外国人最想和你聊的文化话题：古典民乐

　Realize Chinese National Music　认识古典民乐
     1　古典民乐的简介
     Chinese national music is the traditional art or court music of China. It has a long history stretching for more than three thousand years. It has its own unique systems of musical notation, as well as musical tuning and pitch, musical instruments and styles or musical genres.
     Chinese national music is pentatonic-diatonic, having a scale of twelve notes to an octave as does European-influenced music.
     Chinese national music appeared dating back to the dawn of Chinese civilization, and documents and artifacts provide evidence of a well-developed musical culture as early as Zhou Dynasty (1046 BC-256 BC).
     National music is probably more familiar with us than we might think at first image. Indeed, it is all around us in the past and can be noticed in restaurants, supermarkets, lifts, advertisements or in television programmes.
     Unluckily, while national music is socially undivisive in itself, it has unfortunately become associated in most people's minds with the intellectual elite. Even now, and with certain honorable exceptions, the attending of a live concert can be an intimidating (not to say costly) experience for the uninitiated, especially in that most jealously guarded of establishments, the opera house. The wonderful thing about the technological age in which we live, and particularly the advent of the compact disc, is that we can bypass all irrelevant social and intellectual pretence, and enjoy in the comfort of our own home (often at far less cost) some of the finest music ever composed.
     2　古典民乐的乐器种类和名曲
     （1）古典民乐的乐器
     National and popular music are often distinguished by their choice of instruments. There are few if any genres in which so many different instruments are used simultaneously by performing groups such as symphony orchestras, which often contain as many as 5 or so different types of string instruments including violins, violas, cellos, double basses and harp; 7 or more types of woodwind instruments; 4 or so types of brass instrument; and many diverse percussion instruments, sometimes as many as 10 different types. Also prevalent, especially in opera, is the human voice.
     Woodwind and percussion 　　　　管乐器和打击乐器
     Bowed strings 　　　　　　　　弓弦乐器
     Plucked and struck strings 　　 拨弦乐器
     （2）十大名曲
     Lofty mountains and flowing water　　 　高山流水
     Guangling san　　　　　　　　　　　 　　广陵散
     Wild geese on the sandbank 　　　　　 　平沙落雁
     Three stanzas of plum-blossoms　　　 　 梅花三弄
     Ambush on all sides 　　　　　　　　 　 十面埋伏
     Flute and drum at sunset 　　　　　　 　夕阳箫鼓
     Dialogue of fisherman and woodsman 　 　渔樵问答
     Eighteen passages of the hu jia 　　　 胡笳十八拍
     Autumn moon over the han palace 　　　 汉宫秋月
     The spring snow 　　　　　　　　　　 　 阳春白雪
     现代流行乐好听，但在我们骨子里不能忘记那原汁原味的民族音乐。那是经历了历史的洗礼，岁月的沧桑，世世代代勤劳善良的中国各民族智慧的结晶，是中华的骄傲。
     归根结底，时代在进步，人也要进步，但是老祖宗留下的东西是我们一辈子的财富。我们不能忘！就算是再多元化也的音乐，再流行的旋律，我们朴实的民族之魂不能丢！
Part 2　Key words ＆ Sentences　关键词语全知道
     Pipa is a plucked Chinese string instrument. Sometimes called the Chinese lute. The instrument has a pear-shaped wooden body. It has been played for nearly two thousand years of history in China, and belongs to the plucked category of instruments.
     琵琶是一种拨弦乐器，有时也叫鲁特琴，它的形状有点像梨，木头做的，已经有两千多年的历史了。
     Guzheng is a traditional Chinese musical instrument.
     古筝是一种传统的古典音乐乐器。
     Yangqin is a Chinese hammered dulcimer originally from Persia.
     扬琴是中国的一种起源于波斯的打击类琴。
     Guanglingsan is one of the longest Guqin tablatures.
     《广陵散》是我国篇幅最长的古琴曲之一。
     Wild geese on the sandbank is the most widely circulated work in the last 300 years.
     《平沙落雁》是近300年来流传最广泛的作品。
     Chinese national folk music flows in our blood.
     中国的古典民乐流淌在我们的血液之中。
     Chinese national music plays an important role in the world music.
     中国古典音乐在世界音乐中占有重要的地位。
     Xun is the most unspeakable musical thing of all. It's made from clay. It's sound like the sob of the clay, like the sacrificial lambs deeply buried over thousands of years with endless sadness to tell.
     埙是所有乐器中最无法言喻的东西。它的成分是泥土，发出的声音也是泥土的呜咽，仿佛沉埋千年后的殉葬品，有永远诉不尽的伤感。
     Han dynasty's Qiang flute is the source of Xiao.
     今日洞箫之源就是汉代的羌笛。
     Pipa has very soft line and shape, demurely placed like a sexy woman.
     琵琶的线条和形态很柔美，娴静地摆在那里犹如一个性感的女人。
     The brilliant achievements of Chinese music in the past have shocked many people.
     中国音乐过去的辉煌成就，曾震撼了无数世人。
     Confucianism has a very big effect on folk music.
     儒家思想对民乐有很大的影响。
     Listening to the national music is a kind of enjoyment of the beauty.
     听古典音乐是一种美的享受。
     Now fewer and fewer people can understand national music.
     现在能懂古典音乐的人越来越少了。
     Each kind of instrument has its unique sound.
     每一种乐器都有其独特的音效。
     Chinese national music can cultivate one's taste.
     古典音乐能陶冶人的情操。
     Qin, pipa and guzheng are the most famous in China's national music.
     琴，琵琶和古筝，这三种乐器在古典乐中是最出名的。
     National music has a long history.
     古典乐距今已有很长的历史了。
     Chinese classic folk music has a wild difference from foreign national music.
     中国古典民乐和外国的古典乐有很大的差别。
Part 3　Let's Talk！　开始交流吧
     Yan Qin：Hi, ZhangKe, what kind of music do you like to listen to?
     严秦：张科，你喜欢听什么音乐啊？
     Zhang Ke：No particular favorite, but mainly listen to pop, and you?
     张科：没有特别喜欢的，但主要还是听流行的，你呢？
     Yan Qin：You might be very surprised, because I like to listen to national ones.
     严秦：说出来你可能会很诧异，我喜欢听古典的。
     Zhang Ke：Really? Is not true that only the old like to listen to the national ones?
     张科：是吗？古典音乐不是都是年长的人喜欢听吗？
     Yan Qin：Oh, yeah, in our fixed thinking, it seems that only our parents listen to them, but national music is regardless of age.
     严秦：呵呵，是啊，在我们的固定思维里，似乎只有我们父母那一辈的才听，可是古典音乐也是不分年龄的。
     Zhang ke：Oh, and are there any differences between the popular and the national music?
     张科：哦，那流行音乐和古典音乐有什么区别吗？
     Yan Qin：Of course, quite different, the national focuses on the conception and a refreshing feeling, which can make us feel at site. With a lot of national instruments, the national can have different sound and produce different feelings. The popular generally relies on the pronunciation, the melody is relatively tacky.
     严秦：当然了，区别可大了，古典音乐讲究的是那种意境，一种心旷神怡的感觉，能让人身临其境，而且古典乐器很多，不同的乐器有不同的音效、不同的感觉。而流行的音乐一般都是靠发音，旋律比较俗气。
     Zhang Ke：You seem to know lots of national music! Which music do you like most?
     张科：看来你对古典音乐很有研究啊！那你最喜欢哪首啊？
     Yan Qin：Lofty Mountain and Flowing Water, while listening to the song, I feel that I see the mountains and hear the sound of water.
     严秦：《高山流水》，听这首曲子，我感觉看到了高山，听到了水声。
     Zhang Ke：So amazing, I want to hear it, you have that CD?
     张科：这么神奇啊，我也想听一下，你那有CD吗？
     Yan Qin：Yeah, tomorrow I will bring it to you.
     严秦：有啊，明天带给你听一下啊。
     Zhang Ke：Good.
     张科：好的。