美国国家公共电台 NPR--The late jazz guitarist Wes Montgomery was born 100 years ago today

The late jazz guitarist Wes Montgomery was born 100 years ago today

Transcript¹

Wes Montgomery's distinctive² sound continues to inspire and challenge contemporary musicians. His sound came, in part, from using his thumb on the guitar strings⁴ instead of a pick.

A MART?NEZ, HOST:

The late jazz guitarist Wes Montgomery was born 100 years ago today.

(SOUNDBITE OF WES MONTGOMERY'S "FOUR ON SIX")

STEVE INSKEEP, HOST:

Recordings⁵ of Wes Montgomery inspire and even intimidate⁶ living guitar players like Mark Whitfield, who's known for his own recordings with some of the biggest names in pop and jazz.

MARK WHITFIELD: When you listen to him play, you're listening to someone who is playing the guitar in a way that no one before him played.

(SOUNDBITE OF WES MONTGOMERY'S "FOUR ON SIX")

MART?NEZ: Whitfield says Montgomery's distinct sound came in part from using his thumb on the guitar strings instead of a pick.

WHITFIELD: In learning to play the guitar, he plugged his guitar into the amp. He's playing, and his wife kept complaining. No matter how soft he played, it was still too loud. He was going to wake up the kids. It's interesting. He didn't turn the amp off. He wanted to play with the amp on. And he discovered that playing with his thumb gave him the ability to keep the amp on, but produced a much mellower⁷, quieter sound.

INSKEEP: I love that they say necessity is the mother of invention and in this case it was the necessity of keeping the kids in bed. So what kind of a person was he? The music historian Ashley Kahn recalls a gentle, supportive performer whose generosity⁸ was evident in a rehearsal⁹ track in 1965.

ASHLEY KAHN: The piano player's having trouble with the chords, and the graciousness and the sort of warmth that Wes has in working out this piece, which the piano player was unfamiliar¹⁰ with...

(SOUNDBITE OF ARCHIVED RECORDING)

WES MONTGOMERY: F minor¹¹ - I'm sorry. F minor, starts off B flat.

KAHN: And he takes his time, and he slows down the tempo³. Here we have Wes enjoying the company of fellow musicians and just enjoying the music itself.

(SOUNDBITE OF MUSIC)

MART?NEZ: Wes Montgomery was just 45 when he died in 1968, but Whitfield says his influence lives on on stage and in mentoring¹² the next generation of jazz.

WHITFIELD: Wes was one who believed in unity¹³ amongst musicians and in the community. And I don't just mean the community of Black people, just in community in general, that Wes was a believer in fostering attitudes that brought people together.

(SOUNDBITE OF WES MONTGOMERY'S "THE END OF A LOVE AFFAIR")

1 transcript   

n.抄本，誊本，副本，肄业证书

参考例句：

• A transcript of the tapes was presented as evidence in court.一份录音带的文字本作为证据被呈交法庭。
• They wouldn't let me have a transcript of the interview.他们拒绝给我一份采访的文字整理稿。

2 distinctive   

adj.特别的，有特色的，与众不同的

参考例句：

• She has a very distinctive way of walking.她走路的样子与别人很不相同。
• This bird has several distinctive features.这个鸟具有几种突出的特征。

3 tempo   

n.(音乐的)速度；节奏，行进速度

参考例句：

• The boss is unsatisfied with the tardy tempo.老板不满于这种缓慢的进度。
• They waltz to the tempo of the music.他们跟着音乐的节奏跳华尔兹舞。

4 strings   

n.弦

参考例句：

• He sat on the bed,idly plucking the strings of his guitar.他坐在床上，随意地拨着吉他的弦。
• She swept her fingers over the strings of the harp.她用手指划过竖琴的琴弦。

5 recordings   

n.记录( recording的名词复数 )；录音；录像；唱片

参考例句：

• a boxed set of original recordings 一套盒装原声录音带
• old jazz recordings reissued on CD 以激光唱片重新发行的老爵士乐

6 intimidate   

vt.恐吓，威胁

参考例句：

• You think you can intimidate people into doing what you want?你以为你可以威胁别人做任何事？
• The first strike capacity is intended mainly to intimidate adversary.第一次攻击的武力主要是用来吓阻敌方的。

7 mellower   

成熟的( mellow的比较级 )； （水果）熟透的； （颜色或声音）柔和的； 高兴的

参考例句：

• He's got mellower as he's got older. 随着年龄的增长，他变得更成熟了。
• Mellow She used to have a fierce temper, but she's got mellower as she's got older. 她以前脾气暴躁，但随着年龄的增长，她变得较为成熟了。

8 generosity   

n.大度，慷慨，慷慨的行为

参考例句：

• We should match their generosity with our own.我们应该像他们一样慷慨大方。
• We adore them for their generosity.我们钦佩他们的慷慨。

9 rehearsal   

n.排练，排演；练习

参考例句：

• I want to play you a recording of the rehearsal.我想给你放一下彩排的录像。
• You can sharpen your skills with rehearsal.排练可以让技巧更加纯熟。

10 unfamiliar   

adj.陌生的，不熟悉的

参考例句：

• I am unfamiliar with the place and the people here.我在这儿人地生疏。
• The man seemed unfamiliar to me.这人很面生。

11 minor   

adj.较小(少)的，较次要的；n.辅修学科；vi.辅修

参考例句：

• The young actor was given a minor part in the new play.年轻的男演员在这出新戏里被分派担任一个小角色。
• I gave him a minor share of my wealth.我把小部分财产给了他。

12 mentoring   

n.mentoring是一种工作关系。mentor通常是处在比mentee更高工作职位上的有影响力的人。他/她有比‘mentee’更丰富的工作经验和知识，并用心支持mentee的职业（发展）。v.（无经验之人的）有经验可信赖的顾问( mentor的现在分词 )

参考例句：

• One of the most effective instruments for coaching and mentoring is the "role rehearsal" . 辅导和教学的最有效的手段之一是“角色排练。” 来自辞典例句
• Bell Canada called their mentoring system a buddy-buddy system. 加拿大贝尔公司称他们的训导系统是伙伴—伙伴系统。 来自互联网

13 unity   

n.团结，联合，统一；和睦，协调

参考例句：

• When we speak of unity,we do not mean unprincipled peace.所谓团结，并非一团和气。
• We must strengthen our unity in the face of powerful enemies.大敌当前，我们必须加强团结。