Jazz Artists Revel in Year's Successes

 

Doug Levine

This story is part of VOA's 2003 in Review series.
Thanks to some fine vocal¹ albums, well-publicized reunions and anniversaries, and record-breaking attendance at outdoor festivals, jazz enjoyed one of its best years ever in 2003. VOA's Doug Levine tells us more about the year in jazz, which included a best-selling album by an all-star baseball player.
His team didn't win the World Series but off the field New York Yankees center fielder Bernie Williams hit a home run with debut² his album, The Journey Within. Who even knew Williams played jazz guitar? Bernie first studied classical music in his native Puerto Rico. He began playing electric guitar after high school, and quickly mastered blues³ and jazz. As if playing baseball and jazz guitar weren't enough, Bernie also composes music, including the salsa-flavored Desvelado.
From baseball superstar to aging rock star, 2003 was the year Elvis Costello had his share of the jazz spotlight⁴, in more ways than one. With the release of his number one jazz album North,Costello proved why he's considered one of today's best ballad⁵ singers and songwriters. He describes North as an album about "melody, harmony, mood and emotion mostly emotion." An emotional Elvis also made news when he married jazz singer Diana Krall in December, a match some say was made in musical heaven.
From North, Elvis Costello with When It Sings.
Mrs. Elvis Costello, better known as Diana Krall, had her own share of musical success in 2003 with her album, Live In Paris, winning a Grammy Award for Best Jazz Vocal Album.
You don't have to look any lower than number one for singer Norah Jones who maintained that coveted⁷ ranking on Billboard's Jazz Albums Chart with Come Away With Me. Of course, taking home eight Grammy Awards for everything from Album and Record of the Year to Best New Artist will be a hard act to follow. Congratulations, Norah.
Singer, pianist, composer and arranger Peter Cincotti took a break from his studies at Columbia University to launch a jazz career in 2003. And what a career it is: Already a best-selling album, network television appearances, concert tours in the United States and Europe, magazine covers, and roles in two upcoming feature films. Cincotti indeed had a very good year.
Fans and critics also applauded country singer-turned jazz stylist Susie Boggus for her album Swing, as well as new collections of standards by vocalists Aaron Neville and Steve Tyrell.
In the year's jazz reunion department, three original members of The Crusaders joined forces for a new album and world tour. It seemed like old times when pianist Joe Sample, saxophonist Wilton Felder and drummer Stix Hooper brought back their trademark⁸ blend of jazz, R&B and soul. Some fans who may not want to show their age, remember the group when they were known as The Jazz Crusaders in the 1960s.
The Crusaders took the audience down memory lane at the 46th Annual Monterey Jazz Festival which drew a record crowd in 2003. Monterey also boasted an all-star vocal summit led by Jon Hendricks, the premiere of a new work by Ralph Towner and Gary Burton, a dizzying display of high school jazz bands, and the debut of a new film by Clint Eastwood in honor of "The Year of the Blues."
And it was the year of Concord⁹ Records. The Northern California jazz label with a catalogue of over 10,000 song titles celebrated¹⁰ its 30th anniversary in 2003.
Jazz flutist Herbie Mann was a world music pioneer, fusing American jazz with the rhythms and harmonies of Africa, India, Cuba, the Middle East and Japan. He was open to any style of music and even recorded pop, disco, bossa nova and reggae. After a long battle with cancer, Mann died in 2003 at age 73. Sadly, the music world also said goodbye to two more jazz giants: Bandleader Benny Carter and Latin percussionist¹¹ Mongo Santamaria.
Looking ahead to 2004, plans are in place for the Glenn Miller¹² Centennial celebrating the 100th anniversary of the birth of legendary¹³ jazz bandleader Glenn Miller. Remembered for such swing era hits as String of Pearls and In The Mood, Miller was only 40-years-old when he died in a plane crash over the English Channel in 1944. The Glenn Miller Centennial will include new releases and coast-to-coast tribute concerts and radio broadcasts.
注释：
revel¹⁴ [5revl] v. 狂欢
reunion [ri:5ju:njEn] n. 结合
attendance [E5tendEns] n. 出席
Yankee [5jANki] n. 美国佬
Puerto Rico 波多黎哥
salsa-flavored 拉丁风格的
aging [5eidViN] adj. 成熟的
spotlight [5spCtlait] n. 舞台
ballad [5bAlEd] n. 民谣
harmony [5hB:mEni] n. 内心的平静
maintain [men5tein] vt. 维持
covet⁶ [5kQvit] v. 垂涎
ranking [5rANkiN] n. 排行榜
applaud [E5plC:d] v. 喝彩，称赞
stylist [5stailist] n. 自成流派者
The Crusaders "十字军"乐队
trademark [5treidmB:k] n. 标志性的风格
Annual Monterey Jazz Festival 年度蒙特里爵士节
boast [bEust] v. 以有……而自豪
premiere [prI5mIEr] n. 初次公演
dizzying [5diziiN] adj. 令人眩晕的
flutist [5flU:tIst] n. 笛手
fuse [fju:z] v. 熔合
bossa nova 一种地中海风情的音乐风格
percussionist [pE5kQFEnIst] n. 打击乐器乐手
centennial [sen5tenjEl] n. 百年纪念
legendary [5ledVEndEri] adj. 传说中的

1 vocal   

adj.直言不讳的；嗓音的；n.[pl.]声乐节目

参考例句：

• The tongue is a vocal organ.舌头是一个发音器官。
• Public opinion at last became vocal.终于舆论哗然。

2 debut   

n.首次演出，初次露面

参考例句：

• That same year he made his Broadway debut, playing a suave radio journalist.在那同一年里，他初次在百老汇登台，扮演一个温文而雅的电台记者。
• The actress made her debut in the new comedy.这位演员在那出新喜剧中首次登台演出。

3 blues   

n.抑郁，沮丧；布鲁斯音乐

参考例句：

• She was in the back of a smoky bar singing the blues.她在烟雾弥漫的酒吧深处唱着布鲁斯歌曲。
• He was in the blues on account of his failure in business.他因事业失败而意志消沉。

4 spotlight   

n.公众注意的中心，聚光灯，探照灯，视听，注意，醒目

参考例句：

• This week the spotlight is on the world of fashion.本周引人瞩目的是时装界。
• The spotlight followed her round the stage.聚光灯的光圈随着她在舞台上转。

5 ballad   

n.歌谣，民谣，流行爱情歌曲

参考例句：

• This poem has the distinctive flavour of a ballad.这首诗有民歌风味。
• This is a romantic ballad that is pure corn.这是一首极为伤感的浪漫小曲。

6 covet   

vt.垂涎；贪图(尤指属于他人的东西)

参考例句：

• We do not covet anything from any nation.我们不觊觎任何国家的任何东西。
• Many large companies covet these low-cost acquisition of troubled small companies.许多大公司都觊觎低价收购这些陷入困境的小公司。

7 coveted   

adj.令人垂涎的；垂涎的，梦寐以求的v.贪求，觊觎(covet的过去分词)；垂涎；贪图

参考例句：

• He had long coveted the chance to work with a famous musician. 他一直渴望有机会与著名音乐家一起工作。
• Ther other boys coveted his new bat. 其他的男孩都想得到他的新球棒。 来自《简明英汉词典》

8 trademark   

n.商标；特征；vt.注册的…商标

参考例句：

• The trademark is registered on the book of the Patent Office.该商标已在专利局登记注册。
• The trademark of the pen was changed.这钢笔的商标改了。

9 concord   

n.和谐；协调

参考例句：

• These states had lived in concord for centuries.这些国家几个世纪以来一直和睦相处。
• His speech did nothing for racial concord.他的讲话对种族和谐没有作用。

10 celebrated   

adj.有名的，声誉卓著的

参考例句：

• He was soon one of the most celebrated young painters in England.不久他就成了英格兰最负盛名的年轻画家之一。
• The celebrated violinist was mobbed by the audience.观众团团围住了这位著名的小提琴演奏家。

11 percussionist   

n.打击乐器演奏者

参考例句：

• She overcame her deafness and eventually became a successful percussionist. 她克服了耳聋的毛病，最后当了打击乐队敲打手。 来自辞典例句
• For many years I practiced these techniques as a professional percussionist in jazz and new music. 许多年来作为一个职业的爵士乐和新音乐演奏者我不断实践着。 来自互联网

12 miller   

n.磨坊主

参考例句：

• Every miller draws water to his own mill.磨坊主都往自己磨里注水。
• The skilful miller killed millions of lions with his ski.技术娴熟的磨坊主用雪橇杀死了上百万头狮子。

13 legendary   

adj.传奇（中）的，闻名遐迩的；n.传奇（文学）

参考例句：

• Legendary stories are passed down from parents to children.传奇故事是由父母传给孩子们的。
• Odysseus was a legendary Greek hero.奥狄修斯是传说中的希腊英雄。

14 revel   

vi.狂欢作乐，陶醉；n.作乐，狂欢

参考例句：

• She seems to revel in annoying her parents.她似乎以惹父母生气为乐。
• The children revel in country life.孩子们特别喜欢乡村生活。