聋子DJ的世界


来源:网络整理
发布时间:2015-10-27 09:37:00
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内容提要:日子一天天过去,到了今天,我残余的听力降到了20%。我的医生曾估计到现在我将会完全失聪,这样看来,我如今的状况还算不错。

I was born in England with perfect hearing. In 1990, when I was five, my family moved to the United States. I started getting ear infections every three months or so. We didn’t have health insurance at the time and when I got a third infection, my parents couldn’t pay for the treatment. I went deaf in my right ear and was left with 50 percent hearing in my left. Over time, my remaining hearing dropped to 20 percent, where it is today. My doctors predicted that I would be completely deaf by now, so I think I’m doing pretty well.
There was always music on in my house when I was little. I loved listening to 2)Metallica, 3)Led Zeppelin, 4)Bob Marley, Michael Jackson. My dad was a DJ, so he played disco, folk, dance, rock, and music from other countries. For my 18th birthday, my dad asked me to deejay at the restaurant he owned. After doing that for a few weeks, I was hooked. I wanted to learn more. 

  I e-mailed DJ Shiftee, a well-known New York City DJ, when I was 25: “I know you like a challenge. How about teaching a deaf person to deejay?” He wrote back the next day: “Challenge accepted.” He tutored me twice a week for two years, helping me develop proper technique. I practiced four hours a day. Now when I’m performing, muscle memory takes over.
When I started, I wouldn’t tell the club managers I was deaf. I would just show up, introduce myself, and start playing music. At the end of the night, someone would say, “Oh, here’s the check.” And I’d say, “What? Oh, I can’t hear.” They were always so surprised. Sometimes I would bring doctor’s notes because they wouldn’t believe me. It was reassurance that they were giving me 5)gigs because I was good, not out of sympathy.
Eventually people started calling me “that Deaf DJ,” and the name stuck.
For a show, I set up one speaker facing my left side, my good ear, and crank it all the way up. The speakers that play the bass are on the floor behind me so I can hear some of the lower frequencies and feel the beat in my feet. And I can feel the energy of the song and the crowd goes crazy, you feel that. The song comes to life.
I use software that turns the music into lines of color on a computer screen. Red is the bass, blue is snare, green is the vocals or melody. I’m visually hearing the music. What I love about deejaying is the creativity, what you can do with a machine, two 6)turntables, and a 7)mixer.
The next time you go dancing cover your ears, and you’ll feel a little bit of how I do it. You’ll start using your other senses. You’ll start seeing that you’re able to hear the music in a different way. Music is not all about hearing.   
I play all sorts of get-togthers now, from college parties to corporate events. I also go to elementary schools for the deaf and talk to the students about motivation and believing in themselves. I’m 8)big on talking to the parents. I tell them, “My advice to you is to let your kids chase their dreams. I’m a deaf DJ, so why not?”
我在英格兰出生时,听力完全没有问题。1990年,当时我5岁,我全家搬到了美国。我的耳朵开始每隔大概三个月就感染一次。我们那会儿没有医疗保险,在我的耳朵第三次受到感染时,我父母已付不起治疗费用了。我的右耳聋了,左耳只剩下50%的听力。日子一天天过去,到了今天,我残余的听力降到了20%。我的医生曾估计到现在我将会完全失聪,这样看来,我如今的状况还算不错。
小时候,我家里总是乐声不断。我爱听金属乐队、齐柏林飞船、鲍勃 马利和迈克尔.杰克逊。我爸爸是一名DJ,所以他会播放迪斯科、民谣、舞曲、摇滚以及其他国家的音乐。为了庆祝我的18岁生日,爸爸让我在他的餐馆里当DJ。数周后,我迷上了这行当。我想多学一点。
在我25岁时,我给DJ“转音人”发了一封电子邮件,他是纽约市的一位知名DJ。“我知道你喜欢挑战,要不要试试教一个聋子当DJ?”他隔天回复了我,写道:“接受挑战”。两年间,他每周辅导我两次,帮助我提高专门的表演技巧。我一天练习4小时。如今,当我表演时,肌肉的记忆让我自然而然地知道该怎么做。
刚开始那会儿,我不愿意告诉俱乐部经理我耳聋的事。我只是出场,自我介绍,然后开始播放音乐。在当晚结束之时,有些人会说:“噢,这是给你的小费。”而我则会说:“什么?噢,我耳朵听不见。”他们总会十分惊讶。有时,我会带上医生的诊断书,因为他们不相信我。这也让我放心相信,他们给我演出机会确是因为我表演得不错,而不是出于同情。
最后,人们开始称我为“那个聋子DJ”,然后这个外号就一直跟随着我。
每次演出,我在我的左侧,能听到声音的耳朵那边立了个扬声器,并调到最大音量。在我身后的地上放着几个播放低音的扬声器,如此一来,我便能听到一些较低频的声音,脚下可以感觉得到拍子。我可以感受到歌曲的活力,人们都为之疯狂了,你可以感受得到。歌曲活力迸发起来。
我用软件把音乐转化为电脑屏幕上的各色声谱线。红色是贝斯声,蓝色是鼓声,绿色是人声或调子。我在用视觉聆听音乐。我喜欢DJ的创造力,用一台机器,两个转盘,一台混频器就能表现出的创造力。
下次你跳舞时盖住耳朵,你就会体会到几分我的操作方式。你会开始动用起其他感官。你会开始知道能以另一种不同的方式聆听音乐。音乐并不全在于听觉。
如今我在各种联欢聚会上播放音乐,从大学晚会到公司活动都有。我还去聋人小学激励学生,让他们相信自己。我很重视与家长交谈。我告诉他们:“我给你们的建议是让你们的孩子追逐他们的梦想。我是个聋子DJ,所以何不一试呢?”

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