Question

I walked to Mrs. Windsor’s house and waited outside. She was working with another student, and I was not supposed to bother them by ringing the bell. I stood against the wall and daydreamed what I’d rather be doing. I had been tutored enough to read, understand, and even write some musical compositions, but I just didn’t have a gift for it. Mrs. Windsor had offered to give me the lessons for free, so I felt my duty to try.

The door opened and Wendy Barton came out. I walked in, sat down on the piano bench and began to sort through my sheet music. Today Mrs. Windsor introduced her niece Pasha to teach me. With a smile, Pasha sat beside me on the piano bench, opened my sheet music to the beginning page and asked me to play. I arranged my fingers on the keys. Then I frowned(皱眉) and concentrated to make the notes on the page match the finger movements. I had to admit I was a rather mechanical (呆板的) pianist.

After about a page or two, Pasha gently put her hand on top of mine as if to calm my fingers. There was a long pause. “What are you hearing in the music?” I looked at her rather strangely and admitted I didn’t know what she meant. “Like a story. Here, let me try and you listen,” Pasha advised.

She closed her eyes and took a deep breath, letting her fingers dance lightly over the keys. Then, she began to play. “See, it begins here beside some kind of river. Hear the water flowing beside you?”

Her fingers rose and fell gently on the keys. “Now the princess appears and she’s picking flowers from the water’s edge.” A happy piece of music filled the air in time to Pasha’s dancing fingers. “Oh, but she slips!” The music changed. “And our princess is being carried off by the fast-flowing stream. Quickly, the princess’ horse sees her plight (困境) and races to the river’s edge where he swims out to let her catch hold of him. Luckily, they make it to the bank.” Pasha said.

I played many pieces of music that afternoon, finding the stories in the music and learning that sometimes it takes a friend to pull you out of the river onto dry land again.

1.By describing herself as a mechanical pianist, the author meant ________.

A.she could remember the notes in a short time

B.she was playing the piano without emotion

C.her fingers couldn’t move freely

D.it had been a long time since she played last time

2.Which of the following can best describe Pasha?

A.Creative. B.Honest. C.Humorous. D.Brave.

3.Pasha’s magic of playing the piano lies in that she ________.

A.imagined herself as a princess

B.knew its original background story

C.had a strong desire to make a friend

D.combined the music with a story

4.Which of the following is the best title for the text?

A.A Friend Forever

B.Never Give up

C.A Piano Lesson

D.My Favorite Piece of Music

Answer

1.B

2.A

3.D

4.C

【解析】

这是一篇记叙文。本文通过讲述作者在一次学习钢琴的经历中，明白了弹琴就要体会出琴谱所讲的情境和故事，这样才能弹好琴。

1.推理判断题。根据第二段中“I arranged my fingers on the keys and studied the notes on the page for a moment. Then I frowned and concentrated to make the notes on the page match the finger movements.”可知，作者只是让自己机械地把曲子弹正确就好了，根本都没去想曲子所表达的情境是什么，所以作者将自己描述成一个机械的/呆板的演奏者，是说自己只弹而不思考。故选B。

2.词义猜测题。根据文章中对Pasha弹钢琴和对于所谈曲子的讲述像讲故事一样，可知她是一个富有“创造性”的人。A. Creative有创造性的；B. Naughty淘气的；C. Humorous幽默的；D. Brave勇敢的。故选A。

3.推理判断题。根据第三段最后一句“Like a story. Here, let me try and you listen,” Pasha advised.再根据四、五段的叙述，可知Pasha弹钢琴的魅力在于把故事和音乐完美结合。故选D。

4.主旨大意题。通读全文可知，本文讲述的是一次让作者受益匪浅的钢琴课。故选C。