经济学人398:古典音乐—音乐的魔术

 　　Books and Arts;Book Review;Classical music;Conjurors;

　　文艺；书评；古典音乐；音乐的魔术；

　　Music as Alchemy: Journeys with Great Conductors and Their Orchestras.

　　音乐就像点石成金——一段与伟大的指挥家和乐团的奇妙旅程。

　　IN “FANTASIA”, Walt Disney's 1940 film of musically inspired animations¹, each piece begins and ends in the same way, with the silhouetted² figure of Leopold Stokowski, a British conductor who died in 1977. He stands alone against a dark red background while the mysterious movements of his hands conjure³ the music in and out of being. “Fantasia” was hugely popular, and made a notable contribution to cultivating a wider appreciation⁴ of classical music. But it also unwittingly peddled⁵ the still pervasive⁶ myth that conductors are, in effect, magicians—sorcerers who single-handedly extract waves of finely variegated⁷ sound out of thin air.

　　1940年沃特·迪士尼拍摄了音乐动画“幻想曲”，每一段的开始和结束都是利奥波德·斯托科夫斯基的剪影。而这位英国指挥家于1977年去世。他独站在深红色背景前，手上的动作充满了神秘色彩，音乐便随着动作此起彼伏。“幻想曲”获得了巨大的成功，并且它对古典音乐新诠释所做出的贡献也非同一般。但它也无意中增加了指挥家的神秘色彩，时至今日人们仍然觉得不可思议，好像他们就是魔术师——独自一人就凭空变出变幻莫测的美妙声音。

　　Tom Service, a British radio presenter⁸ and writer on classical music, has taken the mysterious business of what conductors actually do as the subject of his first book, “Music as Alchemy”. Conductors, including the ones studied in this book, have been scrutinised before, often in considerable detail. What sets Mr Service's book apart, in addition to its breezy tone and infectious, easily worn enthusiasm, is his focus on the relationship between the conductor and his or her orchestral musicians. Many hours have been spent not just in concerts given by the six conductor-orchestra pairs taken as his subject, but in observing them in the rehearsals⁹ beforehand and quizzing members of the orchestra about their side of the experience.

　　汤姆·瑟维斯是英国一位与古典音乐相关的电台主持人和作家，他的第一本书《点石成金的音乐》主题就是揭开指挥家的神秘面纱。包括书中提到的每一位指挥家，都曾被详细介绍过，而且可谓到了事无巨细的地步。但瑟维斯先生的书的特别之处不仅在于他活泼的文笔和极具感染力的热情，还在于书中对指挥家与他们乐队关系的解读。作者花了大量时间，不仅探索了作为书中主人公的六位指挥家和他们乐队的音乐会，还深入了解了他们前期的排练，“拷问”乐队成员，从他们的角度寻找答案。

　　This is not a method that would pass muster¹⁰ in scientific inquiry—few orchestral players would be rude in print about their chief conductor—but it yields some insightful results. The reader learns, for example, that most players in the Budapest Festival Orchestra do not really mind when Ivan Fischer lays down the law, but that the players of the robustly¹¹ democratic Concertgebouw Orchestra most certainly do. Mr Service finds that the London Symphony Orchestra see the benefit of Valery Gergiev's high-octane, “everything will be all right on the night” attitude, but that the Berlin Philharmonic rely on a slightly more thorough approach from Sir Simon Rattle¹².

　　这种方法并不是科学调查方法——几乎没有乐队成员会在书中对他们的指挥发牢骚——但同样也能获得一些极富洞察力的结果。譬如，读者通过本书会了解到，有些布达佩斯节日乐团的成员就不介意他们的指挥伊万·费舍尔发号施令。但相反，皇家乐团的成员就强烈要求民主，不会接受个人号令。瑟维斯先生发现伦敦交响乐团得益于瓦列里·格吉耶夫的高强度风格，坚信“晚上开场前一切都能就绪”，但柏林爱乐乐团就更加青睐西蒙·拉特尔那种略微周密的做事方法。

　　The interviews with the conductors themselves, awkwardly woven into the narrative¹³ as full transcripts¹⁴, are not particularly rewarding. The book's strength is in its mix of stories and perspectives, which ably convey the murky¹⁵ process by which orchestras and conductors build a bond of mutual¹⁶ trust.

　　指挥家的专访只是编成文字记录一般的叙述，了无趣味，所以没什么特别的价值。本书的长处在于书中不乏故事和观点，巧妙地叙述了乐队成员和指挥如何建立起相互信任的神秘过程。

　　The most illuminating¹⁷ chapter is perhaps the final one, about the relationship between Claudio Abbado and the Lucerne Festival Orchestra. Famously reticent¹⁸, Mr Abbado gives little away himself, but his players say it all for him—a fine confirmation¹⁹ of his gifts as a conductor. He is special, the musicians explain, not merely because of his clarity of vision, authoritative²⁰ analysis or the mysterious energy of his gestures, but rather because of the way he listens. He appears to live the music, inviting²¹ them to live it with him.

　　书中最出彩的一章大概就属最后一章了，描写了克劳迪奥·阿巴多与琉森节庆管弦乐团。阿巴多先生沉默少语是出了名的，所以他自己并没有多说什么，但他的乐团成员完全代劳——成为他指挥天赋的最佳证明。成员都说他不一般，不仅是因为他有敏锐的洞察力、权威的阐释和充满神秘力量的手势，而是因为他聆听音乐的独到之法。他能唤醒音乐，并邀请音乐伴他左右。

　　Players need to believe conductors understand what they are doing, and that their individual efforts make a difference. Conductors, in turn, need to trust their orchestras to do everything possible to make the music happen in the moment. The currency of this trust is listening, and one of the most interesting pictures to emerge from the book is that of the conductor as a kind of chief listener. Hand gestures, whether the baton-traced polygons of the textbooks or the mysterious finger-flickerings of Mr Gergiev and Mr Abbado, are construed²² less as specific directions than as signs of a kind of ultra-responsive listening, a listening which feeds back into how the players hear each other.

　　演奏者要相信他们的指挥知晓他们的一举一动，也明白他们每个人的努力都举足轻重。同样，指挥家也要相信他的演奏者一定会让演奏毫无差错。信任源自倾听，而指挥更像是首席听众，这是书中传达出的最有趣的一点。不论是课本里用指挥棒划出的多边形，还是格吉耶夫先生和阿巴多先生指尖迸出的不可思议的弧度，指挥家的手势都不仅仅是特殊的提示，而是一种无需回应的聆听，只需演奏者相互聆听就够了。

　　As the book's title suggests, it may indeed be most appropriate to think of this listening process as a kind of magic. But if so, it is a magic that comes through dedication²³, not sorcery.

　　就像书名一样，我们的确应该把这种聆听过程视为魔术。就真是魔术，也是表演者们尽心奉献变成的魔法，不会有什么法术。

1 animations   

n.生气( animation的名词复数 )；兴奋；动画片；（指电影、录像、电脑游戏的）动画制作

参考例句：

• You'll see your team cheerleaders and mascot performing new animations as well. 你会看到啦啦队队长跟吉祥物也都会有全新的动作。 来自互联网
• Ability to create simple movie and animations using graphic & multimedia software. 能够用平面和多媒体软件制作简单的电影及动画。 来自互联网

2 silhouetted   

显出轮廓的，显示影像的

参考例句：

• We could see a church silhouetted against the skyline. 我们可以看到一座教堂凸现在天际。
• The stark jagged rocks were silhouetted against the sky. 光秃嶙峋的岩石衬托着天空的背景矗立在那里。

3 conjure   

v.恳求，祈求；变魔术，变戏法

参考例句：

• I conjure you not to betray me.我恳求你不要背弃我。
• I can't simply conjure up the money out of thin air.我是不能像变魔术似的把钱变来。

4 appreciation   

n.评价；欣赏；感谢；领会，理解；价格上涨

参考例句：

• I would like to express my appreciation and thanks to you all.我想对你们所有人表达我的感激和谢意。
• I'll be sending them a donation in appreciation of their help.我将送给他们一笔捐款以感谢他们的帮助。

5 peddled   

（沿街）叫卖( peddle的过去式和过去分词 )； 兜售； 宣传； 散播

参考例句：

• He has peddled the myth that he is supporting the local population. 他散布说他支持当地群众。
• The farmer peddled his fruit from house to house. 那个农民挨家挨户兜售他的水果。

6 pervasive   

adj.普遍的；遍布的，(到处)弥漫的；渗透性的

参考例句：

• It is the most pervasive compound on earth.它是地球上最普遍的化合物。
• The adverse health effects of car exhaust are pervasive and difficult to measure.汽车尾气对人类健康所构成的有害影响是普遍的，并且难以估算。

7 variegated   

adj.斑驳的，杂色的

参考例句：

• This plant has beautifully variegated leaves.这种植物的叶子色彩斑驳，非常美丽。
• We're going to grow a variegated ivy up the back of the house.我们打算在房子后面种一棵杂色常春藤。

8 presenter   

n.（电视、广播的）主持人，赠与者

参考例句：

• Most people think being a television presenter is exciting.很多人认为当电视节目主持人是一件刺激的事情。
• The programme dispensed with its most popular presenter.这个节目最受欢迎的主持人被换掉了。

9 rehearsals   

n.练习( rehearsal的名词复数 )；排练；复述；重复

参考例句：

• The earlier protests had just been dress rehearsals for full-scale revolution. 早期的抗议仅仅是大革命开始前的预演。
• She worked like a demon all through rehearsals. 她每次排演时始终精力过人。 来自《简明英汉词典》

10 muster   

v.集合，收集，鼓起，激起；n.集合，检阅，集合人员，点名册

参考例句：

• Go and muster all the men you can find.去集合所有你能找到的人。
• I had to muster my courage up to ask him that question.我必须鼓起勇气向他问那个问题。

11 robustly   

adv.要用体力地，粗鲁地

参考例句：

• These three hormones also robustly stimulated thymidine incorporation and inhibited drug-induced apoptosis. 并且这三种激素有利于胸（腺嘧啶脱氧核）苷掺入和抑制药物诱导的细胞凋亡。 来自互联网
• The economy is still growing robustly, but inflation, It'seems, is back. 经济依然强劲增长，但是通胀似乎有所抬头。 来自互联网

12 rattle   

v.飞奔，碰响；激怒；n.碰撞声；拨浪鼓

参考例句：

• The baby only shook the rattle and laughed and crowed.孩子只是摇着拨浪鼓，笑着叫着。
• She could hear the rattle of the teacups.她听见茶具叮当响。

13 narrative   

n.叙述，故事；adj.叙事的，故事体的

参考例句：

• He was a writer of great narrative power.他是一位颇有记述能力的作家。
• Neither author was very strong on narrative.两个作者都不是很善于讲故事。

14 transcripts   

n.抄本（ transcript的名词复数 ）；转写本；文字本；副本

参考例句：

• Like mRNA, both tRNA and rRNA are transcripts of chromosomal DNA. tRNA及rRNA同mRNA一样，都是染色体DNA的转录产物。 来自辞典例句
• You can't take the transfer students'exam without your transcripts. 没有成绩证明书，你就不能参加转学考试。 来自辞典例句

15 murky   

adj.黑暗的，朦胧的；adv.阴暗地，混浊地；n.阴暗；昏暗

参考例句：

• She threw it into the river's murky depths.她把它扔进了混浊的河水深处。
• She had a decidedly murky past.她的历史背景令人捉摸不透。

16 mutual   

adj.相互的，彼此的；共同的，共有的

参考例句：

• We must pull together for mutual interest.我们必须为相互的利益而通力合作。
• Mutual interests tied us together.相互的利害关系把我们联系在一起。

17 illuminating   

a.富于启发性的，有助阐明的

参考例句：

• We didn't find the examples he used particularly illuminating. 我们觉得他采用的那些例证启发性不是特别大。
• I found his talk most illuminating. 我觉得他的话很有启发性。

18 reticent   

adj.沉默寡言的；言不如意的

参考例句：

• He was reticent about his opinion.他有保留意见。
• He was extremely reticent about his personal life.他对自己的个人生活讳莫如深。

19 confirmation   

n.证实，确认，批准

参考例句：

• We are waiting for confirmation of the news.我们正在等待证实那个消息。
• We need confirmation in writing before we can send your order out.给你们发送订购的货物之前，我们需要书面确认。

20 authoritative   

adj.有权威的，可相信的；命令式的；官方的

参考例句：

• David speaks in an authoritative tone.大卫以命令的口吻说话。
• Her smile was warm but authoritative.她的笑容很和蔼，同时又透着威严。

21 inviting   

adj.诱人的，引人注目的

参考例句：

• An inviting smell of coffee wafted into the room.一股诱人的咖啡香味飘进了房间。
• The kitchen smelled warm and inviting and blessedly familiar.这间厨房的味道温暖诱人，使人感到亲切温馨。

22 construed   

v.解释（陈述、行为等）( construe的过去式和过去分词 )；翻译，作句法分析

参考例句：

• He considered how the remark was to be construed. 他考虑这话该如何理解。
• They construed her silence as meaning that she agreed. 他们把她的沉默解释为表示赞同。 来自《简明英汉词典》

23 dedication   

n.奉献，献身，致力，题献，献辞

参考例句：

• We admire her courage,compassion and dedication.我们钦佩她的勇气、爱心和奉献精神。
• Her dedication to her work was admirable.她对工作的奉献精神可钦可佩。