Roger’s grandpa was coming over to stay with them this weekend. Roger and his grandfather always had fun together. Grandpa once drummed in a band. He and Roger could make the whole house shake with their music.

“Some of the Grandpa’s joints(关节) are hurting him today.” Mum said, “Let’s give him time to rest, OK?”

“Sure,” Roger said. They would play drums for just a little while.

Roger practiced all morning. Finally, Dad’s car pulled up in front of the house. The car door opened and Grandpa stepped out.

“Hi, Grandpa!” Roger shouted from his bedroom window. “Listen to this!”

He rocked. He rolled. He drummed like Grandpa had taught him. Leaping up, he raced outside to his grandfather. “What did you think?” Roger asked. “Are you ready to drum together?”

“It was wonderful,” Grandpa said, giving Roger a hug. “But I’m sorry. I can’t play right now.” He went inside.

Dad smiled at Roger. “That’s fantastic ! Grandpa’s little tired. Maybe he’ll want to play later.”

But later, Grandpa just wanted to sit on the couch. He talked with Mom and played with baby Lucy. When Lucy threw her doll on the floor, Grandpa reached for it. He tried to pick it up, but the doll fell out of his hand. He tried again. The same thing happened.

Roger hurried over to help. He gave the doll to Lucy. Then he turned to ask, “Grandpa, are you ready to play the drums yet?”

Grandpa shook his head. “I’m sorry, Roger,” he said, “Not now.”

After lunch, Roger went to his room to get his skateboard. Someone was already inside. Grandpa stood near the drum set. He picked up a drumstick and began to play. Tap! Tap!

The drumstick clattered to the floor. Roger ran over and picked it up. “Here!” He held it out. Grandpa rubbed his hand. His fingers looked red and swollen.

“I can’t play today, Roger.” he said. “Maybe you’ll play later and I’ll listen.”

Roger thought for a long time and got an idea. His friend Jamie got a pedal(脚踏板) that could be linked to the drumsticks.

While Grandpa was talking to Mom, Roger told Dad about his plan.

Roger opened the box and said, “You can play the drums with your foot on the pedal now! ”

4 . Music has existed since the beginning of time. People have always sung songs, danced to music, and played musical instruments together.     1    , yet it’s often taken for granted. In this text, we’ll explore why music is important and how it can be used in various ways to help improve our lives.

First of all, music has no borders or boundaries(界线).     2    , so it’s easy for us with our differences to find common ground. Besides, it also helps us understand different cultures better by exposing(让……接触) listeners to music from other countries.

    3    . There’s nothing quite like putting on your favorite song when you feel stressed. Studies have shown that listening to music can help reduce stress levels. When we listen to music, our brain releases(释放) dopamine, which helps control our mood.

What’s more, it has been proven that music plays a key role in brain development. This is because it helps with the development of language, motor skills, and emotional intelligence.     4    . It’s been found that music can help you remember things better by connecting them with familiar or meaningful pieces of music.

There’s nothing worse than being nervous before a big event or performance.     5    . Luckily for us, listening to music can help us with that too. As mentioned earlier, music can be great at helping you relax, so using it to calm your nerves before you undertake something stressful can be hugely beneficial.

5 . Where did you go yesterday? Did you hear _______ at any of those places? There is a good chance that you did. Today most stores and _______ play music. You might even hear music in an office or on a farm. Scientists believe that music _______ the way people behave.

According to some scientists, the _______ of western classical music (Mozart and Bach) makes people feel _______. When a restaurant plays classical music, people spend _______ money on food and drinks. When the restaurant plays _______ music, people feel poorer and spend less money. With no   _______ music, people spend even less. Scientists also believe that loud, fast music makes people eat faster. People _______ chew (咀嚼) their food faster when the music gets faster. Some restaurants play fast music during their   ________. This gets people to eat faster and leave ________. Restaurants can make more money this way.

Some scientists think that music makes you think and learn better. They say that music helps ________ to be more alert (警觉的). It is true that people learn better when they are relaxed. And ________ music can help you relax.

The next time you hear music somewhere, be ________. It might change the way you   ________.

6 . The turning point of my life was my decision to give up a promising business career and study music. My parents, although sympathetic (同情的) and________my love for music, disapproved of it as a job. This was________in view of the family background. My grandfather had taught music for nearly forty years. Though much admired, he earned________enough to provide for his family. As a result of this example, the very mention of music as a profession carried with it a picture of a risky existence with________income. My parents________college instead of a music school, and I went to college________putting aside my love for violin.

Before my graduation from college, the family met with severe financial defeats and felt it my________to leave college and take a job.________I was launched upon a business career — which I always think of as the wasted years. I do not for a moment mean to________business. My whole point is that it was truly not appropriate for me. I went into it merely for________, and apart from the satisfaction of being able to support the family, money is all I got out of it. Meanwhile I felt life was________by.

I continued to make money, and finally, bit by bit, enough to________me to go abroad to study music. I resigned from my position and, feeling like a man released from________, and sailed for Europe where I stayed four years, and enjoyed every minute of it. “Enjoyed” is actually too________a word. To be more exact, I absolutely walked on________whenever reminded that I really lived as a free man.

7 . Music can make us happy, peaceful or sad. As an orchestra (管弦乐队) conductor, Amy Anderson brings music to life, allowing people to experience many_________that music can give.

Anderson fell in love with_________when she was a child. She began playing the piano at seven and started composing at nine. She bought many videos_________by the world’s great orchestras and conductors and listened to them for hours on end.

During a concert, the audience see the_________of a conductor and the arm movements he or she makes. What audiences do not see is all the work the conductor has done before the_________.

Months before a concert, Anderson studies the music by_________it on the piano. She listens to recordings, reads about the composer’s life, and reviews historical events that would have influenced the composer. Her goal is to recreate the music as the composer_________.

While conducting, Anderson uses her whole body to express how the music should sound and feel. Her movements are dramatic (激动人心的) when the music is_________and gentle when the music is peaceful. As she_________, Anderson listens for problems with balance, sound and style.

To help young musicians better__________how to play the music, Anderson might tell them to imagine a__________and leisurely walk or a ship being tossed (颠簸) by waves.

“It is music’s ability to__________people that I value most,” said Anderson. She has seen audiences at her concerts__________, clap together in rhythm, and shout “Bravo!” Regularly, audiences are moved to tears. After one concert in Serbia, audiences__________around the orchestra’s buses and cheered for the young musicians as they climbed aboard.

Anderson is happy, knowing that she and the musicians have changed lives for the better, __________spirits and brought joy to people.

9 . I walked to Mrs. Windsor’s house as I always did when I heard the piano. Before ringing the bell, I stood against the wall and sighed (叹息) sadly. I had been taught enough to read, understand, and even write some musical pieces, but I just didn’t have a gift for it. But Mrs. Windsor had offered to give me the lesson for free, so I felt it my duty to try.

The door opened. Today Mrs. Windsor introduced her niece Pasha to teach me. With a smile, Pasha sat beside me on the piano bench. Then I frowned (皱眉) and concentrated to make the notes on the page match finger movements. I have to admit (承认) I played the piano without much thinking, just like a robot. I considered myself a mechanical pianist.

After about a page or two, Pasha gently put her hand on top of mine as if to calm my fingers. “Jennifer, what are you hearing in the music?” I looked at her rather strangely and admitted I didn’t know what she meant.

“Here, let me try and you listen,” Pasha advised.

She closed her eyes and took a deep breath, letting her fingers dance lightly over the keys. Then, she began to play.

“See, it begins here beside some kind of river. Hear the water running beside you?”

Her fingers rose and fell gently on the keys. “Now the princess appears and she’s picking flowers from the water’s edge.” A happy piece of music filled the air in time to Pasha’s dancing fingers. “Oh, but she falls over!” The music changed. “And our princess is being carried off by the fast-flowing stream. Quickly, her horse sees the trouble,” Pasha continued, “and races to the river’s edge where he swims out to let her catch hold of him. They make it to the bank and she hugs her faithful horse and promises she will never again wear princess skirts that weigh her down. She will only wear jeans and T-shirts from now on.” Pasha finished with a big smile and then looked at me.

I was happy and advised to try another one. Pasha smiled and together we played that afternoon, finding the story in the music and learning that sometimes it takes a friend to pull you out of the river onto dry land again.