G. F. Handel
During this time, Handel applied1 to know whether there were any choirmen in the cathedral who could sing at sight:2 as he wished to prove some books that had been hastily transcribed, by trying the choruses which he intended to perform in Ireland.... Among them was a printer of the name of Janson, who had a good bass voice.... A time was fixed for this private rehearsal... but alas! on trial of the chorus in the Messiah, “And with his stripes we are healed,” poor Janson, after repeated attempts failed so egregiously, that Handel, ...after swearing in four or five languages, cried out in broken English, “You shcauntrell, tit you not dell me dat you could sing at soit？” “Yes, sir,” said the printer, “and so I can, but not at first sight.3 ”
— C. Burney
choirman n. 唱诗班男歌手
cathedral n. 大教堂
transcribe v. 改编（乐曲）
chorus n. 合唱曲
rehearsal n. 排练
15
alas int.（惊叹语）哎呀
stripe n.（鞭打的）伤痕
egregiously adv. 异乎寻常地
swear v. 咒骂
中译 蹩脚英文（亨德尔）
在此期间，亨德尔提出想知道大教堂的唱诗班男歌手里有没有谁能就着歌谱即席演唱，因为他想通过试唱那些预备在爱尔兰演出时用的合唱曲目来核对一下匆忙编写的乐谱。……在这些找来试唱的歌手中有位名叫约翰逊的印刷工。他天生一副很棒的男低音嗓子。……于是约定了这次私下排练的时间。……可是，唉！在试唱《弥赛亚》合唱曲《因他受的鞭伤，我们得医治》的时候，可怜的约翰逊连唱几次都彻底失败。亨德尔……一连用了四五种语言大骂之后，又操起蹩脚的英语大声嚷道：“你这个混蛋，你不是对我说过你看谱就会唱吗？”印刷工说：“是的，先生。我确实看谱就会唱的，只是不会一看谱马上就唱。”
——〔英〕伯尼
原来如此！
George Frederich Handel（亨德尔，1685-1759），英籍德国作曲家，创作甚多，包括歌剧、清唱剧（oratorio）、声乐曲、乐器曲等，代表作有清唱剧《弥赛亚》（The Messiah, 1742）、管弦乐曲《水上音乐》（Water Music, 1717）等。
文中提到“During this time”，那时Handel在英国为首次上演其作品《弥赛亚》做准备工作。亨德尔说英语带有德语口音。文中“You shcauntrell, ...soit？”一句正确的读法是：“You scoundrel, did you not tell me that...at sight？”本文的幽默基于两个相关语sing at sight（事先无准备看着乐谱就能唱出来，即sight-reading）和sing at first sight（一看乐谱立即就唱）。
本文作者Charles Burney（伯尼，1726-1814）是英国作曲家。
增值英语
1 applied to know...
句式 apply to-v. / apply for sth，指“申请”：
They applied to return to China. 他们申请回中国。
He applied to be transferred to another department. 他要求调到另一部门工作。
She applied for a driving licence. 她申请了驾驶执照。
2 ...who could sing at sight
句式 at sight / on sight 一见（就）：
The money order was payable at sight. 这汇款单是见票即付的。
The army was ordered to shoot the rebels on sight. 军队接到命令一见叛乱分子就开枪射击。
句式 含 sight 的词组还有不少，这里介绍几个：
We are now in sight of land. 现在我们见到陆地了。
The village we are heading for is not too far away. It is within (our) sight. 我们要去的乡村不太远，就在（我们）见得到的地方。
The train was soon out of sight. 那火车很快就看不见了（在视程之外）。
I know that man by sight. 我跟那人面熟，但并不相识。
3 at first sight
解作“乍看；立即”（= at first glance）：
At first sight the difficulty looks greater than it really is. 乍看起来困难很大，不过实际上并没有那么大。
They fell in love at first sight. 他俩一见钟情。
名言
One ought, every day at least, to have a little song,
read a good poem, see a fine picture, and, if it were possible, to speak a few reasonable words. — Goethe
每天至少应该听一首小歌，读一首好诗，欣赏一幅精美的图画，如果可能，说几句富有理智的话。——歌德
