I started winning competitions. We still had very little money -- my father had to borrow $5,000 to pay for a trip to the International Young Pianists Competition in Ettlingen, Germany, in 1994, when I was 12. I realized later how much pressure he was under. Tears streamed down his face when it was announced that I'd won -- earning enough money to pay back our loan.
It was soo n clear I couldn't stay in China forever. To become a world-class musician, I had to play on the world's big stages. So in 1997, my father and I moved again, this time to Philadelphia, so I could attend The Curtis Institute of Music. Finally our money worries were easing. The school paid for an apartment and even lent me a Steinway（斯坦威钢琴）.At night, I would sneak into the living room just to touch the keys.
Now that I was in America, I spent two years practicing, and by 1999 I had worked hard enough for fortune to take over. The Chicago Symphony orchestra heard me play and liked me, but orchestra schedules were set far in advance. I thought I might join them in a few years.
The next morning, I got a call. The great pianist Andre Watts, who was to play the "Gala Benefit Evening" at Chicago's Ravinia Festival, had become ill. I was asked to replace him. That performance was, for me, the moment. After violinist Isaac Stern introduced me, I played Tchaikovsky's Piano Concerto No. 1. My father's mouth hung open throughout the entire song.
I played until 3:30 a.m. I felt something happening. Sure enough, it was a great success. Still, my father kept telling me, "You'd better practice!" But living in America with me was beginning to relax him. In Beijing I'd been fat -- he made sure I ate -- and he'd been skinny. Now I was getting thin. He wasn't.
My father and I had often practiced a piece called "Horses," a fun version for piano and erhu. One night in Carnegie Hall, after I played Chopin and Liszt, I brought Dad out on the stage, and we played our duet（二重奏）. People went crazy -- they loved it. My father couldn't sleep for days. He was too happy to sleep.
There have been lots of concerts in Carnegie Hall, but for me playing there was especially sweet when I remember the cold days in Beijing. Together, my father and I worked to reach the lucky place where fortune spots you, and lets you shine.
【小题1】In the first paragraph his father cried when it was announced that he'd won mainly because__________.

I started winning competitions. We still had very little money -- my father had to borrow $5,000 to pay for a trip to the International Young Pianists Competition in Ettlingen, Germany, in 1994, when I was 12. I realized later how much pressure he was under. Tears streamed down his face when it was announced that I'd won -- earning enough money to pay back our loan.

It was soo n clear I couldn't stay in China forever. To become a world-class musician, I had to play on the world's big stages. So in 1997, my father and I moved again, this time to Philadelphia, so I could attend The Curtis Institute of Music. Finally our money worries were easing. The school paid for an apartment and even lent me a Steinway（斯坦威钢琴）.At night, I would sneak into the living room just to touch the keys.

Now that I was in America, I spent two years practicing, and by 1999 I had worked hard enough for fortune to take over. The Chicago Symphony orchestra heard me play and liked me, but orchestra schedules were set far in advance. I thought I might join them in a few years.

The next morning, I got a call. The great pianist Andre Watts, who was to play the "Gala Benefit Evening" at Chicago's Ravinia Festival, had become ill. I was asked to replace him. That performance was, for me, the moment. After violinist Isaac Stern introduced me, I played Tchaikovsky's Piano Concerto No. 1. My father's mouth hung open throughout the entire song.

I played until 3:30 a.m. I felt something happening. Sure enough, it was a great success. Still, my father kept telling me, "You'd better practice!" But living in America with me was beginning to relax him. In Beijing I'd been fat -- he made sure I ate -- and he'd been skinny. Now I was getting thin. He wasn't.

My father and I had often practiced a piece called "Horses," a fun version for piano and erhu. One night in Carnegie Hall, after I played Chopin and Liszt, I brought Dad out on the stage, and we played our duet（二重奏）. People went crazy -- they loved it. My father couldn't sleep for days. He was too happy to sleep.

There have been lots of concerts in Carnegie Hall, but for me playing there was especially sweet when I remember the cold days in Beijing. Together, my father and I worked to reach the lucky place where fortune spots you, and lets you shine.

1.In the first paragraph his father cried when it was announced that he'd won mainly because__________.

A.his father was excited that his son succeeded at last.

B.his father was under too much pressure.

C.they could pay back the loan with the prize.

D.his father was proud of him.

2. Tell the order of the events.

a. He and his father moved to Philadelphia.

b. He was asked to replace the great pianist Andre Watts.

c. He and his father played “Horses” together.

d.The Chicago Symphony orchestra heard his performance.

e. The Curtis Institute of Music lent him a Steinway

A. a, e, c, b, d       B. b, e, a, d, c       C. d, a, e, b, c       D. a, e, d, b, c

3. Which of the following statements agrees with the author?

A. The writer’s father had been very fat before they went to America.

B. The writer thought he would be one of them soon when he knew the Chicago Symphony orchestra heard him play and liked him.

C. The Curtis Institute of Music finally eased their money worries.

D. One can achieve his dream if he is lucky enough.

4. The underlined word there in the last paragraph refers to_________.

A. America     B. Beijing.   C. Carnegie Hall  D. All the places he went to. 

5. What is the best title of the passage?

A. I Took Off!                          B. When Fortune Spots Me.

C. No Pain, No Gain.                    D. My father and I

I started winning competitions. We still had very little money -- my father had to borrow $5,000 to pay for a trip to the International Young Pianists Competition in Ettlingen, Germany, in 1994, when I was 12. I realized later how much pressure he was under. Tears streamed down his face when it was announced that I'd won -- earning enough money to pay back our loan.

It was soo n clear I couldn't stay in China forever. To become a world-class musician, I had to play on the world's big stages. So in 1997, my father and I moved again, this time to Philadelphia, so I could attend The Curtis Institute of Music. Finally our money worries were easing. The school paid for an apartment and even lent me a Steinway（斯坦威钢琴）.At night, I would sneak into the living room just to touch the keys.

Now that I was in America, I spent two years practicing, and by 1999 I had worked hard enough for fortune to take over. The Chicago Symphony orchestra heard me play and liked me, but orchestra schedules were set far in advance. I thought I might join them in a few years.

The next morning, I got a call. The great pianist Andre Watts, who was to play the "Gala Benefit Evening" at Chicago's Ravinia Festival, had become ill. I was asked to replace him. That performance was, for me, the moment. After violinist Isaac Stern introduced me, I played Tchaikovsky's Piano Concerto No. 1. My father's mouth hung open throughout the entire song.

I played until 3:30 a.m. I felt something happening. Sure enough, it was a great success. Still, my father kept telling me, "You'd better practice!" But living in America with me was beginning to relax him. In Beijing I'd been fat -- he made sure I ate -- and he'd been skinny. Now I was getting thin. He wasn't.

My father and I had often practiced a piece called "Horses," a fun version for piano and erhu. One night in Carnegie Hall, after I played Chopin and Liszt, I brought Dad out on the stage, and we played our duet（二重奏）. People went crazy -- they loved it. My father couldn't sleep for days. He was too happy to sleep.

There have been lots of concerts in Carnegie Hall, but for me playing there was especially sweet when I remember the cold days in Beijing. Together, my father and I worked to reach the lucky place where fortune spots you, and lets you shine.

In the first paragraph his father cried when it was announced that he'd won mainly because__________.

A.his father was excited that his son succeeded at last.

B.his father was under too much pressure.

C.they could pay back the loan with the prize.

D.his father was proud of him.

Tell the order of the events.

a. He and his father moved to Philadelphia.

b. He was asked to replace the great pianist Andre Watts.

c. He and his father played “Horses” together.

d.The Chicago Symphony orchestra heard his performance.

e. The Curtis Institute of Music lent him a Steinway

A. a, e, c, b, d       B. b, e, a, d, c       C. d, a, e, b, c       D. a, e, d, b, c

Which of the following statements agrees with the author?

A. The writer’s father had been very fat before they went to America.

B. The writer thought he would be one of them soon when he knew the Chicago Symphony orchestra heard him play and liked him.

C. The Curtis Institute of Music finally eased their money worries.

D. One can achieve his dream if he is lucky enough.

The underlined word there in the last paragraph refers to_________.

A. America     B. Beijing.   C. Carnegie Hall  D. All the places he went to. 

What is the best title of the passage?

A. I Took Off!                          B. When Fortune Spots Me.

C. No Pain, No Gain.                    D. My father and I

Some people call her innovative, others say she’s simply a copycat--- a Chinese version of US singer Lady Gaga---or just an attention seeker who tries too hard. But whatever labels fans and critics pin on her, Shang Wenjie, whose English name is Laure, keeps herself cool.

As she sings in her song The way I am: “Whether you like it or not, it has nothing to do with me.”

Shang, 30, first rose to fame in 2006 as the champion of Hunan TV’s talent contest Supergirls. However, she didn’t enjoy much popularity until she changed her girl-next–door image into a more shocking style four years later. 

While her fashion taste caught public attention, criticism came just as quickly, with many saying her rebellious look was only meant to get more media exposure.

“My styling goes with the music,” Shang told Yancheng Evening News. “I don’t need to be known as the Chinese Lady Gaga. I just want to be known as Laure Shang.”

She’s recently made that a reality thanks to I’m a Singer, another talent show produced by Hunan TV, which gathers famous singers to compete and an audience of 500 to decide who goes to the next round,

The show gave Shang an opportunity to display her musical abilities. She tried out a wide range of styles including pop, hip-hop, rock’n’roll, punk and electro. The highlights of her time on the show were when she chose tunes which are lesser-known than other contestants’ choices. For example, she sang her own versions of American pop star Michael Jackson’s Man in the “Shang has shown an international flavor which is just as inspiring as her fashion sense,” commented Sina.com. “She has become a trail blazer on the Mandopop scene, creating a music style bearing her own mark.”

Shang was eliminated (淘汰) on March 8, but “thanks to the show, her popularity has grown rapidly,” People’s Daily wrote.

“I love Shang, the youngest singer on the show,” said 16-year-old Guo Chen, a Senior 1 student from Daqing Shiyan High School in Heilongjiang. “Shang is quite international. She not only introduces European and US fashion, but also creatively combines Western music with Mandopop.”

Shang owes her international style to her educational background. She graduated from Fudan University as a French major. “The advantage of learning foreign languages is intangible. For example, it helps me communicate well with foreign musicians and broaden my horizons of music styles,” she said.

A music show from Hunan Satellite TV named I’m a singer has been gaining popularity since the heat from voice of china gradually cooled, The show invites professional musicians to compete , Rather than using the traditional underdogs-become –famous format,it is up to the 500 aucience members to decide the fate of the stars on stage ,Let’s check out how the readaptation of a classic love song to rock’n’roll introduced us to the emotional world of rock nusic.

In the second week of the Hunan TV music competiton show I’m a singer,paul Wong surprised his audience members and fellow contestants with a rock adaptation of the famous 1993 hit Goodbye Kiss by Jacky Cheung.Although the lyrics remain unchanged and the original structured is largely maintained, Wong’s rock adaptation of the song truns it into something completely new, No longer is it the sorrowful tale of two lovers parting ways, but an accusation filled with repressed anger.

With so much of the original song, untouched , what is it that transforms the song to such an extent that the TV show’s host seemed barely to recognize it?

It’s not only the instrumentation and the different sound of the song that makes it a rock version        

Something degy—it is the sound of rebellion.

    By keeping the original lyrics but transforming their meaning through a reinterpretation of the musical accompaniment(伴奏), wong’s adaptation becomes as much a song about rebellion as it is a rebellion against the original version of the song itself.

1.What does the passage mainly talk about?(No more than 15 words)

2.Fill the blank in Paragraph 5 with proper words(No more than 5 words)

3.Who decide the fate of the performers?(No more than 8 woreds)

4.List three factors which make the readaptation of the song Goodbye Kiss quite different?

①                 ；②                   ；③                  

5.Translate the underlined sentence into Chinese

________________________________________________________________