環(huán)球英語—971:Singing With the Music

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Welcome to Spotlight, I'm Robin Basselin.
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And I'm Ryan Geertsma. Spotlight uses a special English method of broadcasting. It is easier for people to understand, no matter where in the world they live.
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In March 2009 a group of people in Changchun City, China set a record - a new achievement that no one else had completed. This record was not just any record. It was a Guinness World Record. The group set this record by singing karaoke longer than anyone else in the world. From February 20 until March 11, they sang with the music of popular songs. The New Culture View newspaper organized the event. The group sang for 456 hours, two minutes, and five seconds. This was the longest ever karaoke event involving more than one person.
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Karaoke is enjoyed in many places around the world. There are local, national, and even global karaoke competitions. But most people just sing for fun! Today's Spotlight is on this popular musical activity.
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Karaoke is a Japanese word. It means "empty orchestra." This is because karaoke music contains only the sounds of musical instruments. People sing along with this recorded karaoke music. Most karaoke systems include three parts - a microphone for the singer to sing into, a disc or video that contains the recorded music for many songs, and a television or screen to show the song's words to the singer.
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Daisuke Inoue is the Japanese musician that created karaoke. Inoue played music with other musicians in bars and dance clubs in Japan. The business men who came to the clubs often wanted to sing along with the musical band. They wanted to sing traditional Japanese songs. So Inoue and his band would play the music while the men sang the words. One time, a business man wanted Inoue to travel with him, so that he could sing in another city. But Inoue could not leave. So he made a recording of the music for the business man to take with him. The business man paid Inoue for his work.
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This experience gave Inoue an idea. He wanted to create a machine that could be used in bars. This way all people could sing their favorite songs with the recorded music. So in 1971, Inoue made the first karaoke machine. It included the recorded music, an amplifier to make the singer sound louder, and a microphone. His idea was a success! Many bars rented the Karaoke equipment from Inoue. And people began singing with his recorded karaoke music in bars all around Japan. Inoue told TIME magazine how Karaoke affected Japanese people and culture.
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"I think karaoke has positively changed the Japanese people. Some people say Japanese people are shy and poor at expressing themselves in public. But give a person a microphone, and the same man who has trouble giving a wedding speech never wants to stop!"
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Karaoke is still very popular in Japan. But it is also popular in China, Korea, Thailand, and many other Asian countries. There, many people go to karaoke clubs. These clubs rent private rooms to groups of people who want to sing karaoke. The rooms have karaoke equipment and places to sit. People take turns singing with the microphone. They sing current popular music and traditional songs connected to their culture. In some places people can even order food and drinks while they sing karaoke.
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Another kind of karaoke experience is the karaoke bar. These are not small and private rooms for karaoke. Instead, karaoke is more of a public event. Some bars will have a karaoke night. The bar will set up a raised area for the singer to stand on. The singer sings to everyone in the room, not just to their friends.
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In some Asian countries, it is also possible to sing karaoke in taxis! These rented cars have small video screens inside them. The passenger can sing along with the car radio and read the song's words on the screen. The cars usually do not have microphones. But in a small space, they are not needed.
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Vichian Simma drives a taxi cab in Bangkok, Thailand. He began offering karaoke in his taxi cab five years ago. His passengers approve and enjoy his karaoke cab. He told the Bangkok Post newspaper,
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"Some passengers want more and more karaoke, especially if they have just left a bar. Other people tell me to drive around for a bit just so they can sing."
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Karaoke has also been used to share public health information. Karaoke videos are very popular in Cambodia. The songs are fun and people enjoy singing them. But some of the songs also contain important information. Dr. Sampson is one man who used this method to tell his village about safe water practices.
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Dr. Sampson was concerned about the people of his village. Some of their water wells were contaminated – the wells were poisoned with arsenic. Many people were sick from the poisoned water. However, there was another problem. Most people could not read. So it was difficult to teach them about testing the water.
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But one day he heard a woman singing along to music. This gave him an idea. He wrote a song about good, safe water use. The song told a story about a man and a woman who have a new well. But before they drink from it, they get the water tested. They discover the water has arsenic in it. They paint the well red so that everyone will know that the water is not safe to drink. Dr. Sampson shares these videos through the organization Resource Development International. The karaoke videos have successfully taken the message of clean water to many villages.
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Singing karaoke spread from Japan into all of Asia, and then to the rest of the world. Now there is even a world Karaoke competition. The Karaoke World Championship began in 2003. It has been held in Finland, Thailand, and Russia. The competition lasts for three days. It brings the world's best karaoke singers to one place. The goal is to find the best male and the best female karaoke singer in the world. Since the competition began there have been winners from Finland, Lebanon, Malaysia and many other countries.
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Have you ever sung karaoke? Do you like it? Is karaoke popular where you live? You can tell us on our website at https://www.radio.English.net Or, .find Spotlight on Facebook. Just search for Spotlight Radio.
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The writer and producer of this program was Courtney Schutt. The voices you heard were from the United States. All quotes were adapted and voiced by Spotlight. This program is called "Singing with the Music." We hope you can join us again for the next Spotlight program. Goodbye!