【雅思课外精读】受疫情重创，各大合唱团将面临倒闭

　　【雅思课外精读】受疫情重创，各大合唱团将面临倒闭*注：本文摘自7月8日《经济学人》

　　Voices off

　　失声

　　Choral singing has been hit hard by the pandemic

　　合唱受到新冠疫情的严重打击

　　1. A FEW MONTHS ago Emilia Olsson, a social worker in Sweden, received an email from her amateur choir informing her that, because of covid-19, there would be no rehearsals for a couple of weeks. Then they were cancelled until the summer. She missed the music-making, Ms Olsson says, but especially the sense of community, which had prompted her to join the choir in the first place.

　　几个月前，瑞典社会工作者艾米莉亚·奥尔森(Emilia Olsson)收到了一封来自她的业余唱诗班的电子邮件，通知她，受新冠疫情影响未来几周不能排练了。后来，排练完全被取消了。奥尔森说，她想念音乐，但尤其怀念当初大家在一起的感觉，正是因为这种社区的归属感她才加入了合唱队的。

　　2. A quintessentially social art form, choral singing has been devastated by the pandemic. Suddenly, groups of people exhaling together in close proximity seem dangerous. According to Sonja Greiner of the European Choral Association-Europa Cantat (ECA-EC), an umbrella group for choirs, rumours of super-spreading at rehearsals were unfounded. In any event, they were suspended en masse, along with concerts and church services.

　　合唱作为一种典型的社会性艺术，已经被新冠疫情摧毁。突然之间，一群人聚在一起呼吸变得很危险了。据唱诗班伞形集团欧洲合唱协会(ECA-EC)的Sonja Greiner说，合唱团排练造成病毒大肆传播的谣言是毫无根据的。然而，不管怎样，这些活动连同音乐会和教堂仪式一起被要求暂停。

　　3. All this is causing financial hardship for professional singers and heartbreak for amateurs. According to Chorus America, a networking group, 42.6m Americans regularly sing in choirs; the country has almost 270,000 choruses, most of them religious. In Europe an estimated 37m people take part. In many places, choirs bring together individuals who have little in common besides a love of music. Researchers at Oxford University, and at the universities of Oldenburg and Vienna, have found that amateur choral singing helps establish bonds and boosts feelings of connectedness.

　　这专业歌手造成了经济困难，也让业余歌手心碎。网络组织美国合唱团称，有4260万美国人经常在唱诗班唱歌，而美国有近27万合唱团，其中大部分都是宗教性质的合唱团。在欧洲，估计有3700万人参加各种合唱团。在许多地方，唱诗班把热爱音乐的人们聚集到了一起。牛津大学、奥尔登堡大学和维也纳大学的研究人员发现，业余合唱有助于建立联系，增强联系感。

　　4. In a recent survey by the ECA-EC, virtually all respondents said their choirs had been affected by the virus. Some are able to rehearse online, but the social aspect—the main appeal for many singers, which now makes the activity seem risky—is harder to replicate. “The joy of making music with others,” says Annie Sedley, who sings with the Royal Free Music Society Choir in north London, “the excitement of the performance—all that has gone.” Her choir meets for Zoom sessions while its members “dream of getting together again”. “The choir plays an important role at our church,” says Charles Olson, who sings at North Park Covenant Church in Chicago, “so this situation is devastating.”

　　欧洲合唱协会最近的一项调查称，几乎所有的受访者都说他们的唱诗班受到了疫情的影响。有些合唱团可以在网上排练，但是对很多人来说最具吸引力的合唱团社交却使得这项活动看起来很危险，而且这种社交是很难在以后去复制和补充的。在伦敦北部皇家自由音乐协会唱诗班演唱的安妮•塞德莉说，“和别人一起唱歌的欢乐，表演的兴奋都不复存在。”她的合唱团在Zoom上排练，而成员们“梦想着再次相聚”。“唱诗班在我们的教堂里扮演着重要的角色，”在芝加哥北公园圣约教堂唱歌的查尔斯·奥尔森说，“所以这种情况是毁灭性的。”

　　5. Like other artists, meanwhile, professional singers, most of whom are freelancers, are struggling financially. “There’s just no work,” laments Lawrence Wallington, a British bass who has sung with the choir of Westminster Abbey, among others. Mr Wallington doesn’t know when he will perform again; he is hoping that a concert scheduled for November will prove feasible. By then he will have gone more than half a year without choral singing—and without an income.

　　与此同时，与其他艺术家一样，职业歌手(大多数是自由职业者)也陷入财务危机。曾在威斯敏斯特教堂唱诗班演唱过的英国男低音劳伦斯•沃林顿(Lawrence Wallington)感叹道:“没有工作。”沃林顿先生不知道他什么时候能够再次演出；他希望今年11月份可以举行音乐会。到那时，他已经有半年多没有演唱，也有半年多没有任何收入了。

　　6. Westminster Abbey’s choir, which kept singing through the second world war, is bound to survive the pandemic. Others will adapt to a new, socially distanced reality. Justin Doyle, conductor of the RIAS Chamber Choir in Berlin, suggests the disruption could be a spur to new formats. After the hiatus, his group’s live performances may involve three teams of singers taking turns to deliver the same programme to small audiences. “We can innovate more than football can,” Mr Doyle reckons.

　　威斯敏斯特教堂的唱诗班在第二次世界大战期间一直在演唱，势必会挺过此次疫情。其他合唱乐团将不得不适应当前新的，社交距离遥远的现实。柏林RIAS室内唱诗班的指挥贾斯汀·多伊尔认为，这种混乱可能会刺激新的唱腔形式。演出停止后，他的团队可能会有三组歌手轮流为小部分观众演唱同样的节目。道尔先生认为:“我们可以比足球更有创新。”

　　7. But without targeted financial support, many other ensembles may have to fold; the prospects of the highly regarded Vienna Boys’ Choir, among others, look bleak. For many enthusiasts, life after lockdown will be less melodious, and lonelier.

　　但是，如果没有目标明确的财政支持，许多其他综合演唱团队可能不得不解散;备受推崇的维也纳少年合唱团的前景不容乐观。对于许多合唱爱好者来说，封锁后的生活将不再那么悦耳，而且会更加孤独。

　　精读解析

　　篇章结构P1—P2：受疫情影响，合唱队排练停止。P3—P5：合唱停止对歌手的影响：财务危机；找不到联系感。P6：疫情可能会改变合唱形式。P7：有的合唱团受疫情影响会解散，而人们的生活也会受到影响。

　　重点单词rehearsal /r ɪ 'h ɜ ː s( ə )l/ n. 练习, 排练, 排演【例句】The dance group is ready for rehearsal.舞群准备排练。

　　prompt /pr ɒ m(p)t/ adj. 敏捷的，迅速的；立刻的vt. 促进；激起；提示；（给演员）提白【短语】prompt shipment 即期装船prompt in 对…很迅速prompt attention 从速办理prompt delivery 限时专送【例句】The manager replied with promptness and courtesy.那经理思路敏捷、彬彬有礼地作了答复。

　　umbrella group 伞形集团；综合组织

　　quintessential / ˌ kw ɪ nt əˈ sen ʃə l/ adj. 精髓的;典型的；第五元素的【例句】He was the quintessential tough guy—strong, silent, and self-contained.他是个典型的硬汉——强壮、沉默寡言、持重。

　　devastate /'dev ə ste ɪ t/ vt. 毁坏;使荒芜；在感情上(精神上、财务上等)压垮【同根】devastation n. 毁坏，荒废【例句】He was devastated by the rude remark.他被粗鲁的言论搅昏了头。

　　exhale / ɪ ks'he ɪ l/ vt. & vi. 呼出;发散出【例句】Sweet odours exhale from flowers.花儿散发出花香。

　　proximity /pr ɒ k's ɪ m ɪ t ɪ / n. 接近, 附近【短语】close proximity 极为贴近in close proximity to 与…靠得很近，接近proximity effect 邻近效应，接近效应；近距离效果proximity switch 接近开关，引发开关in the proximity of 在……附近【例句】Their house is in close proximity to ours.他们的房子很接近我们的。

　　en masse全体地；一同地【例句】If they disagreed what he was doing in foreign policy, they'd all threatened to resign en masse.如果他们不同意总统在外交政策上的决定，他们会以集体辞职来进行威胁。

　　replicate /'replɪkeɪt/ vt. 复制;重复【例句】If the virus cannot replicate itself, it cannot cause illness.如果病毒不能变异，也就不能够诱发疾病了。

　　freelancer /'frilæns ɚ / n. 自由作家;自由记者【短语】freelance consultant 自由职业顾问freelance work 自由职业freelance writer 自由撰稿人【例句】He derives his income from freelance work.他以自由职业获取收入。

　　lament /l ə 'ment/ n. 挽歌；恸哭；悲痛之情v. 悲叹；悔恨；哀悼【短语】lament over 哀悼；为……而悲痛【例句】He composed a lament to the dead soldier.他为那位阵亡的战士谱写了一首挽歌。

　　feasible /'fi ː z ɪ b( ə )l/ adj. 可行的；可能的；可实行的【例句】A tunnel was not considered economically feasible.从经济上考虑，用隧道并不可行。

　　be bound to势必会；注定会【例句】And striving hard for big things is bound to lead you to painful falls.对大事情的强求，势必会把你引向痛苦的失败的。

　　spur /sp ɜ ː / n. 马刺；鼓舞，刺激；山坡v. 骑马疾驰；给予刺激；激励【例句】International competition is a spur to modernization.国际间的竞争是走向现代化的动力。

　　hiatus /ha ɪ 'e ɪ t ə s/ n. 裂缝，空隙；脱漏部分【同根】hiatal adj. [解]裂孔的；非等粒的；空隙的【例句】All of my favorites are being renewed, with one taking a short hiatus.所有我最喜欢的节目都将迎来新一季, 只有一档会短暂中断。

　　innovate /' ɪ n ə ve ɪ t/ vt. 创始；改变；创立；引人【同根】innovation n. 改革, 革新, 创新；新观念, 新方法, 新发明innovative adj. 新发明的, 新引进的; 革新的; 有改革精神的；乐于引进新观念的【短语】innovate in 对…革新【例句】We must innovate in order to make progress.我们必须改革以便取得进步。

　　ensemble /ɒn'sɒmb(ə)l/ n. 全体；总效果；全套服装；全套家具；合奏组【例句】The group is one of just a handful of all-women ensembles in Ivory Coast.这个团体是 科特迪瓦为数不多的全女子乐队。

　　melodious /mɪ'ləʊdɪəs/ adj. 有旋律的,产生旋律的；悦耳的【例句】The sunshine comes and goes, outpouring driblet and melodious love songs.光线在转化中流露出点点滴滴曼妙地情歌。