美國人真的沒有音樂細胞嗎

James Fenimore Cooper， an early American writer， once said， “The Americans are almost ignorant of the art of music.” If that was once true， you would never know it today. Most Americans—even those without a musical bone in their bodies—have a favorite style of music. Many people enjoy classical and folk music from around the world. But other popular music styles in America were “made in the USA”.

Country and western music lies close to the heart of many Americans. This style originated among country folks in the southern and western United States. Country music tells down-to-earth stories about love and lifes hardships. Guitars， banjos and violins—also known as fiddles—give country music its characteristic sound. The home of country music is Nashville， Tennessee—Music City USA Country music even has its own theme park called “Opryland” where you can enjoy music shows and fun rides. “The Grand Ole Opry，” the oldest radio show in the United States， broadcasts country music live from Opryland every weekend.

Jazz music， developed by African-Americans in the late 1800s， allows performers to freely express their emotions and musical skill. Instead of just playing the melody， jazz musicians improvise different tunes using the same chords. The peak of jazz music came in the 1920s， known as “The Jazz Era.” This period produced musicians like Louis Armstrong， Benny Goodman and Duke Ellington. These musicians later created the “big band” sounds of the 1930s. Different styles of jazz developed in different cities， such as New Orleans， Chicago， New York and Kansas City. Composer George Gershwin brought jazz into the world of classical music with pieces like “Rhapsody in Blue.”

一位美國早期的作家詹姆斯費尼莫·庫珀曾說：“美國人對音樂藝術幾乎可以說是相當的無知。”如果這話曾經是事實，今日你絕不會這么認為了。大部分的美國人，甚至包括那些沒有音樂細胞的人，都有自己喜愛的音樂類型。許多人喜歡世界各國的古典音樂和民俗音樂，然而美國其他的流行音樂則是“美國制造”的。

鄉村和西部音樂深得多數美國人人心，這種類型的音樂起源于美國南部和西部的農民間。鄉村音樂講述著接地氣的愛情故事和生活中的艱難。吉他、五弦琴和小提琴（violin又名fiddle）賦予鄉村音樂音樂特色。鄉村音樂的發源地是田納西州的納許維爾市——美國音樂城市。而鄉村音樂甚至還有它自己的主題樂園——奧普里蘭！在那兒你可以享受音樂表演以及好玩的游樂設施。美國最老牌的廣播節目“鄉村大劇院”每個周末都實況播放奧普里蘭的鄉村音樂。

爵士樂是十九世紀末期由非裔美國人創造出來的。它讓表演者自由地表達情感和展現音樂技巧。不僅演奏旋律，爵士音樂大師用同樣的和弦即興演奏出不同的曲調。爵士樂的高峰期出現于二十世紀二十年代，該時期被稱為“爵士年代”。這個時期涌現出如阿姆斯特朗，古德曼和埃林頓等樂手。這些樂手稍后都創造了二十世紀三十年代的“大樂團”之音。不同的城市也孕育出不同的爵士風格，像新奧爾良、芝加哥、紐約和坎薩斯市爵士樂。作曲家喬格·格什溫更以“藍色狂想曲”這樣的作品，將爵士樂帶入古典音樂的世界里。