VOA慢速英语2010年-THIS IS AMERICA - Record-Breaking Stor

SHIRLEY GRIFFITH: Welcome to THIS IS AMERICA in VOA Special English. I'm Shirley Griffith.

STEVE EMBER: And I’m Steve Ember. This week on our program, we tell about Nashville, Tennessee, and its efforts to recover from severe flooding.

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SHIRLEY GRIFFITH: The official nickname¹ of Nashville is "Music City, USA." When people think of Nashville, they think of country music. The city is home to the Grand Ole Opry, the Country Music Hall of Fame and many major record companies. But some of these famous places were seriously damaged by severe flooding earlier this month.

Rivers flooded parts of Tennessee after a record-breaking storm. More than thirty centimeters of rain fell on May first and second. The water swelled² most of the area’s lakes, small rivers, creeks³ and streams. Much of that water flowed into the Cumberland River, which flows through Nashville.

On May third, the Cumberland River measured almost sixteen meters, more than three and a half meters above flood stage. This is the highest level since nineteen thirty-seven.

STEVE EMBER: The flooding caught most people by surprise. There were power failures, which made it difficult to warn drivers about flooded streets.

Floodwaters begin to lower last month in Nashville, Tennessee

Hundreds of people were rescued by boats from their flooded homes. At least twenty-nine people were killed in Tennessee, Mississippi and Kentucky, either by floodwaters or tornadoes⁴.

At least nine people were killed in Nashville. Cleaning up and repairing that city may cost a billion and a half dollars or more.

SHIRLEY GRIFFITH: The water flooded some of Nashville’s best-known places, including the Grand Ole Opry House. The Grand Ole Opry is the heart of country music in America. Performances and music broadcasts have taken place there since nineteen twenty-five.

By the nineteen forties, "Grand Ole Opry" had become the most important country music radio show in America. Roy Acuff was perhaps the most popular Opry artist of that time. Here he is with the Smoky Mountain Boys performing "Wabash Cannonball."

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STEVE EMBER: The Ryman Auditorium⁵ was home to the Grand Ole Opry until nineteen seventy-four. Then the show moved to the Grand Ole Opry House, fourteen kilometers east of the center of the city. The flood damaged the building and destroyed instruments, costumes, sheet music and audio tapes. The Opry was forced to move its shows to other concert halls.

Several other music theaters in the city were also flooded. So was the Gaylord Opryland Resort and Convention⁶ Center. More than one thousand people staying at the hotel were taken to a nearby high school.

The Country Music Hall of Fame and Museum suffered only minor⁷ damage. Objects from famous country music stars of the past were not affected⁸.

SHIRLEY GRIFFITH: However, many of Nashville’s current country music performers lost instruments and equipment when a storage center was flooded. Musician Brad Paisley said most of his guitars and equipment for his upcoming concerts had been destroyed.

Hundreds of other musicians also store their instruments and equipment there. Ben Jumper, the owner of the storage business, said he expected his losses would amount to tens of millions of dollars.

The floodwaters damaged or destroyed many other businesses and homes in the city. On May sixth, country music star Kenny Chesney posted a video on YouTube. It shows the floodwaters on his property. He asked for help for people affected by the flooding.

KENNY CHESNEY: "This is my property here in Nashville, Tennessee. I’ve got thirty-nine acres here and you can see it’s all under about ten to twelve feet of water. I live right on the river. I want to urge all of you guys to do whatever you can to help the people of Nashville. As long as I’ve been here this is the toughest thing that’s ever happened to this city and I want to urge everybody out there to give whatever you can – as little as you can or as much as you can — to give something because there’s a lot of people really hurting right now.

"I lost a big portion of this property but there’s a lot of people in this city who have lost their lives and their livelihoods⁹. So please -- toothbrush, toothpaste, two dollars, twenty dollars, two hundred dollars, two thousand dollars, whatever. It all adds up and it all goes to a good cause. Keep Nashville, Tennessee, in your prayers."

STEVE EMBER: Here is Kenny Chesney singing one of his hits, "I’m Alive."

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The music industry is supporting several disaster-relief efforts for Nashville. The Twelfth Annual Grammy Block Party and Membership¹⁰ Celebration was held May eleventh. It raised money for the Recording¹¹ Academy’s new MusiCares Nashville Flood Relief Fund. This event helps local musicians in need.

The money will pay for food and clothing, transportation, clean-up efforts, relocation costs and medicine.

GAC, a cable television network for country music, broadcast a program May sixteenth to raise money for relief efforts. It was broadcast from the Ryman Auditorium which was not damaged by the floods.

The yearly CMA Music Festival will be held June tenth to the thirteenth. Half the money from the festival will be given to the Community Foundation of Middle Tennessee for flood relief.

SHIRLEY GRIFFITH: Famous citizens of Nashville are also organizing events. Singer and songwriter Kesha announced a flood benefit concert to take place June sixteenth. All profits will be used to help families affected by the flood.

Kesha said: "Nashville helped shape me as an artist and as a person and my love for this city is beyond words. I will continue to do anything I can to help rebuild this city and support the families and animals who have been affected by this tragedy." Last Monday, Tim McGraw and Faith Hill announced another benefit concert on June twenty-second. It is called “Nashville Rising: A Benefit Concert for Flood Recovery.”

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STEVE EMBER: Country music star Taylor Swift announced she is giving five hundred thousand dollars to help victims of the flooding. She made the announcement May sixth during a local television program to raise money for flood relief. That effort raised almost two million dollars.

Taylor Swift said: "Nashville is my home, and the reason why I get to do what I love. I have always been proud to be a Nashvillian, but especially now, seeing the love that runs through this city when there are people in crisis¹².”

(MUSIC)

SHIRLEY GRIFFITH: Our program was written by Shelley Gollust. Caty Weaver¹³ was our producer. I'm Shirley Griffith.

STEVE EMBER: And I’m Steve Ember. Transcripts¹⁴, MP3s and podcasts of our programs are at voaspecialenglish.com. You can also post comments on our website and on our Facebook page at VOA Learning English. Join us again next week for THIS IS AMERICA in VOA Special English.
 

1 nickname   

n.绰号，昵称；v.给...取绰号，叫错名字

参考例句：

• She called me by my nickname.她叫我的外号。
• Why do you fasten such a nickname on her?你为什么给她取这样一个绰号？

2 swelled   

增强( swell的过去式和过去分词 )； 肿胀； （使）凸出； 充满（激情）

参考例句：

• The infection swelled his hand. 由于感染，他的手肿了起来。
• After the heavy rain the river swelled. 大雨过后，河水猛涨。

3 creeks   

n.小湾( creek的名词复数 )；小港；小河；小溪

参考例句：

• The prospect lies between two creeks. 矿区位于两条溪流之间。 来自辞典例句
• There was the excitement of fishing in country creeks with my grandpa on cloudy days. 有在阴雨天和姥爷一起到乡村河湾钓鱼的喜悦。 来自辞典例句

4 tornadoes   

n.龙卷风，旋风( tornado的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• Tornadoes, severe earthquakes, and plagues create wide spread havoc. 龙卷风、大地震和瘟疫成普遍的毁坏。 来自互联网
• Meteorologists are at odds over the working of tornadoes. 气象学者对龙卷风的运动方式看法不一。 来自互联网

5 auditorium   

n.观众席，听众席；会堂，礼堂

参考例句：

• The teacher gathered all the pupils in the auditorium.老师把全体同学集合在礼堂内。
• The stage is thrust forward into the auditorium.舞台向前突出，伸入观众席。

6 convention   

n.惯例，习俗，常规，会议，大会

参考例句：

• How many delegates have checked in at the convention?大会已有多少代表报到？
• He sets at naught every convention of society.他轻视所有的社会习俗。

7 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。

8 affected   

adj.不自然的，假装的

参考例句：

• She showed an affected interest in our subject.她假装对我们的课题感到兴趣。
• His manners are affected.他的态度不自然。

9 livelihoods   

生计，谋生之道( livelihood的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• First came the earliest individualistic pioneers who depended on hunting and fishing for their livelihoods. 走在最前面的是早期的个人主义先驱者，他们靠狩猎捕鱼为生。 来自英汉非文学 - 政府文件
• With little influence over policies, their traditional livelihoods are threatened. 因为马赛族人对政策的影响力太小，他们的传统生计受到了威胁。

10 membership   

n.成员资格，会员全体，从属关系

参考例句：

• I must renew my membership of the sailing club.我必须延续我的航海俱乐部会员的资格。
• He made up his mind to apply for membership in the Party.他决心申请入党。

11 recording   

n.录音，记录

参考例句：

• How long will the recording of the song take?录下这首歌得花多少时间？
• I want to play you a recording of the rehearsal.我想给你放一下彩排的录像。

12 crisis   

n.危机，危急关头，决定性时刻，关键阶段

参考例句：

• He had proved that he could be relied on in a crisis.他已表明，在紧要关头他是可以信赖的。
• The topic today centers about the crisis in the Middle East.今天课题的中心是中东危机。

13 weaver   

n.织布工；编织者

参考例句：

• She was a fast weaver and the cloth was very good.她织布织得很快，而且布的质量很好。
• The eager weaver did not notice my confusion.热心的纺织工人没有注意到我的狼狈相。

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