《瘋狂英語》精選輯:鋼琴詩人肖邦

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Chopin—The Beautiful Soul of Music

Can Frederic Chopin, who wrote no 1)symphonies, no operas, and no 2)string quartets, who wrote only for the piano, be considered one of the greatest classical composers of all time? Instrument makers and composers have long devoted their lives to creating sounds that capture the range and essence of the most emotional instrument of all: the human voice. From the outset, Chopin 3)incorporated the singing or 4)cantabile style into almost all of his piano compositions. For those who heard Chopin play it seemed like the piano was invented for him and he for it. Today his compositions continue to be performed more than any others for the piano. Chopin proved that the full 5)scope and range of an 6)orchestra can be experienced from a solo piano.

Frederic Chopin was born in 1810 in a small Polish town near Warsaw. His mother was Polish, his father French. Chopin’s incredible talent was apparent at a young age; by the time he was seven he had already written several pieces. By the 7)ripe old age of nine he was performing publicly in Warsaw. Like every other European 8)wunderkind that showed great talent on the piano, he was being 9)touted as the new Mozart. Chopin studied music at the celebrated Warsaw 10)Conservatory. After graduating in 1830, he 11)embarked on a solo tour to find fame and fortune in Europe. While performing in Vienna, he learned of Russia’s invasion of Poland. Unable to return home, he went to Paris where he found himself among thousands of Polish 12)exiles. Chopin decided to stay among them and pursue a career in performing and teaching. The 13)frail sickly soft-spoken and elegant Chopin became a favourite of Paris high society.

Another thing that also astonished his 14)contemporaries was how he buried the traditional roles of the left and right hands. The “D Flat Major 15)Prelude” is a good example of this: the left hand begins with the raindrop 16)accompaniment while the right hand carries the melody. Note how a few bars in they switch. Chopin was a master of short forms: he had popularized his native 17)polonaises and 18)mazurkas and was known for the brilliance of his 19) ètudes and preludes. But it is Chopin’s 20)nocturnes that will be forever synonymous with his name. As their title suggests, they are dreamy night pieces, with melodies many people consider among the most beautiful ever written.

注釋：
1) symphony n. 交響樂，交響曲
2) string quartet 弦樂四重奏曲
3) incorporate v. 加入，結合
4) cantabile a. 歌唱般的
5) scope n. 發(fā)揮作用或能力的余地
6) orchestra n. 交響樂隊，管弦樂隊
7) ripe old age 高齡，通常指人活到較老的年齡，這里指肖邦在九歲時，他的作品與演奏已是爐火純青。
8) wunderkind n. （德語）尤指音樂方面的神童，少年得志者
9) tout v. 吹捧
10) conservatory n.音樂學院
11) embark v. 登上
12) exile n. 流放, 流亡者
13) frail a. 身體虛弱的
14) contemporary n. 同時代的人
15) prelude n. 前奏
16) accompaniment n. 伴奏
17) polonaise n. 波洛奈茲舞曲
18) mazurka n. 瑪祖卡舞曲
19) ètude n. 練習曲
20) nocturne n. 夜曲, 夜景

鋼琴詩人肖邦

弗雷德里克•肖邦沒有寫過交響曲,沒有創(chuàng)作過歌劇，連一首弦樂四重奏曲作品也沒有，他只寫過鋼琴曲，那么，他算不算得上是有史以來最偉大的古典作曲家之一？人聲是世界上所有樂器中最富情感的，一直以來，樂器制造者和作曲家們都畢生致力于創(chuàng)作出一種能體現(xiàn)人聲的音域和精髓的聲音。而從一開始，肖邦便將歌唱或者說歌唱般的流暢風格融入到他幾乎所有的鋼琴作品之中。對那些聆聽過肖邦演奏的人來說，鋼琴仿佛就是為他而發(fā)明的，而他也似乎是為鋼琴而生。直到今天，人們仍在不斷地演奏他的作品，演奏次數(shù)超過其他人創(chuàng)作的任何一首鋼琴曲。肖邦已經(jīng)向人們證明，一支交響樂隊所能發(fā)揮的神韻及所有音域范圍都能從一首鋼琴獨奏曲中得到體現(xiàn)。

弗雷德里克•肖邦在1810年生于鄰近華沙的一個波蘭小鎮(zhèn)里。他的母親是波蘭人，父親是法國人。肖邦的驚人才華在他很小的時候便展露無遺，他七歲時就已經(jīng)寫了幾首曲子。到了九歲“高齡”時，他已經(jīng)在華沙進行公開演奏。像其他在鋼琴方面顯露出非凡才華的歐洲神童一樣，他被稱為莫扎特再世。肖邦曾在著名的華沙音樂學院學習音樂。1830年畢業(yè)后，為了在歐洲尋求聲名和財富，他只身踏上了旅途。在維也納演出的時候，他得知了俄國入侵波蘭的消息。因為有家不能回，他便來到了巴黎，在那里他發(fā)現(xiàn)有數(shù)千名流亡國外的波蘭人。肖邦決定生活在他們這個圈子里，并繼續(xù)他的演奏和教學的生涯。體質羸弱、面色蒼白、輕言輕語而又舉止文雅的肖邦得到了巴黎上流社會的垂青。

肖邦創(chuàng)作的鋼琴曲摒棄了在鋼琴演奏中傳統(tǒng)的左右手分工，讓與他同時代的人震驚不已。“降D大調前奏曲”就是一個很好的例證。一開始，左手以雨滴般的伴奏切入，同時旋律從右手流淌而出。注意: 在幾個小節(jié)后，兩手進行互換彈奏。肖邦是小型曲式大師：他使祖國的波洛奈茲舞曲和瑪祖卡舞曲得以廣泛流傳，并以他的練習曲和前奏曲所表現(xiàn)出的卓越才華聞名于世。然而肖邦的夜曲才是他永遠的代名詞。曲如其名，在這些夢幻般的夜曲中流淌的旋律被許多人譽為最美妙的傳世佳作之一。