ABOUT THE SPEAKER
Abigail Washburn - Clawhammer banjo player
Abigail Washburn pairs venerable folk elements with far-flung sounds, creating results that feel both strangely familiar and unlike anything anybody's ever heard before.

Why you should listen
If American old-time music is about adopting earlier, simpler ways of life and music-making, Abigail has proven herself a bracing challenge to that tradition. A singing, songwriting, Chinese-speaking, Illinois-born, Nashville-based, clawhammer banjo player, Abigail is every bit as interested in the present and the future as she is in the past, and every bit as attuned to the global as she is to the local. From the recovery zones of earthquake-shaken Sichuan to the hollers of Tennessee, she pairs venerable folk elements with far-flung sounds, and the results feel both strangely familiar and unlike anything anybody’s ever heard before. To put it another way, she changes what seems possible.
More profile about the speaker
Abigail Washburn | Speaker | TED.com
TED2012

Abigail Washburn: Building US-China relations ... by banjo

阿比盖尔·沃什伯恩: 用班卓琴来建设中美关系

Filmed:
1,039,474 views

TED Fellow 阿比盖尔·沃什伯恩本来想要当一名律师去促进中美关系——直到她拿起了班卓琴。她娓娓道来了一个感人的故事，告诉了我们她是怎样通过在中国和美国弹唱中文歌而为这两块大陆建立起了不同寻常的关系。
- Clawhammer banjo player
Abigail Washburn pairs venerable folk elements with far-flung sounds, creating results that feel both strangely familiar and unlike anything anybody's ever heard before. Full bio

Double-click the English transcript below to play the video.

00:15
If you had caught抓住 me straight直行 out of college学院
0
0
2000
如果你在我本科刚毕业后
00:17
in the halls大厅 of the Vermont佛蒙特 State州 House屋
1
2000
2000
在佛蒙特州议会大楼里遇到我
00:19
where I was a lobbyist说客 in training训练
2
4000
3000
—-那时我还正在参加说客培训——
00:22
and asked问 me what I was going to do with my life,
3
7000
2000
并同时问我我的人生理想是什么
00:24
I would have told you
4
9000
2000
我会告诉你
00:26
that I'd just passed通过 the Hanyu寒雨 Shuiping热水瓶 KaoshiKaoshi,
5
11000
2000
我刚通过了汉语水平考试
00:28
the Chinese中文 equivalency等价 exam考试,
6
13000
2000
（The Chinese Equivalency Exam)
00:30
and I was going to go study研究 law法 in Beijing北京,
7
15000
3000
而且我准备去北京进修法律
00:33
and I was going to improve提高 U.S.-China-中国 relations关系
8
18000
4000
我要自上而下地修订政策
00:37
through通过 top-down自顶向下 policy政策 changes变化
9
22000
2000
及改革司法系统
00:39
and judicial司法 system系统 reforms改革.
10
24000
2000
以来改善中美关系
00:41
(Laughter笑声)
11
26000
3000
（笑声）
00:44
(Applause掌声)
12
29000
2000
（掌声）
00:46
I had a plan计划,
13
31000
3000
我是有个计划
00:49
and I never ever thought
14
34000
3000
但是我没想到它会
00:52
it would have anything to do
15
37000
2000
和班卓琴扯上什么关系
00:54
with the banjo班卓琴.
16
39000
4000
就是这玩意儿
00:58
Little did I know
17
43000
2000
我真没想到
01:00
what a huge巨大 impact碰撞 it would have on me one night
18
45000
2000
它将在某个晚上对我造成如此巨大的影响
01:02
when I was at a party派对
19
47000
2000
当时我正在一个派对
01:04
and I heard听说 a sound声音 coming未来 out of a record记录 player播放机
20
49000
2000
我听见从房间角落里的录音机
01:06
in the corner角 of a room房间.
21
51000
2000
传来得声音
01:08
And it was Doc文件 Watson沃森
22
53000
2000
那是多克·沃森(Doc Watson)弹唱的
01:10
singing唱歌 and playing播放 "Shady阴凉 Grove树林."
23
55000
3000
《林荫》
01:13
♫ Shady阴凉 Grove树林, my little love ♫
24
58000
2000
♫树林荫荫啊，我的小爱人♫
01:15
♫ Shady阴凉 Grove树林, my darlin'亲爱的 ♫
25
60000
2000
♫树林荫荫啊，我的小亲亲♫
01:17
♫ Shady阴凉 Grove树林, my little love ♫
26
62000
3000
♫树林荫荫啊，我的小爱人♫
01:20
♫ Going back to Harlan哈伦 ♫
27
65000
3000
♫让我们一起回哈兰♫
01:24
That sound声音 was just so beautiful美丽,
28
69000
3000
那声音真是太美了
01:27
the sound声音 of Doc'sDoc的 voice语音
29
72000
2000
多克的嗓音
01:29
and the rippling荡漾 groove槽 of the banjo班卓琴.
30
74000
4000
和荡漾的班卓琴声
01:33
And after being存在 totally完全 and completely全然 obsessed痴迷
31
78000
4000
在完全彻底沉迷于悠久厚重
01:37
with the mammoth长毛象 richness丰富 and history历史
32
82000
2000
浩浩汤汤的中国历史与文化
01:39
of Chinese中文 culture文化,
33
84000
2000
这么久以后
01:41
it was like this total总 relief浮雕
34
86000
4000
听到这种地道的美国风格
01:45
to hear听 something so truly真 American美国
35
90000
3000
也是地道的一流音乐
01:48
and so truly真 awesome真棒.
36
93000
3000
实在是对我的一种解脱
01:51
I knew知道 I had to take a banjo班卓琴 with me to China中国.
37
96000
3000
我这时候知道我肯定会带着班卓琴去中国了
01:56
So before going to law法 school学校 in China中国
38
101000
2000
在出发去中国的法学院之前
01:58
I bought买 a banjo班卓琴, I threw扔 it in my little red红 truck卡车
39
103000
3000
我买了个班卓琴，把它扔进我的红色小皮卡里
02:01
and I traveled旅行 down through通过 Appalachia阿巴拉契亚
40
106000
3000
然后我一路开到了阿巴拉契亚
02:04
and I learned学到了 a bunch束 of old旧 American美国 songs歌曲,
41
109000
2000
途中也学了一堆美国风老歌
02:06
and I ended结束 up in Kentucky肯塔基
42
111000
2000
最后我来到了肯塔基的
02:08
at the International国际 Bluegrass早熟禾 Music音乐 Association协会 Convention惯例.
43
113000
3000
国际蓝草音乐联盟大会
02:11
And I was sitting坐在 in a hallway门厅 one night
44
116000
3000
有天晚上我坐在走廊里
02:14
and a couple一对 girls女孩 came来了 up to me.
45
119000
2000
几个姑娘走了过来
02:16
And they said, "Hey, do you want to jam果酱?"
46
121000
2000
她们问我：“嘿，来个小合奏呗？”
02:18
And I was like, "Sure."
47
123000
2000
我说：“成啊！”
02:20
So I picked采摘的 up my banjo班卓琴
48
125000
2000
然后我拿起班卓琴
02:22
and I nervously紧张 played发挥 four四 songs歌曲 that I actually其实 knew知道 with them.
49
127000
3000
非常紧张地和她们合奏了四首歌
02:25
And a record记录 executive行政人员 walked走 up to me
50
130000
2000
然后一个唱片公司的管理人员走了过来
02:27
and invited邀请 me to Nashville纳什维尔, Tennessee田纳西 to make a record记录.
51
132000
3000
然后邀请我去田纳西的纳什维尔(被称为音乐之都）录专辑
02:30
(Laughter笑声)
52
135000
4000
（笑声）
02:37
It's been eight八 years年份,
53
142000
4000
八年过去了
02:41
and I can tell you that I didn't go to China中国 to become成为 a lawyer律师.
54
146000
4000
我没去中国当律师
02:45
In fact事实, I went去 to Nashville纳什维尔.
55
150000
2000
事实上 我去了纳什维尔
02:47
And after a few少数 months个月 I was writing写作 songs歌曲.
56
152000
3000
几个月之后我就开始自己写歌
02:50
And the first song歌曲 I wrote写 was in English英语,
57
155000
2000
第一首是用英文写的
02:52
and the second第二 one was in Chinese中文.
58
157000
3000
第二首是中文
02:56
(Music音乐)
59
161000
3000
（音乐）
02:59
[Chinese中文]
60
164000
10000
[中文歌词]（后有翻译）
03:09
Outside外 your door门 the world世界 is waiting等候.
61
174000
2000
♫门外有个世界♫
03:11
Inside内 your heart心 a voice语音 is calling调用.
62
176000
2000
♫心中有个声音♫
03:13
The four四 corners角落 of the world世界 are watching观看,
63
178000
2000
♫四方等你来啊♫
03:15
so travel旅行 daughter女儿, travel旅行.
64
180000
3000
远行吧我的姑娘，去远行
03:18
Go get it, girl女孩.
65
183000
2000
去追逐你的梦
03:20
(Applause掌声)
66
185000
9000
（掌声）
03:29
It's really been eight八 years年份 since以来 that fated命运多舛 night in Kentucky肯塔基.
67
194000
4000
距离肯塔基那改变命运的一夜的确已经过去八年了
03:33
And I've played发挥 thousands数千 of shows节目.
68
198000
2000
这期间我参加过数以千计的表演
03:35
And I've collaborated合作
69
200000
2000
我和不计其数的出色音乐人合作过
03:37
with so many许多 incredible难以置信, inspirational励志 musicians音乐家 around the world世界.
70
202000
4000
他们来自世界的各个地方
03:41
And I see the power功率 of music音乐.
71
206000
2000
我感受到了音乐的力量
03:43
I see the power功率 of music音乐
72
208000
2000
我感受到了音乐能
03:45
to connect连 cultures文化.
73
210000
2000
联通不同文化的力量
03:47
I see it when I stand站 on a stage阶段
74
212000
2000
我是在东弗吉尼亚
03:49
in a bluegrass兰草 festival节 in east东 Virginia弗吉尼亚州
75
214000
2000
一个蓝草音乐节的舞台上意识到的
03:51
and I look out at the sea海 of lawn草坪 chairs椅子
76
216000
2000
当我的视线越过草坪躺椅的海洋时
03:53
and I bust胸围 out into a song歌曲 in Chinese中文.
77
218000
3000
我突然唱起了一段中文歌
03:56
[Chinese中文]
78
221000
3000
♫太阳出来了喽喂 喜洋洋喽 啷喽♫
03:59
And everybody's每个人的 eyes眼睛 just pop流行的 wide宽 open打开
79
224000
3000
然后大家都睁大了眼睛
04:02
like it's going to fall秋季 out of their其 heads头.
80
227000
3000
好像眼珠子要掉出来似的
04:05
And they're like, "What's that girl女孩 doing?"
81
230000
2000
他们像是在问,"她发什么神经呢？“
04:07
And then they come up to me after the show显示
82
232000
3000
表演后他们来找我
04:10
and they all have a story故事.
83
235000
2000
带着他们的故事
04:12
They all come up and they're like,
84
237000
2000
他们过来告诉我
04:14
"You know, my aunt's阿姨的 sister's姐妹 babysitter's保姆的 dog's小狗 chicken鸡 went去 to China中国
85
239000
4000
”你知道吗，我婶婶的姐姐的保姆家的狗的小鸡去过中国
04:18
and adopted采用 a girl女孩."
86
243000
2000
还收养了一个小女孩“
04:20
And I tell you what, it like everybody's每个人的 got a story故事.
87
245000
4000
我跟你说，真的是大家都是有故事的人
04:24
It's just incredible难以置信.
88
249000
3000
真是太难以置信了
04:27
And then I go to China中国
89
252000
2000
后来我去了中国
04:29
and I stand站 on a stage阶段 at a university大学
90
254000
3000
我站在一个大学的舞台上
04:32
and I bust胸围 out into a song歌曲 in Chinese中文
91
257000
2000
我又突然唱起了中文歌
04:34
and everybody每个人 sings唱 along沿
92
259000
3000
然后每个人都跟我一起唱
04:37
and they roar怒吼 with delight喜
93
262000
2000
他们跟我一起大吼
04:39
at this girl女孩
94
264000
2000
对我这个
04:41
with the hair头发 and the instrument仪器,
95
266000
2000
长着头发拿着乐器的普通女孩
04:43
and she's singing唱歌 their其 music音乐.
96
268000
3000
这个女孩唱着他们的音乐
04:47
And I see, even more importantly重要的,
97
272000
4000
这时候我意识到更重要的是
04:51
the power功率 of music音乐 to connect连 hearts心中.
98
276000
3000
音乐能够联通心灵
04:54
Like the time I was in Sichuan四川 Province省
99
279000
3000
又一次我去四川
04:57
and I was singing唱歌 for kids孩子 in relocation搬迁 schools学校
100
282000
3000
在地震灾后的临时小学里
05:00
in the earthquake地震 disaster灾害 zone区.
101
285000
2000
给孩子们唱歌
05:02
And this little girl女孩 comes来 up to me.
102
287000
3000
然后一个小女孩走过来
05:05
[Chinese中文]
103
290000
6000
[中文] （后有翻译）
05:11
"Big大 sister妹妹 Wong皇,"
104
296000
2000
”王大姐，可以给你唱一下我妈妈教我的歌曲？“
05:13
Washburn沃什伯恩, Wong皇, same相同 difference区别.
105
298000
4000
沃什伯恩，王，差不多
05:17
"Big大 sister妹妹 Wong皇, can I sing唱 you a song歌曲
106
302000
3000
”王大姐，我能不能给你唱一下
05:20
that my mom妈妈 sang唱 for me
107
305000
2000
我妈妈再被地震吞噬前
05:22
before she was swallowed吞食 in the earthquake地震?"
108
307000
4000
教我的歌曲？”
05:26
And I satSAT down,
109
311000
2000
我坐下来
05:28
she satSAT on my lap膝部.
110
313000
2000
她坐在我膝盖上
05:30
She started开始 singing唱歌 her song歌曲.
111
315000
3000
她开始唱
05:33
And the warmth热情 of her body身体
112
318000
3000
我感到了她身体的的温度
05:36
and the tears眼泪 rolling压延 down her rosy红润 cheeks脸颊,
113
321000
4000
我看到了眼泪从她绯红的脸颊滚落下来
05:40
and I started开始 to cry哭.
114
325000
3000
我也哭了起来
05:43
And the light光 that shone闪闪发光 off of her eyes眼睛
115
328000
4000
她眼中闪烁的光
05:47
was a place地点 I could have stayed住 forever永远.
116
332000
4000
是我愿意相伴一生的东西
05:51
And in that moment时刻, we weren't不 our American美国 selves自我,
117
336000
3000
在那一刻，我们不是美国人
05:54
we weren't不 our Chinese中文 selves自我,
118
339000
2000
也不是中国人
05:56
we were just mortals凡人
119
341000
4000
我们只是简单的人
06:00
sitting坐在 together一起 in that light光 that keeps保持 us here.
120
345000
5000
静静地坐在将我们心灵带到一起的光里
06:05
I want to dwell住 in that light光
121
350000
4000
我真想和你们所有人
06:09
with you and with everyone大家.
122
354000
2000
一起去那片光里看一看
06:11
And I know U.S.-China-中国 relations关系
123
356000
2000
我知道中美关系
06:13
doesn't need another另一个 lawyer律师.
124
358000
2000
不再需要一个律师了
06:15
Thank you.
125
360000
2000
谢谢
06:17
(Applause掌声)
126
362000
10000
（掌声）
Translated by Dong Mao
Reviewed by Zhenwei Huang

▲Back to top

ABOUT THE SPEAKER
Abigail Washburn - Clawhammer banjo player
Abigail Washburn pairs venerable folk elements with far-flung sounds, creating results that feel both strangely familiar and unlike anything anybody's ever heard before.

Why you should listen
If American old-time music is about adopting earlier, simpler ways of life and music-making, Abigail has proven herself a bracing challenge to that tradition. A singing, songwriting, Chinese-speaking, Illinois-born, Nashville-based, clawhammer banjo player, Abigail is every bit as interested in the present and the future as she is in the past, and every bit as attuned to the global as she is to the local. From the recovery zones of earthquake-shaken Sichuan to the hollers of Tennessee, she pairs venerable folk elements with far-flung sounds, and the results feel both strangely familiar and unlike anything anybody’s ever heard before. To put it another way, she changes what seems possible.
More profile about the speaker
Abigail Washburn | Speaker | TED.com
THE ORIGINAL VIDEO ON TED.COM