没有教授木琴制作的学校,罗恩只有自己弄清制作程序。制作一架更好的木琴的兴趣促使他在木工店找了一份工作。幸运的是,他受雇的那家木工店是一个学习木工技术的好地方。
Young and single, Ron spent nearly every evening and weekend working on his marimba, determined to get it right. "What musicians were looking for in the sound of a marimba I had already sort of come to the conclusion that this is what a marimba should sound like and I was bent on12) achieving it, for myself. The idea really was just to have a nice instrument for myself."
作为一个年轻的单身汉,罗恩几乎将每个晚上和周末的时间都花在了他的木琴上,决心要把它做好。“我大概得出了一个结论,即木琴的声音应该达到音乐家所寻求的标准。我决心让我的木琴做到这一点,为了我自己。我的想法真的就只是让自己拥有一件好乐器。”
About three years into his marimba-making quest, Ron had started honing13) his skills and began thinking that it might actually be possible to turn his passion into a real business. His marimbas were sounding better and better all the time.
在自己的木琴制造生涯进入第三个年头以后,罗恩开始打磨他的技术,并开始思考或许真的能将自己的兴趣转换为一门真正的生意。他做的木琴也总是越来越动听。
"I started going to this one trade show, the Percussive Arts Society International Convention. I went as an observer for a few years, just to meet marimba players and get their ideas on what they want to hear. One year I drove from Arcata to Austin, Texas, with a few of my marimbas and came home with several pages full of all the things I'd have to change in my instruments. I made the changes and went back the following year, this time to come home with only three-quarters of a page of changes. I made all those changes and went again. Then, people started buying them!"
“我开始去参加一个贸易展览会,叫国际打击乐艺术协会年会。我作为观察员去过几次,只是去见见木琴演奏者,听听他们的意见,问问他们想听到什么样的声音。有一年我开车载着我的一些木琴从阿克塔到了得克萨斯州的奥斯汀,回家时带回了好几页纸,上面写满了需要对我的木琴做改进的地方。我改进了我的琴,第二年又去了,这一次我带回了仅仅四分之三页纸的改进意见。我做了所有的改进并且又去了一次。之后,人们开始买我的木琴了!”
In 1989, about five years after he'd taken the job at the woodworking shop, Ron quit to run his marimba business full-time. And he's been at it ever since. His company, Marimba One, is now known for its high-end14), world-class professional instruments and is a leader in the marimba world.
1989年,在木工店工作了大约五年后,罗恩辞了职,开始全职做木琴生意。从那以后他就一直做这行。他的公司“木琴一号”,现在以其高端、具有国际水准的、专业的乐器著称,是木琴界的领头羊。
Years after stumbling upon15) his first marimba and dropping out of college to make a better one, Ron is still hard at work trying to create the perfect instrument. "It's a lifelong, evolving process. I always have to fix it and make it better."
从最初偶然发现他的第一架木琴,到为了制作一台更好的木琴而从大学辍学,再到几年后的现在,罗恩依然勤勤恳恳,努力制造出完美的乐器。“这是一个毕生的、不断进步的过程。我总是需要对它进行调整,把它做得更好。”
His favorite time to listen to the instrument that stole his heart is at a rehearsal, when you can walk around and really hear what a musician is trying to bring out in the music. It is then when he connects most with that deep, warm magical sound that drew him into the world of the marimba so many years ago. One day, he will make a marimba that will fully reveal the secret of that sound to the rest of us. Until then, he and Marimba One will keep on keeping on.
他最爱在彩排时听人演奏那个让他着迷的乐器,那个时候他能够四处走动并能真正听出音乐家试图通过音乐传达些什么。就是那一刻,他与多年前将它带入木琴世界的那个深邃、柔和、奇妙的声音最是紧密相连。有一天,他会制作出一架木琴,能把那个声音的奥妙完全地呈现给我们其他人。在那之前,他和“木琴一号”将会一直继续努力。
1. turn on: <俚> (使)产生兴趣(或爱好、热情)
2. marimba [mE5rImbE] n. 【音】马林巴琴(即木琴)
3. to begin with: 原先,本来
4. intrigue [In5tri:^] vt. 激起……的好奇心(或兴趣)
5. Erector Sets: 美国一种建筑拼装玩具,由A. C. Gilbert于1911年打造,两年后开始批量制造并销售,深受全球儿童喜爱。
6. go for it: <口> 大胆试一试
7. address [E5dres] vt. 处理,对付
8. acoustically [E5ku:stIkElI] adv. 听觉上,声学上
9. as much as: 实际上;差不多
10. outside the box: 打破常规的
11. propel [prE5pel] vt. 推动;激励,驱策
12. be bent on: 决意
13. hone [hEun] vt. 磨练;训练
14. high-end [5haI5end] adj. (产品等)同类中最贵的,最高档的,高端的
15. stumble upon: 偶然遇到,碰巧找到