Unit 18 : Music And Musician Excercise Solution
(A Life of Sound and Silence)
Working with words
A. Find the single words for the following definitions. The words are given in the jumbled letters at the end.
a. A person who hates or distrusts mankind misanthrope
b. A sensation of noise, such as a ringing or roaring tinnitus
c. An examination of a body after death to determine the cause of death autopsy
d. A musical composition or movement for five instruments or voices quintet
e. A severe life-threatening illness caused by a bacterium meningitis
f. An object that directs one’s attention away from something else distraction
g. The action or process of becoming impaired or inferior in quality, functioning, or condition deterioration
h. Failing to perceive something impercipience
i. A hearing disorder that makes it hard to deal with everyday sounds hyperacusis
j. A bacterial infection usually spread by sexual contact syphilis
B. Put the musical instruments into different categories as below.
Wind Instruments : trumpet, harmonica, clarinet, conch, trombone
Stringed Instruments : violin, viola, cello, double bass
Percussion Instruments : drum, tabls, cymbal, bell, tambourine
C. Use a dictionary and find the definition of these genres of music.
Rock music:Rock music is a diverse genre of music characterized by extensive use of the electric guitar with it’s most common set up-a lead singer (sometimes playing the guitar too), a lead guitarist, a bassist and a drummer.
Pop music :Pop music is a type of music, usually played on electronic instruments, that is popular with many people because it consists of short songs with a strong beat and simple tunes that are easy to remember.
Hip-hop: Hip-hop is a musical genre consisting of a stylized rhythmic music originally created by DJs isolating the percussion breaks of popular songs, sometimes with two turntables to extend the breaks.
Jazz: Jazz refers to American music developed especially from ragtime and blues and characterized by propulsive syncopated rhythms, polyphonic ensemble playing, varying degrees of improvisation, and often deliberate distortions of pitch and timbre.
Folk music :Folk music refers to the type of traditional and generally rural music that originally was passed down through families and other small social groups.
Classic music :Classic music is a type of art music produced or rooted in the traditions of Western culture, generally considered to have begun in Europe after the fall of the Western Roman Empire in the late 5 century CE and continuing to present day.
Blues:Blues refers to a music genre and musical form which was originated in the Deep South of the United States around the 1860s by African-Americans from roots in African-American work songs and spirituals.
Heavy-metal:Heavy-metal is a genre of rock music that developed in the late 1960s and early 1970s, largely in the United Kingdom and the United States.
Gospel music: Gospel music is a genre of Christian music. The creation, performance, significance, and even the definition of gospel music varies according to culture and social context.
Country music: Country music refers to the genre of popular music that originated with blues, old-time music, and various types of American folk music.
Grunge:Grunge is an alternative rock genre and subculture that emerged during the mid-1980s.
Breakbeat:Breakbeat is a broad type of electronic music that tends to stilize drum breaks sampled from early recordings of unk, jazz and R&B.
Reggae : Reggae is a much slower form of music that emerged in the 1960 in Jamaica.
Disco: Disco refers to the genre emerged out of an urban subculture in the early 1970s.
Dubstep:Dubstep is a genre of electronic dance music that originated in South London in the early 2000s.
Comprehension
A. Put the following events in the life of Beethoven in chronological order.
c. Beethoven was born into a musical family in Bonn, Germany.
e. He learned to play the organ, piano, violin, and viola.
a. He migrated to Vienna.
h. At the age of twenty-seven, he felt the deafness to high-pitched sound.
d. His deafness got gradually worse: He could hear but not understand.
g. He lived a life in seclusion.
b. He even made suicidal attempts.
f. He died of hepatitis at the age of fifty-six.
B. State whether the following statements are True or False.
a. Beethoven became blind in a gradual process over two decades. False
b. He became a celebrity musician in his teenage. True
c. He did not disclose his hearing problem for a long time. True
d. He knew that he misunderstood the speakers and gave up his public performances. False
e. He tried to get his deafness treated until his death. False
f. Beethoven died in his early fifties. False
g. Doctors found the cause of his deafness after his death. False
Answer the following questions
a.What does Hellen Keller think about deafness and blindness?
Ans: Hellen Keller thought that blindness separates people from things while deafness separates people from people.
b.Why does the author compare Beethoven with Milton, Van Gogh and Toulouse- Lautrec?
Ans: The author compares Beethoven with Milton, Van Gogh and Toulouse Lautrec because all of them were disabled with some conditions.
c.When and how did Beethoven notice him being deaf?
Ans: Beethoven noticed him being deaf at the age of 27 when he lost the ability to hear high pitch sounds which was an indication of nerve deafness.
d.What psychological effects did he have when he noticed that he was being deaf?
Ans.: Beethoven led a miserable life and for two years avoided social functions because he finds it impossible to tell people that he is deaf. In addition to this, Beethoven’s deafness led to fear, lack of self-esteem, emotional disarray, increasing isolation, and self-neglect. Thus, These are the psychological effects that Beethoven had when he noticed he was being deaf.
e.How did he triumph over his suicidal thoughts?
Ans.: Beethoven had been suffering from hyperacusis. And, in the text, it is mentioned that he wanted to commit suicide but Beethoven somewhere read that a man should not voluntarily quit this life so long as he could still perform a good deed, and this motivated him not to commit suicide. Likewise, the other things that refrained Beethoven from committing suicide are morally and music. Thus, Beethoven triumphed over his suicidal thoughts.
f.How did he accept his deafness?
Ans.: Beethoven accepted his deafness by realizing that nothing could help him and he should not seek help for his deafness.
g.How was his deafness ironically good for the world?
Ans.: Beethoven’s deafness was ironically good for the world because the disability resulted in extra creativity allowing him to listen to inner sounds without distraction.
h.When did Beethoven give up his musical performances forever?
Ans.: Beethoven gave up his musical performances forever during his mid-forties after some embarrassing faux pas.
i.What did Stephen von Breuning comment on Beethoven’s reactions?
Ans.: When Beethoven had problems hearing the wind instruments during a rehearsal
For the Eroica in 1804, Stephen von Breuning commented that Beethoven had become
withdrawn and often mistrusted his best friends.
j.How did Beethoven express the conflict in his mind?
Ans.: Beethoven expressed the conflict in his mind by isolating himself from social functions, mistrusting his best friends and had suicidal thoughts in mind time and often.
Critical thinking
a.Suicidal thoughts came in Beethoven’s mind several times but he did not commit suicide and kept on composing music. Write a monologue in about 150 words from Beethoven’s perspectives describing his suicidal thoughts and his will to live.
Ans.: What has happened to me? I am losing my hearing power day by day and now I can hardly recognize any sounds. Why is this happening to me? Am I made for this? I have done so much hard work and created music to entertain people and keep the music alive. For any musician, ears are the most expensive gifts and now look at me. It’s horrible, it’s nightmare. I don’t want to live like this. This is such a pity to me. What should I do and what can I do hmm…? My doctor has not been able to do anything for my treatment. Who am I to keep faith on? I don’t want to live this miserable life. It’s swallowing me day by day. It’s better to die than live like this. Oh god! Help me. Show me the path. Take me with you. I don’t want to suffer here without my precious thing – my hearing.
b.Was it divine inspiration or rigorous practice that made Beethoven one of the world’s greatest musicians? Give your reasons.
Ans.: Beethoven was one of the finest musicians ever produced in history. He started his musical career as a child and later he had no choice left to leave it as music became his earning and responsibility for his family and career. He realized problems with his ears later and came to know he had lost his hearing sensation completely. He was disturbed mentally but he never gave up his job. He was a musician and kept on making music compositions. I don’t think it’s something divine inspiration that kept him alive all through and continued his music career rather it might be his own discipline and rigorous practice and his faith in music. He could not listen to sounds and later he adopted to feel those musical vibrations. He would practice low pitch notes when high-end notes would trouble him.
In fact, Beethoven had realized that he was made for music and he had to work hard no matter what problem he had and was facing. Thus, it was a rigorous practice that made Beethoven one of the world’s greatest musicians
WRITING
a. Who is your favourite Nepali musician? Write his/her biography in about 300 words.
Ans: Narayan Gopal is my favourite Nepali musician. His original name was Narayan Gopal Guruwacharya and he was a prominent popular singer and composer of Nepali music. He has been referred to as ‘SwarSamrat’ of Nepali music. He was also known as “Tragedy King’. His voice range allowed him to sing songs of every genre of Nepalese music. Often, his songs were orchestrated with the sitar, harmonium and flute. He belongs to the first generation of Nepali singers who became professional singers. His songs have also been used in several movies and dramas across the country.
Narayan Gopal Guruwacharya was born into a Newari family in KilagalTole, Kathmandu, on October 4, 1939. His father was Asha Gopal Guruwacharya and mother was Ram Devi Guruwacharya. He had six brothers and four sisters. He completed his School Leaving Certificate (SLC) exams in 2016. BS and obtained a Bachelor of Arts degree in Humanities from Tri-Chandra College. Later, he also went to the Maharaja Sayajirao University of Baroda to study classical Indian music but returned without completing his studies. He married Pemala Lama in 1971.
Later he joined the Rastriya NaachGhar and rose to the post of manager. He also worked as the editor of a musical journal Bageena for its first three issues. He became the managing director of Sanskritik Sansthan and became an adviser to the Ministry of Communication onwards; and an associate professor in Lalit Kala Campus. He also wrote a musical drama titled Kanchi Masyang.
The potential of his vocal talent was first recognized by his friend Manik Ratna Sthapit, who lived in the neighbouring Pyukha Tole, and Prem Dhoj Pradhan, who used to live in Bheda Singh Tole. The three friends would practice singing Hindi songs together. Manik Ratna’s household had become a kind of music school since his uncle, Siddhi Ratna Sthapit, was an expert instrumentalist. After completion of his SLC exams, Prem Dhoj Pradhan took Gopal to Radio Nepal to take a voice test. He sang ‘Panchi ko pankha ma dharti ko diyo’ written by Dr. Ram Man Trishit and composed by Prem Dhoj Pradhan himself. He passed the voice test on his first trial. Narayan Gopal’s first public musical performance was during the 40th anniversary of Tri-Chandra College, which he agreed to do at the request of his friends. During the performance, he acted as the tabla player.
In total, his musical career spanned twenty-eight years, during which he sang in eighteen movies and recorded more than one hundred and fifty-seven songs. Some of his most popular songs are Maya Ta Maya Ho, Kehi Mitho Bata Gara, Timro Jasto Mutu, Parkhi Base Aula Bhani, Mohani Lagla Hai, Euta Manchhe Ko Mayale, Yati Chokho Yati Mitho, Yeti Dherai Maya Diyee, Malai Nasodha, Yo Samjhine Man Chha and many others.
He won several awards for his magnificent contribution to the field of music. Some of them are Best Composition (Radio Nepal) 2023 BS, Best Singer (Radio Nepal) – 2024 BS, Ratna Record Award – 2039 BS, Gorkha Dakshin. Bahu, Fourth – 2033 BS, Indra Rajya Laxmi Award -2040 BS, Chhinalata Award – 2044 BS,
Jagadamba Shree – 2045 BS, Urbashi Rang Award – 2047 BS, TrishaktiPatta, Third – 2048 BS (posthumously)
Narayan Gopal Singing Award-1969 and so on.
Narayan Gopal died from complications of diabetes on December 5, 1990 (19 Mangsir, 2047 BS) in Bir Hospital, at 9 p.m. in Kathmandu, at the age of fifty-one.
Grammar
B. Fill in the blanks with appropriate prepositions.
a. I was accompanied to the hospital by my friend.
b. I have great respect for my teachers.
c. The culprit was sentenced to death.
d. His arguments are not based on truth.
e. He has not contributed to the development of our nation.
f. He died because of Corona at the age of thirty-five.
g. The young generation of Nepali people don’t take interest in politics.
h. Our village was not infected by Corona.
i. Why do you sneer at me?
C. Fill in the blanks with for, since, until, by or in.
a. The classes will be over by 5 PM.
b. Karma Sherpa reached the top of Mt. Everest in 8 hours.
c. We had met after five years. So we kept on talking until three in the morning.
d. She has been living in America since she got married.
e. He has been playing video game for ten hours.
f. She practices the Sitar every day for five hours.
g. He lived in Jumla until he passed high school examinations.
h. There is no chance of dry weather even today. It has rained since last Saturday.
i. I can type 120 words in a minute.
j. We take an early breakfast. It’s generally ready by six in the morning.