蓝调音乐（Blues）也称“布鲁斯音乐”，是美国黑人的民间音乐风格，具有独特的音阶与和声，诞生于19世纪末的美国南方，后来逐渐影响了世界流行音乐的发展轨迹。作为黑人流行音乐的代表，它融合了美国黑人奴隶的民歌、劳动歌曲、颂歌和圣歌。“蓝调”一词还蕴含了哀怨、忧郁的感情色彩在里面。
而它在美国芝加哥的发展，更像是一种天时地利人和的结果。在包容的芝加哥，很多黑人开始参与一些现场演出，将南方这种原汁原味带有乡土气息的音乐带入了快节奏的都市中。在保留传统之外，一些音乐人也在芝加哥开始了对布鲁斯音乐更广阔的探索，使它可以与都市气息有更好的结合。
本篇课程选自 The Economist Espresso APP
难度系数：
无用系数：
Walkin' the boogie: blues music
① A fusion of African musical customs, African-American work songs, folk music and spirituals, the blues sound emerged from the Deep South in the late 19th century.
② Since then it has inspired a variety of styles, from boogie-woogie to R&B.
③ In Chicago, which attracted a large black population during the Great Migration, the blues was amplified with electric guitars, saxophones, piano, drums and harmonica.
④ An exhibition at the Chicago History Museum, opening today, explores the musical form, its legacy and how it "reflected the realities of a new life that was taking shape in the Midwest metropolis".
⑤ Raeburn Flerlage's photographs capture the scene in the 1950s and 1960s, with intimate portraits of performers such as Muddy Waters, Howlin' Wolf and Little Walter.
⑥ Visitors can design an album cover or learn the basic chords; for the most ambitious, there's a chance to write and perform a blues song.
⑦ Good luck trying to better "Hoochie Coochie Man".
▍生词好句
fusion /ˈfju:ʒ(ə)n/: n. 融合
custom /ˈkʌstəm/: n. 风俗；习俗
spiritual /ˈspɪrɪtjʊəl/: n.（美国南部黑人基督徒的）圣歌
emerge /ɪˈməːdʒ/: vi. 出现；涌现
the Deep South: 指美国内战前种植棉花和保留奴隶制度的州
inspire /ɪnˈspʌɪə/: vt. 启发
boogie-woogie: n. 低音连奏爵士乐（布鲁斯的一种音乐形式，炫技较多）
R&B:（rhythm and blues）节奏蓝调（布鲁斯的另一种音乐形式）
the Great Migration /mʌɪˈɡreɪʃ(ə)n/ : 大迁徙
amplify /ˈæmplɪfʌɪ/: vt. 扩大
saxophone /ˈsæksəfəʊn/: 萨克斯风
harmonica /hɑ:ˈmɒnɪkə/: 口琴
take shape:（逐渐）成型
metropolis /mɪˈtrɒp(ə)lɪs/: n. 大都市
capture /ˈkaptʃə/: vt. 捕捉；获得
capture the scene: 捕捉场景
intimate: adj. 私密的；亲密的
intimate portrait: 私密肖像
good luck doing/with: 祝好运
better /ˈbetə/: vt. 超过；超越
better oneself: 提升自己
better the lot of working classes: 改善工人阶级的命运
网友评论