into the night.

Morris dancing is a great English tradition but it’s facing a big crisis. As the years go by, fewer and fewer young people are joining morris dancing groups. The dancers are getting older and older and eventually, if not protected, the tradition will die out within the next few decades.

If you’ve ever had the fortune to see morris dancing, you may understand why teenagers aren’t rushing to sign up. Frankly, it’s not exactly the coolest thing for an 18-year-old to do. Why dress up in bells and funny costumes when you could be going camping, playing sports or doing anything else?

However, it would be a great shame to lose such a fun and lively part of England’s history and culture. So here’s a toast to the next generation of would-be morris dancers! Let’s hope they don’t leave it too late.

1. What is the passage mainly about?

A．The origins of moris dancing.

B．The popularity of morris dancing.

C．The protection of morris dancing.

D．The introduction of morris dancing.

2. What do we know about morris dancers?

A．They dance in pubs late into the night.

B．They perform with sticks or handkerchiefs.

C．They wear long dresses with bells attached.

D．They sing folk music while they dance.

3. What is the present situation of morris dancing?

A．It is losing appeal among young people.

B．It is keeping pace with people's demand.

C．It is witnessing great changes in history.

D．It is being criticized by modern people.

4. What does the author think about morris dancing?

A．It helps stay healthy.

B．It is fun for teenagers.

C．It deserves more attention.

D．It is too old-fashioned.

4 . The symphony ended and after much applause the audience moved out of the warmth of the hall and into the cold night air. It had been one of the best performances of recent months and you could feel the excitement as the crowd moved down the street. Taxis seemed to appear from nowhere to convey people home，while others sought out bars and restaurants. Everyone was chatting excitedly and the magic of the performance carried on in their minds.

This had been a traditional classic，with none of the clumsy notes so loved by the so-called modernists. The music had thrilled the soul and assisted in lifting the spirits to a higher level. Perhaps in these hard times someone might learn this valuable lesson. What was wanted was traditional works that attracted crowds，not the shameful and incomprehensible pieces that had left so many seats unoccupied for so long.

As the people left they seemed to carry some of the performances along with them. It was like the fragrance of a rose bush carried by a gentle wind，sweet and exciting，yet at a distance the source unknown. A few hummed（哼）the tunes as they walked along，spreading their enjoyment far and wide. Long into the night you could still feel the emotion of the music and as dawn rose over the city the next day，the last faint echoes（回声）still remained as people returned to work.

Critics are critics；they are never really interested in ordinary people and simple pleasures. Where was the skill in simply playing well to a fascinated audience？What was advanced by the performance of well-known overtures（序曲）？So，as would be expected，they used their usual phrases and quotations to belittle（贬低）the traditional classics. As a result，the pop returned. And within a week the concert hall was almost empty again.

1. The first paragraph is intended to tell us ________.

A．many people attended the concert

B．how the people spent their evening

C．the concert impressed those people

D．many people were fascinated with music

2. In the author's opinion，________.

A．modern music is preferable

B．classics are more valuable

C．classics are incomprehensible

D．modern music equals classics

3. In what background was the concert held？

A．Most people didn't like pop music.

B．The economy was rapidly developing.

C．Cultural life was rather short.

D．The country was in difficulty.

4. What is the author's attitude toward music critics？

A．Favorable.	B．Negative.
C．Positive.	D．Subjective.

5 . Some of the world’s most famous musicians recently gathered in Paris and New Orleans to celebrate the first annual International Jazz Day. UNESCO( United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization) recently set April 30 as a day to raise awareness of jazz music, its significance, and its potential as a unifying(联合) voice across cultures.

Despite the celebrations, though, in the U.S. the jazz audience continues to shrink and grow older, and the music has failed to connect with younger generations.

It’s Jason Moran’s job to help change that. As the Kennedy Center’s artistic adviser for jazz, Moran hopes to widen the audience for jazz, make the music more accessible, and preserve its history and culture.

“Jazz seems like it’s not really a part of the American appetite,” Moran tells National Public Radio’s reporter Neal Conan. “What I’m hoping to accomplish is that my generation and younger start to reconsider and understand that jazz is not black and write anymore. It’s actually color, and it’s actually digital.”

Moran says one of the problems with jazz today is that the entertainment aspect of the music has been lost. “The music can’t be presented today the way it was in 1908 or 1958. It has to continue to move, because the way the world works is not the same,” says Moran.

Last year, Moran worked on a project that arranged Fats Waller’s music for a dance party, “Just to kind of put it back in the mind that Waller is dance music as much as it is concert music,” says Moran. “For me, it’s the recontextualization. In music, where does the emotion(情感) lie? Are we, as humans, gaining any insight(感悟) on how to talk about ourselves and how something as abstract as a Charlie Parker record gets us into a dialogue about our emotions and our thoughts? Sometimes we lose sight that the music has a wider context,” says Moran, “so I want to continue those dialogues. Those are the things I want to foster.”

1. Why did UNESCO set April 30 as International Jazz Day?

A．To remember the birth of jazz.

B．To protect cultural diversity.

C．To encourage people to study music.

D．To recognize the value of jazz.

2. What does the underlined word “that” in paragraph 3 refer to?

A．Jazz becoming more accessible.

B．The production of jazz growing faster.

C．Jazz being less popular with the young.

D．The jazz audience becoming larger.

3. What can we infer about Moran’s opinion on jazz?

A．It will disappear gradually.

B．It remains black and white.

C．It should keep up with the times.

D．It changes every 50 years.

4. Which of the following can be the best title for the text?

A．Exploring the Future of Jazz.

B．The Rise and Fall of Jazz.

C．The Story of a Jazz Musician.

D．Celebrating the Jazz Day.

6 . 根据短文内容，从短文后的选项中选出能填入空白处的最佳选项。选项中有两项为多余选项。

Recent research shows that listening to music improves our mental well-being and boosts our physical health in surprising and astonishing ways.    1    Here are some amazing scientifically-proven benefits of being hooked on music.

Music reduces depression

More than 350 million people suffer from depression around the world. A study by Hans Joachim Trappe in Germany demonstrated that music can benefit patients with depressive symptoms, depending on the type of music.    2    But techno and heavy metal brought people down even more. The next time you feel low, put on some classical or meditative music to lift your spirits.

    3    

Research shows that taking music lessons predicts higher academic performance and IQ in young children. In one study, 6-year-olds who took keyboard or singing lessons in small groups for 36 weeks had significantly larger increases in IQ and standardized educational test results than children who took either drama lessons or no lessons.    4    

Music keeps your brain healthy in old age

A study with healthy older adults found that those with ten or more years of musical experience scored higher on cognitive tests than musicians with one to nine years of musical study. The non-musicians scored the lowest. Business magnate Warren Buffet stays sharp at age 84 by playing ukulele.    5    

A．To help them achieve academic excellence, encourage them to sing or play an instrument.

B．Musical training can help raise our IQs and even keep us sharp in old age.

C．Music raises IQ and academic performance.

D．It’s never too late to play an instrument to keep you on top of your game.

E．Meditative sounds and classical music lifted people up.

F．Music strengthens learning and memory.

G．Music can make you happy every day.

7 . Muzak

The next time you go into a bank, a store, or a supermarket, stop and listen. What do you hear?     1    . It's similar to the music you listen to, but it's not exactly the same. That's because this music was especially designed to relax you, or to give you extra energy. Sometimes you don't even realize the music is playing, but you react to the music anyway.

Quiet background music used to be called "elevator (电梯) music" because we often heard it in elevators. But lately we hear it in more and more places, and it has a new name "Muzak". About one-third of the people in America listen to "Muzak" every day. The music plays for 15 minutes at a time, with short pauses in between. It is always more lively between ten and eleven in the morning, and between three and four in the afternoon, when people are more tired.     2    .

If you listen to Muzak carefully, you will probably recognize the names of many of the songs. Some musicians or songwriters don't want their songs to be used as Muzak, but others are happy when their songs are chosen. Why?     3    .

Music is often played in public places because it is designed to make people feel less lonely when they are in an airport or a hotel. It has been proven that Muzak doeswhat it is designed to do. Tired office workers suddenly have more energy when they hear the pleasant sound of Muzak in the background.     4    . Supermarket shoppers buy 38 percent more groceries.

    5    . They say it's boring to hear the same songs all the time. But other people enjoy hearing Muzak in public places. They say it helps them relax and feel calm. One way or another, Muzak affects everyone. Some farmers even say their cows give more milk when they hear Muzak!

A．Some people don't like Muzak.

B．The music gives them extra energy.

C．Music is playing in the background.

D．Factory workers produce 13 percent more.

E．Muzak tends to help people understand music better.

F．They get as much as $4 million a year if their songs are used.

G．Muzak is played in most of the big supermarkets in the world.