(单词翻译:单击)
听力文本
I'm Steve Ember. And I'm Faith Lapidus with People in America in VOA Special English. Today, we tell about Celia Cruz. She was one of the most influential and energetic female singers in the history of Afro-Cuban Music. More than seventy of her albums help document the history of the music known as salsa. That song was "Tu Voz", which means "Your Voice" in Spanish. It was a hit song performed by Celia Cruz and her band, La Sonora Matancera, in nineteen fifty-two. They performed many hit songs. They toured all over the world together spreading the sounds of Cuba. "Tu Voz" is about love and desire. The music helps to transport you to the sunny streets of Havana, Cuba. Like most of the songs of Celia Cruz, this music makes you want to start dancing.
Celia Cruz was born in nineteen twenty-five in Havana, Cuba. Her parents were not musicians. But music played an important role in her childhood. Her grandmother once said that Celia could sing before she could talk. Celia would often sing at school and community gatherings. Later, as a teenager Celia started competing in singing contests. She won many competitions. Her father wanted her to be a teacher. But Celia wanted a career in music. She later said that she was both a singer and a teacher. She said that her music taught the world about Cuban culture and the happiness of living life to the fullest.
Music is an important part of the cultural life of Cubans. During the nineteen thirties and forties in Havana, Celia heard many kinds of music. Famous music groups and singers would perform live on the radio. She could listen to dance music like the rumba, mambo and guaracha. These kinds of songs were influenced by the music of Africa and Spain. This Cuban music or "son" is defined by the beat of the drum and the call of the singer. It is music made for dancing. In nineteen forty-seven Celia started studying at the Cuban Conservatory of Music. She was discovered a few years later by the music group La Sonora Matancera. This group of was one of Cuba's most famous orchestras. Their lead singer had just left the band, so they needed a new performer. When the group heard Celia's voice, they hired her immediately.
At first, listeners missed the band's former singer. But soon, they fell in love with the powerful voice of Celia Cruz. Here is another of her songs recorded with La Sonora Matancera. It is called "Caramelos". Cruz tells about a candy seller singing in the streets about his delicious goods. In the early nineteen sixties, great political changes took place in Cuba. After a revolution, the communist leader Fidel Castro took power in the country. Like many other Cubans, Celia Cruz decided to move to the United States. She later became an American citizen and never again returned to her country.
A few years later, she married the trumpet player of her band, Pedro Knight. Soon Cruz and her husband separated from La Sonora Matancera. They had played together for fifteen years. But it was time to explore new musical choices.
Celia Cruz lived in New York City where Latin music could be heard in many forms. Many musicians were experimenting with mixing different traditions, rhythms, and styles. The music known as salsa was a combination of Cuban "son" with other Latin sounds. This music expressed the happiness and the pain of life in Latin American communities. Celia Cruz soon became the voice of salsa. She performed and made records with many musicians. She would wear wildly colorful clothing with tall shiny shoes. Her face was often painted with bright makeup.
And her dancing was as energetic as her voice. Here is a recording of Cruz singing "Isadora" with Johnny Pacheco and the Fania AllStars. During the nineteen seventies Celia Cruz became famous for calling out "Azúcar!" while singing. This word means "sugar" in Spanish. Cruz would shout out this word to energize her band and her audience. You can hear her saying this word in many recordings. Celia Cruz always enjoyed taking on new projects. She sang many songs with musicians that were not salsa performers. For example, she sang with the hip-hop singer Wyclef Jean on one of his albums. She also sang with musicians such as David Byrne and Patti Labelle. Cruz also appeared in several movies. One of her most well-known roles was in the film "The Mambo Kings" in nineteen ninety-two. Not surprisingly, Cruz plays the part of a salsa singer. Here is Cruz performing the song "Guantanamera" from the sound track of this movie.
Celia Cruz enjoyed a full and successful life. She won many Grammy Awards. With her seventy albums, she became the most famous voice of salsa music. She was a strong and powerful woman in a music industry made up mostly of men. In two thousand three, Celia Cruz died as a result of brain cancer. Her life was celebrated at two funerals. Hundreds of thousands of people attended the funerals. Actors, politicians, musicians as well as thousands of fans attended to say goodbye to the Queen of Salsa. We leave you with the song "Rie y Llora" from Celia Cruz's last album. It is a song about laughing and crying. Cruz reminds her listeners to live their lives fully and enjoy every moment.
重点解析
1.influential 有影响的
It helps to have influential friends.
交上几个有权势的朋友很有好处。
2.transport 运输
The seeds are transported by the wind.
这些种子是由风传播的。
3.play an important role 起到重要作用
It is true that in economic activities advertisements play an important role.
广告在经济活动中，确实扮演了重要角色。
4.live 直播
They watch all the live matches.
他们观看所有现场直播的比赛。
5.fall in love with 爱上
Slowly but surely she started to fall in love with him
虽然过程缓慢，但她无疑开始爱上他了。
6.take power 当权；取得政权
The Patriotic Front took power after a three-month civil war
经过3个月内战，爱国阵线夺取了政权。
参考译文
我是史蒂夫·恩贝尔。我是菲丝·拉伯蒂斯。这里是VOA慢速英语栏目《美国人物志》。今天我们将讲述塞利娜·克鲁兹的故事。她是非洲古巴音乐历史上最具影响力和活力的女性歌手之一。她的七十多张唱片帮助萨尔萨舞曲记载史册。这首歌是《Tu Voz》，西班牙语“你的声音”。这首热门歌曲是1952年由塞利娜·克鲁兹和她的乐队La Sonora Matancer共同演绎。他们有过很多热门歌曲。他们在世界巡演传播古巴的声音。《Tu Voz》是一首关于爱和欲望的歌曲。这首音乐将你带到了古巴哈瓦那散漫阳光的街头。和塞利娜·克鲁兹其他歌曲一样，这首歌也让你想要起舞。
1925年塞利娜·克鲁兹出生于古巴哈瓦那。她的父母都不是音乐家。但是音乐在她的童年中起到了重要作用。她的祖母曾说塞利娜是先会唱歌再会说话的。塞利娜经常在学校和社区集会上演唱。之后，青少年时期的塞利娜开始参加歌唱比赛，也获得了很多奖项。她的父亲希望她当一名老师，但是塞利娜想要以音乐为事业。之后她说，她即是歌手也是老师。她说她的音乐让世界知道了古巴的文化以及尽情享受生活的欢乐。音乐是古巴文化的重要部分。在上世纪30年代和40年代的哈瓦那，塞利娜听过很多种音乐。著名音乐团队和歌手会在电台直播。她听着歌跳舞，比如伦巴、曼博舞和瓜拉恰舞。这些歌曲都受到了非洲和西班牙音乐的影响。这种古巴音乐由鼓的节奏和歌手的呼喊定义，是随之起舞的音乐。
1947年，塞利娜开始在古巴音乐学院学习。几年后，音乐团队La Sonora Matancera发现了她。该团队是古巴最著名的管弦乐队之一。他们的领唱刚离开了团队，所以他们需要一个新的领唱。当团队听到塞利娜的声音时，立即雇用了她。起初，听众怀念乐队之前的歌手，但是很快，他们便爱上了塞利娜强有力的声音。这是她和La Sonora Matancera的另一首歌《Caramelos》。克鲁兹讲述了一名糖果小贩在街上买自己的商品。
上世纪60年代，古巴发生了重大政治变革。革命之后，共产主义领导人菲德尔·卡斯特罗当权。和很多其他古巴人一样，塞利娜·克鲁兹决定搬去美国。之后她成为了美国公民，从此没回过古巴。几年后，她和乐队小号手结婚。很快克鲁兹和丈夫便离开了La Sonora Matancera。他们合作了15年。但是时候探索新的音乐选择了。塞利娜·克鲁兹住在纽约，这里的拉丁音乐形式多样。
很多音乐家尝试将不同传统乐、韵律和风格结合。这种音乐被称为萨尔萨舞曲，是古巴音乐‘son’及其他拉丁音乐的结合。这种音乐表达了拉美社区生活的欢乐与伤痛。塞利娜·克鲁兹很快唱起了萨尔萨舞曲。她和很多音乐家合作了录制唱片。她会穿着怪异色彩的服装，穿着闪亮的鞋子、画着鲜艳妆。她的舞蹈和她的声音一样活力四射。这是克鲁兹和约翰尼 · 帕切科、Fania AllStars演唱的《Isadora》。上世纪70年代，塞利娜·克鲁兹因在唱歌时喊出“Azúcar!”而出名，这个词是西班牙语‘糖’的意思。克鲁兹喊出这个词活跃她的乐队和观众。你可以在很多唱片中听到她说这个词。
塞利娜·克鲁兹很享受新的尝试。她和很多非萨尔萨表演家合作。例如，她和嘻哈歌手怀克里夫·吉恩演唱了他专辑中的一首歌。和她合作的音乐家包括大卫·拜恩和帕蒂·拉贝丽。克鲁兹还演过几部电影。她最出名的角色是出演1992年的电影《曼波王》。毫无意外，克鲁兹在电影中扮演一名萨尔萨舞曲歌手。这是克鲁兹演唱电影原声带《Guantanamera》。塞利娜·克鲁兹享受生活的成功，她多次获得格莱美奖。她录制过70张唱片，成为了萨尔萨舞曲最出名的声音。她是在以男性为主的音乐行业中的一个强有力的女性。
2003年，塞利娜·克鲁兹因脑肿瘤去世。人们为她举办了两次葬礼。上万人前来参加她的葬礼。演员、政治家、音乐人以及数千名粉丝前来跟这位萨尔萨女王告别。最后为大家播放塞利娜·克鲁兹最后一张专辑中的歌曲《Rie y Llora》，这首歌是关于笑声和哭泣。克鲁兹提醒她的听众享受生活的每一刻。
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