特别广播英语第 403 课：All That Jazz “爵”代风华-1

You may have heard of Kenny G, but what do you really know about jazz? 你也许听说过凯丽·金，但是对爵士乐你真的了解多少呢？

Jazz is a genuinely American art form that has blossomed into a worldwide phenomenon. It is certainly much more than mere background music. 爵士乐是一种地道的美国艺术形式，它已经发展成为一种风靡全球的现象。爵士乐绝不仅仅只是背景音乐。

Jazz comes in a wide variety of styles, and has several defining features. 爵士乐以多种风格出现，具有几种可用作定义的特点。

The most important of these is improvisation. 其中最重要的一种是即兴演出。

Jazz musicians do not follow a set piece of music note by note, but make up melodies and chord changes as they play. 爵士乐手不会按照固定的乐谱一个音符一个音符地演奏，而是在演出的时候自编旋律及变化和弦。

Such improvisation is based on a musician's creative impulses, and is often inspired by interactions with the other players or the audience. 这样的即兴演出基于乐手的创作冲动，通常是由与其它乐手或与观众间的互动激发起来的。

It is this energetic feedback and element of anticipation that gives jazz its incredible dynamism. 正是这种充满活力的回应和充满期待的成分赋予了爵士乐不可思议的活力。

A piece is never played the same way twice. 一首乐曲绝不会有两次相同的演奏。

The originators of jazz were African-Americans in the early 20th century who fused African rhythms with European ideas of harmony and melody. 爵士乐的创始人是20世纪初期的非洲裔美国人，他们将非洲的节奏融入欧洲的和声和旋律的概念中去。