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A Rich Tradition: the Irish Harp ( 9.2 Version A)1Many American musical traditions are relatively new. Popular music has changed immensely over the past one hundred years, bringing new styles, instruments, and modes of expression to the mainstream of our culture. Jazz, blues, and country music, though based on earlier musical forms, all evolved in the twentieth century to become popular genres. For other countries, though, musical traditions go back much further in time and maintain a tremendous influence and importance in their cultures today.2Irish harp music, for example, dates back to the 800s, and although it nearly became extinct in the 1800s, it has enjoyed a new popularity in the last fifty years, thanks in part to the preservation efforts of historians, scholars, and musicians. The Irish harp itself is different in appearance and structure from those harps seen in orchestras. It is somewhat smaller, and instead of having forty-seven strings like an ordinary harp, it has between thirty and thirty-six. Irish harp strings are also composed of metal, giving the music a more distinctive sound than the music of traditional harp strings that are often composed of different types of elements. The front of an Irish harp—called the “sound box”— is made from a single piece of wood. A wooden pillar or “column” stretches up from the base of the harp and is connected on top with a curved neck, forming a triangular shape.3To play, a harper sits with the length of the instrument in front of him or her and pulls the sound box against his or her chest. Like classical guitarists, Irish harpers usually pluck their strings with their fingernails, giving them more speed and dexterity than those musicians using the tips of their fingers alone.4Years ago, almost no Irish songs were written down. It was a culture of strictly live performances: playing, singing, and storytelling. Thus, harpers had little use for written music. They relied on their amazing memories to keep track of the dozens and dozens—often hundreds and hundreds—of songs they learned and composed.5Until the 1700s, harpers held a privileged and essential place in Irish society. Almost all of them were men, and they would wander throughout the countryside on horseback, stopping at homes along the way. Families were pleased to have these men as houseguests because they offered extraordinary entertainment and distraction from everyday existence. Not only was the typical harper a gifted musician, but he could often sing, recite poetry, and tell hilarious stories as well. These various talents made him a treasured commodity sought after by people from all walks of life. In exchange for the generous hospitality he would receive from his hosts, including a place to stay, plenty of food, and leisure time to rest and practice, a harper always composed a song in honor of his patrons, which he performed at a special farewell feast.6The most famous of the Irish harpers was named Turlough O’Carolan. O’Carolan lived from 1670 to 1738, becoming a huge celebrity in his own time. He is affectionately known simply as “Carolan.” He is remembered as a good-natured man. Carolan created his now famous songs to pay homage to the men and women who gave him food and shelter. He called these songs “Planxties,” and each song would bear the name of one of Carolan’s hosts. Thus, the songs “Planxty John Irwin,” “Planxty Eleanor Plunkett,” and “Planxty George Brabazon” have recorded for posterity the names of these now otherwise unremarkable individuals.7Carolan was not only the greatest of the Irish harpers, he was also the last. After his death, the tradition of playing the Irish harp went into decline and nearly disappeared completely in the 1800s. However, other harpers imitated Carolan and played his songs. Thus, after Carolan died, his songs were kept alive by successive generations of harpers and became a part of popular Irish culture. Finally, someone had the idea to transcribe his songs as the era of the harper began to wane. Later, particularly in the 1960s, people from all over the world began to take a renewed interest in Carolan’s music, as well as the Irish harp in general. Over 200 of Carolan’s songs have been preserved, and many Irish performers continue to play and record his music.Question #1What is the?MAIN?idea of Paragraph 5 of the passage?A)Harpers were similar to classical guitarists.B)Harpers relied on their memories to retain music.C)Harpers were welcome visitors throughout Ireland.D)Harpers dedicated their songs to people who gave them food and shelter.Question #2What is another good title for this passage?A)The Irish Harp: A Tradition SurvivesB)The Appeal of Modern Irish Folk MusicC)The Influence of Irish Harp Music on Contemporary MusicD)The Songs O’ the Irish: Their Methods of Communicating with MusicDigging Up the Past1Some people say that archeologists go into the profession because they didn’t play in the dirt when they were kids. While I spend a lot of my professional time digging in the dirt, I don’t think I do it because I missed out on dirtying myself up when I was younger. If there is a connection to playing, I’d say that I went into archeology because I like solving puzzles. That’s what archeology is, putting together the puzzle that is the ancient past.2A lot of this ancient puzzle still needs to be figured out. I’ll give you a graphic example of what I mean. At our work site, there is a huge pile of broken pottery. This pile consists of mismatched pottery pieces. Because the bases to these pieces have not been located, these fragments have been discarded. They’ve been written-off as curious old odds and ends. They’ve been put aside in what might remain a large, unfinished part of the archeology puzzle.3My area of concentration is in central Israel, around the ancestral home of King Herod. It is a very unusual area because there are about 5,000 man-made—as opposed to natural—caves in this area. We have excavated or dug out only a fraction of them.4You may be wondering why we have only gotten through a small part of the caves. When we first came to this area, we found the caves filled with dirt. The job of the archeologist is to preserve the past, not destroy it. So as not to lose any important finds, we have been very careful about clearing out the caves. We have worked at it the old-fashioned way, by manually shoveling up buckets upon buckets of dirt. These buckets are filled and then passed to the outside. Then, we sift through the dirt using our hands, brushes, and water.5Of course, sometimes site archeologists do get lucky in uncovering important remains. When we do, we literally piece together how people lived in ancient times. Consequently, from digging at our site, several important details are now known about the area.6First, the majority of the finds date back some 2,000 years to the Hellenistic period. Second, the ancient residents of the area used the caves for a variety of industries. These industries include: olive oil production, flax weaving, and pigeon raising. We have found, for example, columbarium or pigeon coops carved into the walls of the caves. Third, the caves may also have been used as hiding places and/or living quarters. We think people may have lived here, as we have found baths and water cisterns. Fourth, we have recently found evidence suggesting that there were even earlier inhabitants in the area. Thus, we are now researching finds from the Persian period, the Israelite period, and the Iron Age. Last, and probably most intriguing, for reasons which are still unclear, tons and tons of dirt had been deliberately dumped into these caves!7Will we find the answers to the questions this site poses? As with everything else in archeology, time will tell.Question #3Which statement?BEST?reflects the?MAIN?idea of the passage?A)Some questions cannot be answered.B)Uncovering the past requires patience.C)Today’s trash is tomorrow’s discovery.D)Archeologists are often misunderstood.Question #4Which statement is?BEST?supported with information from the passage?A)Some archeological mysteries may never be solved.B)Digging is unnecessary during the excavation process.C)Archeologists need simple equipment for a dig to be successful.D)Archeologists usually guess the time period to which an artifact dates.Question #5What is the?MAIN?idea of Paragraph 6?A)Ancient caves were used as hiding places and as homes.B)Nobody knows why there is so much dirt in ancient caves.C)The ancient people of central Israel used caves for a variety of industries.D)Archeologists have learned much about an ancient people by looking at their caves. ................
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