China’s Humble Maestro Tutors Piano Prodigies

China’s Humble¹ Maestro Tutors Piano Prodigies²

 

By Tim Johnson /©2005,

Knight³ Ridder Newspapers. Distributed by

Tribune Media Services International.

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Just over the border from Hong Kong, the shriek⁴ of car horns and clatter⁵ of machinery⁶ fill the air of Shenzhen, China. Once inside the thick doors of the Shenzhen School of the Arts, however, the grating noise dissipates. Through those doors, many young pianists have found their mecca.

 

A national treasure

 

A few years back, Shenzhen lured⁷ one of China’s most revered⁸, if obscure, piano teachers to the local arts school. He, in turn, brought some promising⁹ students.

 

Today, Dan Zhaoyi is considered a national treasure, a maestro with a knack¹⁰ for catapulting young students to the highest levels of international competition. His students have chalked up an extraordinary number of prizes. At the 2000 Frederick Chopin piano competition in Warsaw, Poland, Dan had two students in the contest’s final round—an almost unheard-of achievement. The winner, Li Yundi, just 18 years old at the time, became the youngest-ever winner of the competition. Li has gone on to play in the world’s great concert halls. Dan’s other finalist, Chen Sa, also is making her mark.

 

Dan quietly acknowledges that his students have won 27 prizes in recent international competitions, including seven first place prizes. “He has so many students winning international competitions now that he is getting very, very famous,” says Zhou Guangren, a friend who teaches at the Central Conservatory¹¹ of Music in Beijing and often judges worldwide music competitions.

 

As Dan’s renown¹² spreads, requests pour in from the United States, Japan and Europe for him to sit on juries for competitions and attend international events. Often, he offers a polite refusal. “I don’t speak English. It’s a language barrier. So I decline,” Dan explains in Mandarin¹³ with a pronounced Sichuan province accent. “I’d rather tend to my students.”

Vocabulary Focus

dissipate (v) [5disipeit] to disappear gradually

catapult (v) [5kAtEpQlt] to suddenly thrust someone or something into a

particular state, such as fame

chalk up (idiom) to achieve something, such as points or a victory

make one’s mark (idiom) to make people notice one or one’s achievements; to have an important effect on something

 

Specialized¹⁴ Terms

maestro (n) 音乐大师；大音乐家 a person who is very skilled in an art, especially composing, directing, teaching or performing music (Italian for “master”)

prodigy¹⁵ (n) 奇才；天才 someone with a very great ability, which usually shows itself when that person is a young child

Frederick Chopin 肖邦 (1810—1849) widely considered one of the greatest composers for the piano; Chopin’s musical talent became apparent very early and he was often compared with the childhood genius Mozart

conservatory (n) 音乐学校；戏剧学校 a school for the teaching of music or sometimes acting¹⁶ or art

jury (n) 评审委员 a group of people chosen to decide the winner of a competition

谦逊的中国音乐大师培育钢琴奇才

张梵 译

 

但昭义协助学生追寻完美钢琴天籁

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在香港边界的另一端，尖锐的汽车喇叭声和机械嘈杂声在深圳市此起彼伏。但踏入深圳艺术学院的厚重大门后，刺耳的噪声便逐渐消失，许多青年钢琴家也在学校内找到学习圣地。

 

国宝级人物   

几年前，深圳说服了一位在中国极受尊敬却鲜为人知的钢琴老师，让他至当地艺术学校任教。这位老师也带来了一些极具潜力的学生。   

但昭义如今被认为是国宝级音乐大师，能够在一夕之间将年轻学子推向最高级别的国际比赛。他的学生已赢得数目惊人的比赛奖项。在波兰华沙举行的2000年国际萧邦钢琴大赛中，但昭义有两名学生晋级决赛，这是前所未有的成就。当年18岁的李云迪赢得大赛首奖，成为史上最年轻的得主。之后李云迪至全球各知名音乐厅演奏，而但昭义另一位进入决赛的学生陈萨也开始崭露头角。   

但昭义低调地承认他的学生在最近国际大赛中赢得27个奖项，其中包含7项首奖。但昭义的朋友周广仁在北京中央音乐学院任教，常担任国际音乐比赛评审。周广仁说：“他有太多学生在国际比赛获奖，因此他也变得非常、非常出名。”

随着但昭义知名度提高，美国、日本及欧洲也开始邀请他担任国际比赛的评审并参加国际活动。但昭义通常都会礼貌地回绝。他用带着浓厚四川口音的国语解释说：“我不会讲英文，有语言隔阂，因此我婉拒。我宁可照顾好我的学生。”

1 humble   

adj.谦卑的，恭顺的；地位低下的；v.降低，贬低

参考例句：

• In my humble opinion,he will win the election.依我拙见，他将在选举中获胜。
• Defeat and failure make people humble.挫折与失败会使人谦卑。

2 prodigies   

n.奇才，天才（尤指神童）( prodigy的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• It'seldom happened that a third party ever witnessed any of these prodigies. 这类壮举发生的时候，难得有第三者在场目睹过。 来自辞典例句
• She is by no means inferior to other prodigies. 她绝不是不如其他神童。 来自互联网

3 knight   

n.骑士，武士；爵士

参考例句：

• He was made an honourary knight.他被授予荣誉爵士称号。
• A knight rode on his richly caparisoned steed.一个骑士骑在装饰华丽的马上。

4 shriek   

v./n.尖叫，叫喊

参考例句：

• Suddenly he began to shriek loudly.突然他开始大声尖叫起来。
• People sometimes shriek because of terror,anger,or pain.人们有时会因为恐惧，气愤或疼痛而尖叫。

5 clatter   

v./n.(使)发出连续而清脆的撞击声

参考例句：

• The dishes and bowls slid together with a clatter.碟子碗碰得丁丁当当的。
• Don't clatter your knives and forks.别把刀叉碰得咔哒响。

6 machinery   

n.(总称)机械，机器；机构

参考例句：

• Has the machinery been put up ready for the broadcast?广播器材安装完毕了吗？
• Machinery ought to be well maintained all the time.机器应该随时注意维护。

7 lured   

吸引，引诱（lure的过去式与过去分词形式）

参考例句：

• The child was lured into a car but managed to escape. 那小孩被诱骗上了车，但又设法逃掉了。
• Lured by the lust of gold,the pioneers pushed onward. 开拓者在黄金的诱惑下，继续奋力向前。

8 revered   

v.崇敬，尊崇，敬畏( revere的过去式和过去分词 )

参考例句：

• A number of institutions revered and respected in earlier times have become Aunt Sally for the present generation. 一些早年受到尊崇的惯例，现在已经成了这代人嘲弄的对象了。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• The Chinese revered corn as a gift from heaven. 中国人将谷物奉为上天的恩赐。 来自辞典例句

9 promising   

adj.有希望的，有前途的

参考例句：

• The results of the experiments are very promising.实验的结果充满了希望。
• We're trying to bring along one or two promising young swimmers.我们正设法培养出一两名有前途的年轻游泳选手。

10 knack   

n.诀窍，做事情的灵巧的，便利的方法

参考例句：

• He has a knack of teaching arithmetic.他教算术有诀窍。
• Making omelettes isn't difficult,but there's a knack to it.做煎蛋饼并不难，但有窍门。

11 conservatory   

n.温室，音乐学院；adj.保存性的，有保存力的

参考例句：

• At the conservatory,he learned how to score a musical composition.在音乐学校里，他学会了怎样谱曲。
• The modern conservatory is not an environment for nurturing plants.这个现代化温室的环境不适合培育植物。

12 renown   

n.声誉，名望

参考例句：

• His renown has spread throughout the country.他的名声已传遍全国。
• She used to be a singer of some renown.她曾是位小有名气的歌手。

13 Mandarin   

n.中国官话，国语，满清官吏；adj.华丽辞藻的

参考例句：

• Just over one billion people speak Mandarin as their native tongue.大约有十亿以上的人口以华语为母语。
• Mandarin will be the new official language of the European Union.普通话会变成欧盟新的官方语言。

14 specialized   

adj.专门的，专业化的

参考例句：

• There are many specialized agencies in the United Nations.联合国有许多专门机构。
• These tools are very specialized.这些是专用工具。

15 prodigy   

n.惊人的事物，奇迹，神童，天才，预兆

参考例句：

• She was a child prodigy on the violin.她是神童小提琴手。
• He was always a Negro prodigy who played barbarously and wonderfully.他始终是一个黑人的奇才，这种奇才弹奏起来粗野而惊人。

16 acting   

n.演戏，行为，假装；adj.代理的，临时的，演出用的

参考例句：

• Ignore her,she's just acting.别理她，她只是假装的。
• During the seventies,her acting career was in eclipse.在七十年代，她的表演生涯黯然失色。