Interpreter: Piano, "p," is my favorite musical symbol. It means to play softly. If you're playing a musical instrument and you notice a "p" in the score, you need to play softer. Two p's -- even softer. Four p's -- extremely soft. This is my drawing of a p-tree, which demonstrates no matter how many thousands upon thousands of p's there may be, you'll never reach complete silence. That's my current definition of silence: a very obscure sound.
在钢琴乐理中,“p”是我最喜欢的音乐符号 它表示(音乐中)弱音 如果你在弹奏乐器时注意到了乐谱中的“P” 那么你的(乐器)弹奏力度就要相对弱一点 两个P 的意思是弹奏力度还更弱 4个p的是非常弱 这是我画的有关符号“p”的树状图 它表现了 无论有多少p符号存在 你的弹奏力度也永远不会 达到完全的静默(最弱) 这是我目前对于静默(最弱)的定义 一种非常晦涩模糊的声音
I'd like to share a little bit about the history of American Sign Language, ASL, plus a bit of my own background. French sign language was brought to America during the early 1800s, and as time went by, mixed with local signs, it evolved into the language we know today as ASL. So it has a history of about 200 years.
现在我想分享一些 关于美国手语(ASL)的历史 和一些我的个人经历 在19世纪早期,法国手语传到了美国 并且随着时间的流逝与当地手语结合 逐渐发展成为了一种新的语言, 就是我们今天所熟知的美国手语(ASL) 所以美国手语的历史已经有200多年了
I was born deaf, and I was taught to believe that sound wasn't a part of my life. And I believed it to be true. Yet, I realize now that that wasn't the case at all. Sound was very much a part of my life, really, on my mind every day. As a Deaf person living in a world of sound, it's as if I was living in a foreign country, blindly following its rules, customs, behaviors and norms without ever questioning them.
我出生的时候就伴随着语言和听力障碍 他们让我认为声音并不是我生活中的一部分 我一直认为这是对的 但是现在我意识到其实不是这样的 其实声音是我过去生活中非常重要的一部分 真的,(声音)一直都在我的脑海中 作为一名生活在声音世界里的聋哑人 这中体验仿佛就像我生活在异国他乡 盲目地遵循这个国家的规则, 风俗,行为和标准 而并不去质疑它们。
So how is it that I understand sound? Well, I watch how people behave and respond to sound. You people are like my loudspeakers, and amplify sound. I learn and mirror that behavior. At the same time, I've learned that I create sound, and I've seen how people respond to me. Thus I've learned, for example ... "Don't slam the door!" "Don't make too much noise when you're eating from the potato-chip bag!"
那么我是怎样理解声音的呢? 其实, 我会去观察人们对声音的行为举止和反应 你们就像我的扩音器 帮我放大这些声音 我会学习并且映射这些行为 与此同时,我知道自己可以创造出声音 也知道了人们是怎么反应 像这样我学到的,比如 不要用力的关门 当你从土豆片包装袋中吃薯片时 不要发出太多的杂音
(Laughter)
(笑声)
"Don't burp, and when you're eating, make sure you don't scrape your utensils on the plate." All of these things I term "sound etiquette." Maybe I think about sound etiquette more than the average hearing person does. I'm hyper-vigilant around sound. And I'm always waiting in eager nervous anticipation around sound, about what's to come next.
不要打嗝 并且当你吃东西时 要确保不要将餐具刮到你的盘子 以上的这些事情我都称作“声音礼仪” 也许我考虑到的声音礼仪 会比一般(拥有正常听力)的人们更多 我对声音非常敏感 并且自己总是保持着急切的期待 对于声音,和将要发生的事情
Hence, this drawing. TBD, to be decided. TBC, to be continued. TBA, to be announced. And you notice the staff -- there are no notes contained in the lines. That's because the lines already contain sound through the subtle smudges and smears.
因此,这张图画 TBD,表示有待确定的 TBC,表示未完待续的 TBA, 表示有待宣布的 你会注意到这种五线谱 并没有包含任何的注释 因为这些线已经包含了声音 贯穿于由铅笔擦痕形成的污迹和污点之间
In Deaf culture, movement is equivalent to sound. This is a sign for "staff" in ASL. A typical staff contains five lines. Yet for me, signing it with my thumb sticking up like that doesn't feel natural. That's why you'll notice in my drawings, I stick to four lines on paper.
在聋哑人的文化中, 动作有和声音一样的地位 在美国手语中,这是“五线谱”的意思 一个典型的五线谱包括五条线 但对于我来说, 像这样竖起我的拇指来表示它 显得并不自然 这就是为什么你会注意到我的图画中, 只用了4条线
In the year 2008, I had the opportunity to travel to Berlin, Germany, for an artist residency there. Prior to this time, I had been working as a painter. During this summer, I visited different museums and gallery spaces, and as I went from one place to the next, I noticed there was no visual art there. At that time, sound was trending, and this struck me ... there was no visual art, everything was auditory.
在2008年, 我有一个机会去德国柏林旅行 作为一名艺术家访问那里 在此之前,我做过一段时间画家 这个夏天 我参观了很多不同的博物馆和画廊 当我从一个地方启程到下一个参观点, 发现竟然没有视觉艺术(展览)在那里 那个时候,声音是流行的主题 令我痛心的是视觉艺术完全被忽视了 所有的一切都是关于听觉(艺术)
Now sound has come into my art territory. Is it going to further distance me from art? I realized that doesn't have to be the case at all. I actually know sound. I know it so well that it doesn't have to be something just experienced through the ears. It could be felt tactually, or experienced as a visual, or even as an idea.
现在声音已经走进了我的艺术领域 这是否将会疏远我于艺术的联系? 我意识到不一定是这样的 我其实知道声音 并且我非常了解它 声音并不全是从耳朵里所听到的东西 我们其实也可以从触觉上感受到它 或者从视觉上 又或者是一个想法
So I decided to reclaim ownership of sound and to put it into my art practice. And everything that I had been taught regarding sound, I decided to do away with and unlearn. I started creating a new body of work. And when I presented this to the art community, I was blown away with the amount of support and attention I received. I realized: sound is like money, power, control -- social currency. In the back of my mind, I've always felt that sound was your thing, a hearing person's thing. And sound is so powerful that it could either disempower me and my artwork, or it could empower me. I chose to be empowered.
所以我决定去收回属于我的声音 并且其融合进我的艺术实践中 所有其他人告诉我的有关声音的一切 我决定全部抛弃和忘却 我开始创造一些新的作品 当我向艺术界展示它们时 大家的支持和关注深深地打动了我 我意识到 声音就像财富 权力, 支配 和社会认同 在我之前的印象中, 我总是觉得声音只是属于你们的 属于有听觉的人 声音是多么的强大 即可以剥夺和削弱我的一切 也可以给予我力量 我选择了让自己变得更加有力量
There's a massive culture around spoken language. And just because I don't use my literal voice to communicate, in society's eyes it's as if I don't have a voice at all. So I need to work with individuals who can support me as an equal and become my voice. And that way, I'm able to maintain relevancy in society today.
口语是大多数文化的重要构成 仅仅是因为我没有使用语音去交流 在社会的眼中 仿佛我不能表达出任何的声音 所以我需要和那些 平等对待我的人一起工作 让他们成为我的声音 正是因为这种方式, 我现今才得以保持与社会的关联性
So at school, at work and institutions, I work with many different ASL interpreters. And their voice becomes my voice and identity. They help me to be heard. And their voices hold value and currency. Ironically, by borrowing out their voices, I'm able to maintain a temporary form of currency, kind of like taking out a loan with a very high interest rate. If I didn't continue this practice, I feel that I could just fade off into oblivion and not maintain any form of social currency.
在学校,工作和机构中 我与很多美国手语翻译人员工作在一起 他们的声音成为了我的声音和身份 他们使我得以倾听外面的世界 他们的声音蕴含了价值和认可度 讽刺的是,通过借用他们的声音 我得以维持一种临时的认可形式 这有点像借高利贷的感觉 如果我不继续这样做 我感觉自己会渐渐会被遗忘 而且再也不能保持任何形式的社会认可
So with sound as my new art medium, I delved into the world of music. And I was surprised to see the similarities between music and ASL. For example, a musical note cannot be fully captured and expressed on paper. And the same holds true for a concept in ASL. They're both highly spatial and highly inflected -- meaning that subtle changes can affect the entire meaning of both signs and sounds.
所以当声音作为我的新艺术媒介时 我陶醉于在音乐的世界当中 我很惊讶的发现音乐与手语的相似性 比如 一个音符 是不能完全被记录到纸上的 对于美国手语系统来说也是这样的 它们都具有高度空间感和复杂多变的性质 任何微妙的变化 都会影响整个 手语同声音的意义
I'd like to share with you a piano metaphor, to have you have a better understanding of how ASL works. So, envision a piano. ASL is broken down into many different grammatical parameters. If you assign a different parameter to each finger as you play the piano -- such as facial expression, body movement, speed, hand shape and so on, as you play the piano -- English is a linear language, as if one key is being pressed at a time. However, ASL is more like a chord -- all 10 fingers need to come down simultaneously to express a clear concept or idea in ASL. If just one of those keys were to change the chord, it would create a completely different meaning. The same applies to music in regards to pitch, tone and volume. In ASL, by playing around with these different grammatical parameters, you can express different ideas.
我想和大家分享一个有关钢琴的比喻 让你们更好地理解美国手语的表现方式 让我们设想下有一架钢琴 美国手语系统(ASL) 被分散成不同的语法单元 如果你把不同的语法单元 分配到每一个手指上 就像你的面部表情,身体的移动 手速和手型等等 当你在弹钢琴时 英语是一门线形语言 好比一次只能表达一种音符一样 但是,美国手语更像是一种和弦 10指需要一起敲击 来表达一个清晰地美国手语概念 如果我们用一个音符来改变和弦 那么就会创造出完全不同的含义 音乐的音高,音调和音量也是如此 在美国手语中, 通过对语法单元多样地变化 你可以表达出不同的思想
For example, take the sign TO-LOOK-AT. This is the sign TO-LOOK-AT. I'm looking at you. Staring at you.
例如,表现”看“的手势 这样就是”看“的意思 我在看着你 瞪着你
(Laughter)
”笑声“
(Laughter)
”笑声“
Oh -- busted.
啊,糟糕了
(Laughter)
”笑声“
Uh-oh. What are you looking at? Aw, stop.
阿欧 你在看什么呢? ”啊,不要这样么“
(Laughter)
”笑声“
I then started thinking, "What if I was to look at ASL through a musical lens?" If I was to create a sign and repeat it over and over, it could become like a piece of visual music. For example, this is the sign for "day," as the sun rises and sets. This is "all day." If I was to repeat it and slow it down, visually it looks like a piece of music. All ... day. I feel the same holds true for "all night." "All night." This is ALL-NIGHT, represented in this drawing. And this led me to thinking about three different kinds of nights: "last night," "overnight," (Sings) "all night long."
然后我开始想 如果我从音乐的角度 看待美国手语系统会是怎样的呢? 如果我去创造一个手势然后不同的重复它 也许它会变成一段视觉音乐的形式 例如这是表现”天“的手势 这是日出和日落(手势) 这个是表现”一整天“的手势 如果我去重复它并且放慢速度 从视觉上来看它就像是一段音乐 整。。。天 我觉得”整晚“也可以这样来表现 ”整晚“ 这张图表现的就是”整晚“ 此外我也想到了3中类型的夜晚(形式) ”昨夜“ ”一夜(在晚上)“ (哼曲)”整整一夜“
(Laughter)
”笑声“
I feel like the third one has a lot more musicality than the other two.
我感觉第三种(夜晚的形式) 比前两者具备更强的音乐表现力
(Laughter)
”笑声“
This represents how time is expressed in ASL and how the distance from your body can express the changes in time. For example, 1H is one hand, 2H is two hand, present tense happens closest and in front of the body, future is in front of the body and the past is to your back. So, the first example is "a long time ago." Then "past," "used to" and the last one, which is my favorite, with the very romantic and dramatic notion to it, "once upon a time."
这张图表明了美国手语系统中 表达时间的方式 与你肢体不同的距离 是可以表现出不同的时间变化的 例如 "1H"是一只手的意思,"2H"是两只手 贴近你身体的前侧可以表现现在时 身体前侧用来表达将来时, 过去时是身体后侧 第一个例子是”很久以前“ 紧接着是”过去“ ”过去经常“ 然后最后一个是我最喜欢的 因为它具有非常浪漫和令人注目的概念 ”从前“
(Laughter)
”笑声“
"Common time" is a musical term with a specific time signature of four beats per measure. Yet when I see the word "common time," what automatically comes to mind for me is "at the same time." So notice RH: right hand, LH: left hand. We have the staff across the head and the chest.
”四分之四拍“ 是一个音乐术语 意思是在一定时间内打四次节拍 然而当我看到”四分之四拍“ 脑海里总是自动联想到”于此同时“这个词 所以注意”RH“代表右手,”LH“代表左手 五线谱在我的头部和胸前
[Head: RH, Flash claw]
头部:右手,紧握成爪型
[Common time]
”四分之四拍“
[Chest: LH, Flash claw]
胸前,左手,紧握成爪型
I'm now going to demonstrate a hand shape called the "flash claw." Can you please follow along with me? Everybody, hands up. Now we're going to do it in both the head and the chest, kind of like "common time" or at the same time. Yes, got it. That means "to fall in love" in International [Sign].
我现在来描述一下”flash claw“的手形 请大家跟我一起来做 请大家把手举起来 现在我们在头部和胸前做这个动作 有点像”四分之四拍“或者”与此同时“ 对啦,就是这样 这个意思”相爱“(在国际手语系统里)
(Laughter)
”笑声“
International [Sign], as a note, is a visual tool to help communicate across cultures and sign languages around the world.
国际手语就像一个音符 是一种视觉工具来促进 跨文化和手语系统的交流
The second one I'd like to demonstrate is this -- please follow along with me again. And now this. This is "colonization" in ASL.
那么第二个手语动作是这个 请大家再次跟随我做出动作 现在变成这样 在美国手语中这是”殖民“的意思
(Laughter)
”笑声“
Now the third -- please follow along again. And again. This is "enlightenment" in ASL. So let's do all three together. "Fall in love," "colonization" and "enlightenment." Good job, everyone.
第三个 请再次跟随我的动作 再次 在美国手语中它代表了”启示“的意思 那么请让我们连贯的做出三个动作 ”坠入爱河“ ”殖民“ 和”启示“ 大家都做的很好
(Laughter)
”笑声“
Notice how all three signs are very similar, they all happen at the head and the chest, but they convey quite different meanings.
值得注意的是无论这三种手势有多麽相近 你都要在头部和胸前做出它们(这些动作) 但是它们又传达了想到不同的含义
So it's amazing to see how ASL is alive and thriving, just like music is. However, in this day and age, we live in a very audio-centric world. And just because ASL has no sound to it, it automatically holds no social currency. We need to start thinking harder about what defines social currency and allow ASL to develop its own form of currency -- without sound. And this could possibly be a step to lead to a more inclusive society. And maybe people will understand that you don't need to be deaf to learn ASL, nor do you have to be hearing to learn music.
所以美国手语的发展和壮大真的很令人惊讶 就像音乐一样 但是在这个时代 我们生活在以声音为核心的世界里 因为美国手语并没有融合声音元素在其中 自然而然造成了它没有得到社会认可 我们需要开始进一步的去思考如何定义社会认可 并且允许美国手语建立一种特有的的认可形式 在没有声音元素融入的环境下 这样做可以很大程度上提升社会的包容性 也许人们以后会理解 即使不是聋哑人也可以学习美国手语 也并不只有听力健全的人才可以学习音乐
ASL is such a rich treasure that I'd like you to have the same experience. And I'd like to invite you to open your ears, to open your eyes, take part in our culture and experience our visual language. And you never know, you might just fall in love with us.
美国手语是一笔宝贵的财富 我希望你们也都能体会到这一点 我诚挚的邀请你们打开双耳 睁开自己的双眼 融入到我们的文化中去 然后感受(我们的)视觉语言的魅力 你永远不会知道 你有可能就会爱上了我们(和手语文化)
(Applause)
(鼓掌)
Thank you.
谢谢大家
Denise Kahler-Braaten: Hey, that's me.
Denise Kahler-Braaten(手语翻译):这是我
(Applause)
(鼓掌)