Upper-Intermediate - Bel Canto (D1954)

A: 老婆,我回来了。刚才晨跑的时候看到个女孩子在练声。
lǎopó, wǒ huílai le. gāngcái chénpǎo de shíhou kàndào ge nǚháizi zài liànshēng.
Honey, I'm back. Out on my morning run just now I saw a girl doing vocal exercises.
B: 练声?
liànshēng?
Vocal exercises?
A: 就是美声唱法,咪咪咪咪吗吗吗吗。
jiùshì Měishēng chàngfǎ, mī mī mī mī mā mā mā mā.
The bel canto style of singing. Mi, mi, mi, mi, ma, ma, ma, ma.
B: 我是挺烦那些唱美声的。一些电视晚会,每次都有唱美声的,而且那些人都是大块头,嘴巴大得吓人。
wǒ shì tǐng fán nàxiē chàng Měishēng de. yīxiē diànshì wǎnhuì, měicì dōu yǒu chàng Měishēng de, érqiě nàxiē rén dōu shì dàkuàitóu, zuǐbā dà de xiàrén.
I find those bel canto singers quite annoying. Some evening television programs always have these bel canto singers; all of them are big and fat and their mouths are terrifyingly large.
A: 唱美声的人就是要胖点,这样才能支撑气息,音质好,就像帕瓦罗蒂。
chàng Měishēng de rén jiùshì yào pàng diǎnr, zhèyàng cái néng zhīchēng qìxī, yīnzhì hǎo, jiù xiàng Pàwǎluódì.
Bel canto singers need to be a bit fat; that way they can sustain their breathing and the quality of the sound, like Pavarotti, for example.
B: 帕瓦罗蒂我听不懂,我还是喜欢宋祖英!人家不也一样上了维也纳金色大厅。
Pàwǎluódì wǒ tīng bu dǒng, wǒ háishì xǐhuan Sòng Zǔyīng! rénjiā bù yě yīyàng shàng le Wéiyěnà jīnsèdàtīng.
I don't understand Pavarotti. I like Song Zuying better! She certainly deserved to sing at Vienna's Golden Hall.
A: 其实现在中国民族唱法也用到了美声唱法的一些技巧。
qíshí xiànzài Zhōngguó mínzú chàngfǎ yě yòng dào le Měishēng chàngfǎ de yīxiē jìqiǎo.
Actually, the way Chinese people sing utilizes some techniques from bel canto.
B: 我就搞不懂,美声那是欧洲人的东西,跟咱们的传统一点都不搭调。怎么到了中国后就成了高雅音乐,感觉很上档次一样。
wǒ jiù gǎobudǒng, Měishēng nà shì Oūzhōurén de dōngxi, gēn zánmen de chuántǒng yīdiǎn dōu bù dādiào. zěnme dào le Zhōngguó hòu jiù chéng le gāoyǎ yīnyuè, gǎnjué hěn shàng dàngcì yīyàng.
I don't understand it. Bel canto is a European thing and not really in tune with our own culture. How did it come to China and become this extremely elegant music? I feel like it's really high-class.
A: 我可没这种感觉,每个人的欣赏品味都不一样嘛。不过一些严肃的场合还是美声唱法更应景些,显得比较庄重。比方说,在两国商务合作的宴会上,《祝酒歌》要比《辣妹子》合适得多啊。
wǒ kě méi zhèzhǒng gǎnjué, měi ge rén de xīnshǎng pǐnwèi dōu bù yīyàng ma. bùguò yīxiē yánsù de chǎnghé háishì Měishēng chàngfǎ gèng yìngjǐng xiē, xiǎnde bǐjiào zhuāngzhòng. bǐfangshuō, zài liǎngguó shāngwù hézuò de yànhuì shàng,《 Zhùjiǔgē》 yào bǐ《 Làmèizi》 héshì de duō a.
I don't have that feeling at all. Every person's tastes are different. However, bel canto is a bit more suitable at serious events; it seems a bit more solemn. For instance, at a banquet celebrating a business deal between two countries, "Libiamo Ne' Lieti Calici" is more appropriate than "La Meizi."
B: 这倒是。
zhèdàoshì.
That's true.

Key Vocabulary

晨跑 chénpǎo to go on a morning run
练声 liànshēng vocal exercises
美声 Měishēng bel canto
晚会 wǎnhuì evening program
大块头 dàkuàitóu a big, fat person
支撑 zhīchēng to support
气息 qìxī breathing
音质 yīnzhì sound quality
帕瓦罗蒂 Pàwǎluódì Pavarotti
宋祖英 Sòng Zǔyīng Song Zuying (name)
维也纳 Wéiyěnà Vienna
金色大厅 jīnsè dàtīng the Golden Hall
唱法 chàngfǎ singing style
民族 mínzú ethnic
技巧 jìqiǎo technique
传统 chuántǒng traditional
搭调 dādiào ’in tune with‘
高雅 gāoyǎ elegant
上档次 shàng dàngcì high-class
欣赏 xīnshǎng to appreciate
品味 pǐnwèi taste
严肃 yánsù serious
场合 chǎnghé occasion; event
应景 yìngjǐng suitable to circumstances
庄重 zhuāngzhòng solemn
商务 shāngwù commercial affairs
宴会 yànhuì banquet
祝酒歌 Zhùjiǔgē Libiamo Ne' Lieti Calici (song name)
辣妹子 Làmèizi La Meizi (song name)

Supplementary Vocabulary

早晨 zǎochén morning
场景 chǎngjǐng scene
搭配 dāpèi to match well

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