Talking drums会说话的鼓

李全忠

主题语境：语言与乐器篇幅：331词建议用时：6分钟

1 West African talking drums known as dùndúncan accurately copy speech with a remarkable level ofdetail， new research found. The study compared 30verbal recordings—both spoken and sung—in theYorùb' language with excerpts of drumming per?formed by professional dùndún drummers in Nigeria.

2 The new research found that the drums mimic （模仿） the spoken word closely whenthey're played in a“ talking” mode， but not when they are used for purely musical purposes.“The talking drum is unique. For one thing， it has a foot in both language and music camps.For another， its existence reminds us of the thin boundary between speech and music，”said the lead author， Cecilia Durojaye.

3 Yorùb' is a tonal language that uses three distinct tones at different frequencies.Similarly， the drums have three main tones， using rising and falling pitch to reproducespeech sounds. This allows the instruments to imitate Yorùb' oral literature， including theemotion of spoken words.

4 In a previous paper， Durojaye and her colleagues noted that Yorùb drummers usethe dùndún as a “speech surrogate （代替）” to communicate announcements， warnings，prayers， jokes， proverbs and poetry. According to Encyclopedia Britannica， skilled dùndún players use the instrument to offer up ritual praise poetry to a king.

5 Durojaye's paper， completed at the University of Cape Town in 2019， won the AfricanStudies Review's 2020 annual prize for the best Africa?based doctoral dissertation. Hergraduate work focused on the dùndún's role in conveying emotion and information.

6“ This speech surrogate functions in the spread of Yorùb' oral history， recitation ofvarious forms of Yorùb' poetry， saying proverbs and even informing a king about the arrivalof guests，” Durojaye said.“ The drum texts can also be humorous and they can be a form ofadvice or prayer.” She added that when the drums are used as speech surrogates， they'reperformed without accompanying songs or vocals. When played alongside vocal music orpoetry， however， the instruments are performed in a purely rhythmic fashion.

Reading

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1. What do we know about dùndún drums from the text？

A. They are pretty popular instruments in the world.

B. They are used to add fun to the Yorùb language.

C. They make sounds similar to the Yorùb language.

D. They can clearly convey drummers' thoughts.

2. What does Durojaye think is the significance of the new research？

A. Showing people the importance of body language.

B. Drawing public attention to cultural heritage protection.

C. Being the first study on the boundary between speech and music.

D. Providing insights into the connection between music and language.

3. What does the author mention about the speech surrogate in music？

A. It happens in limited kinds of cultures.

B. It is likely to cause trouble for Yorùb people.

C. It can greatly influence people's beliefs and values.

D. It enables people to know different aspects of a culture.

4. What message does the author want to convey？

A. Talking drums convey more than a language.

B. A significant musical instrument is found in Africa.

C. New research analyzes the development of African music.

D. Scientists have found more forms of the Yorùb language.

Language

Study

Ⅰ. 日積月累

accurately adv. 准确地

professional adj. 专业的

purpose n. 目的；用途；目标

existence n. 存在

similarly adv. 同样；类似地；相似地

skilled adj. 熟练的；有技能的

arrival n. 到达；抵达

accompany v. 伴随；陪同；陪伴

remind...of 提醒

focus on 聚焦；集中

Ⅱ. 单句填空

1. We should train our students to speak English fluently and_________（accurate）.

2. She never realized her ambition of becoming a_________（profession） singer.

3. The peasants depend on a good harvest for their very _________（exist）.

4. Are you connected？ Does a character remind you_________a friend？

5. We apologize for the late _________（arrive） of the train.