The Night Met Einstein 爱因斯坦给我上了一堂音乐课

1、The Night Met Einstein 爱因斯坦给我上了一堂音乐课作者：Jerome WeidmanWhen I was a very young man, just beginning to make my way1), I was invited to dine at the home of a distinguished New York philanthropist. After dinner, our hostess led us to an enormous drawing room. Other guests were pouring in, and my eyes beheld two unnerving sights: Servants were arranging small gilt chairs in long, neat rows; and up front, leaning against the wall, were musical instruments. Apparently I was in for2) an evening of chambe

2、r music. I use the phrase “in for” because music meant nothing to me. I am almost tone deafonly with great effort can I carry the simplest tune and serious music was to me no more than an arrangement of noises. So I did what I always did when trapped: I sat down, and when the music started, I fixed my face in what I hoped was an expression of intelligent appreciation, closed my ears from the inside, and submerged myself in my own completely irrelevant thoughts. After a while, becoming aware that

3、 the people around me were applauding, I concluded it was safe to unplug my ears. At once I heard a gentle but surprisingly penetrating voice on my right: “You are fond of Bach3)?” 那时我还是个小青年，刚刚踏入社会，应邀前往纽约市一位非常著名的慈善家家中出席晚宴。晚宴后，女主人领我们来到一间特别宽敞的会客厅。在其他宾客纷纷涌入的时候，我看到了两件令人不安的事情：一是佣人们正在将金色的小椅子整整齐齐地排成几个长排；一是在前方的墙壁上，斜倚着一件件乐器。 很显然，一场室内音乐会即将开始，看来今晚我注定要遭罪了。 我使用“遭罪”一词，因为音乐对我来说如同对牛弹琴。我几乎听不出任何曲调费尽九牛二虎之力我才能哼出最简单的调子，而严肃音乐对我来说只不过是聒噪之音。所以我就使出了每当深陷音乐困局时的拿手好戏：我坐了下来，音乐声起时，脸上就摆出一副我期望中的充满智慧、痴迷沉醉的表情，但内心却将耳朵封闭，沉浸在与音乐完全无关的

4、自我的思绪中。 I knew as much about Bach as I know about nuclearfission4). But I did know one of the most famous faces in the world, with the renowned shock5) of untidy white hair and the ever-present pipe between the teeth. I was sitting next to Albert Einstein. “Well,” I said uncomfortably and hesitated. I had been asked a casual question. All I had to do was be equally casual in my reply. But I could see from the look in my neighbors extraordinary eyes that their owner was not merely going through t

5、he perfunctory6) duties of elementary politeness. Regardless of what value I placed on my part in the verbal exchange, to this man his part in it mattered very much. Above all, I could feel that this was a man to whom you did not tell a lie, however small.“I dont know anything about Bach,” I said awkwardly. “Ive never heard any of his music.” A look of perplexed astonishment washed across Einsteins mobile face. “You have never heard Bach?” He made it sound as though I had said Id never taken a b

6、ath. “It isnt that I dont want to like Bach,” I replied hastily. “Its just that Im tone deaf, or almost tone deaf, and Ive never really heard anybodys music.” A look of concern came into the old mans face. “Please,” he said abruptly. “You will come with me?” He stood up and took my arm. I stood up. As he led me across that crowded room, I kept my embarrassed glance fixed on the carpet. A rising murmur of puzzled speculation followed us out into the hall. Einstein paid no attention to it. Resolut

7、ely, he led me upstairs. He obviously knew the house well. On the floor above, he opened the door into a book-lined study, drew me in, and shut the door. “Now,” he said with a small, troubled smile. “You will tell me, please, how long you have felt this way about music?” “All my life,” I said, feeling awful. “I wish you would go back downstairs and listen, Dr. Einstein. The fact that I dont enjoy it doesnt matter.” Einstein shook his head and scowled7), as though I had introduced an irrelevance.

8、 “Tell me, please,” he said. “Is there any kind of music that you do like?”过了一阵，感觉到周围的人们在鼓掌，我便认定可以敞开耳朵了。就在这时，我听到一个温和但却具有惊人穿透力的声音在我右边响起：“你喜欢巴赫吗？” 我对巴赫的了解并不比我对核裂变的了解多。但我却认识这世上最著名的一张面孔：那一团举世闻名的乱蓬蓬的白发，还有那支从不离嘴的烟斗。原来，我正坐在阿尔伯特爱因斯坦旁边。 “呃”我有点尴尬，不知该怎样回答才好。他问的是一个很随意的问题，我只要做出一个同样随意的回答即可。但我从他那双异乎寻常的眼睛里看得出来，这双眼睛的主人并不只是出于基本的礼貌随口问问而已。在这一语言交流中，我自己扮演的角色有何价值倒无关紧要，重要的是对爱因斯坦来说，他扮演的是什么角色。尤为重要的是，我感到对于这么一个人，你是不能撒谎的，不管这个谎言有多么不值一提。 “我对巴赫其实一无所知，”我有点尴尬地说，“我从未听过他写的任何一首乐曲。” 一种震惊但又困惑不解的表情漫过爱因斯坦那张表情丰富的脸。 “你从来没有听过巴赫的音乐？” 他那语气好

9、像听到我说我从未洗过澡一样。 “ 并不是我不想喜欢巴赫，”我赶忙回答道，“只是因为我是个乐盲，或者说几乎是个乐盲。我从来没有真正地听过任何人的音乐。” 老人的脸上露出关切的神情，他突然说道：“请跟我来好吗？” 他站起身来，拉住我的胳膊。我也站了起来。他拉着我穿过拥挤的房间，我神情尴尬，眼睛一直盯着地毯。人群中响起了一阵半是困惑半是猜疑的嗡嗡声，一直尾随着我们进入大厅。爱因斯坦对此毫不理睬。 他果断地带着我上了楼梯。很显然，他对这栋房子很熟悉。到了楼上，他打开一扇门，走入一间摆满书籍的房间，把我拉进去，关上了门。 “Well,” I answered, “I like songs that have words, and the kind of music where I can follow the tune.” He smiled and nodded, obviously pleased. “You can give me an example, perhaps?” “Well,” I ventured, “almost anything by Bing Crosby8).” He nodded again, briskly. “Good!” He went to a corner of the room , opened a phonograph9), and started pulling out records. I watched him uneasily. At last, he beamed. “Ah!” he said. He put the record on, and in a moment, the study was filled with the relaxed, lilting strains10) of Bing Crosbys When the Blue of the Night Meets the Gold of the Day. Einstein beamed at me and

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