音乐大象

贵州 罗跃梅

在泰国北部的南邦府，有一群不寻常的音乐家。 它们演奏许多不同类型的音乐，从传统的泰国歌曲到贝多芬的音乐，孩子和成年人都喜欢它们。

难词探意

1. resident /'rezɪdənt/ n. 居民；住户

2. incredible /ɪn'kredəbl/ adj. 难以置信的

In the town of Lampang in northern Thailand, there is an unusual group of musicians. They play many different kinds of music—from traditional Thai songs to music by Beethoven. Both children and adults love this group. Every day a lot of the local residents and visitors from all over the world come to appreciate their terrific performance and they will be deeply impressed by those incredible creatures. What makes them so popular? Is it their music? Their looks? Yes, it's both of these things, but it's also something else: they're elephants.

These musical elephants are from the Thai Elephant Conservation Center (TECC) in Lampang.The TECC protects elephants. It teaches people to understand and care for these huge, but gentle animals. And, like many zoos around the world, the TECC encourages elephants to paint.

Richard Lair works with the TECC. He knew that elephants hear better than they see. So he had an idea: if elephants are intelligent and they have good hearing, maybe they can play music. To test his idea, Lair and a friend started the Thai Elephant Orchestra. During a performance, the elephants play a variety of instruments, including the drums and the xylophone (木琴). The animals also use their voices and trunks to make sounds.

But can elephants really make music properly? “Yes,” says Lair. They're very creative. Humans may encourage the animals to play instruments, but the elephants make their own songs; they don't just copy their trainers or other people. There are now CDs of the group's music, which earn money for the TECC. And the music these artists create is pretty amazing.

作为组合成员兼好兄弟的胡海泉倒是给陈羽凡委婉地解释了引发事件的原因，他曾经在微博里连问几个为什么，以此来证明陈羽凡出现这种情况就是最近的事情。但是，仗义归仗义，能不能帮助陈羽凡成功戒掉毒瘾，这事还真不敢确定。另外，同时被抓的还有陈羽凡的同居女友，今年才刚刚25岁。

—From National Geographic Learning

1. What could be another title for this reading?

A. Teaching elephants to paint B. Elephants in danger

C. TECC trainers D. An unusual orchestra

2. What can be inferred about the elephants at the TECC?

A. They see better than they hear. B. They are encouraged to paint.

C. They cannot create their own music. D. They make their own instruments.

3. What does the underlined word “them” in paragraph 1 refer to?

A. Children. B. Adults. C. Songs. D. Musicians.

A. He had heard the elephants playing music. B. He needed to make money for the TECC.

C. He believed elephants could play music. D. He wanted to be on TV in Thailand.

5. What can be inferred about the Thai Elephant Orchestra?

A. The elephants dance while playing music.

B. The elephants use their noses to make sounds.

C. The elephants use their legs to protect themselves.

D. The orchestra's CDs make money for the TECC.

6. What does the last sentence in the text mean?

A. The elephants play great music.

B. Human artists now play with the elephants.

C. The elephants are very beautiful.

D. Human musicians want to copy the elephants' songs.

Complete the paragraph with words from the box in their proper forms. One word is extra.

In some zoos, 1.__________show elephants how to hold a paintbrush. The trainers 2.__________the elephants to choose colors and use them to make paintings. Of course, not every painting is good. Just like humans, only some elephants are very 3.__________. Now, an online gallery sells paintings by these elephant 4.___________. By doing this, the gallery hopes to 5.__________money to protect elephants.

泰国大象保护中心

泰国大象保护中心（Thai Elephant Conservation Centre，缩写为TECC）在泰国皇家的赞助下成立于1993年，是一个由政府拥有和经营的大象公园。 泰国大象保护中心为游客提供了观看大象洗澡和表演的机会。