Whether it's the melodic sound of an Eric Clapton solo or the growl of a heavy metal band, the electric guitar has influenced popular music and culture more than any other instrument. Rock's greatest musicians have always been closely identified with their guitars. But the instruments being designed for tomorrow's pop stars may look and sound rather different from today's familiar electric and acoustic guitars.
It is only sixty years since the electric guitar was invented. Since then there have been incredible changes to the technical design of the instrument. From what was once a rounded wooden box with a hole in the front, the guitar has evolved into the smooth solid body of the rock guitarist's "axe”. The most modern guitars are really computer-controlled synthesizers.
Adolph Rickenbacker's Electro String Company produced the first world's first electric guitar. It was made of wood and played on the user's lap. The first real breakthrough in design came in 1950 when Leo Fender, a California radio repairman, made the first solid-bodied electric guitar, the Fender Telecaster. Soon after the inventor Les Paul made the famous Gibson Les Paul, Fender launched his stylish Stratocaster two years later. These guitars became standard instruments against which newer guitar designs are measured.
All sorts of different materials have been used to make guitars. Acoustic guitars are made from wood, which gives a soft tone. Wood is also a popular material in electric guitar manufacture, but more modern materials such as glass and carbon fiber are also used. There have also been guitars with metal bodies and necks though these were never popular with players, who claim metal feels cold in the hand.
Plastics, on the other hand, have been more used in guitar bodies. A company that makes parts for the aerospace industry has begun to use a kind of fiberglass that was originally used in helicopter blades to make the bodies for its electric-acoustic instruments. Other makers have begun to experiment with graphite, which is ten times stiffer than wood but much lighter. It doesn't expand or contract as the temperature or humidity changes either. This makes it particularly suitable for guitar necks and for tennis rackets, for which it is also used.
As long as scientists and musicians work together harmoniously, the electric guitar will continue to benefit from technological innovations. But for all the efforts of the guitar companies' design engineers, managers and quality controllers, it's the musicians who finally make the instruments sing - and not necessarily in the way the guitar maker intended.
Question 35. What is likely to change in the future?
A. The influence of the guitar on popular culture B. Styles of guitar music
C. The guitars themselves D. How musicians feel about their guitars
Question 36. The first electric guitar was ___________
A. computer-controlled B. played sitting down
C. not hollow inside D. designed by Leo Fender
Question 37. The guitars designed in the fifties ___________
A. were unsuccessful B. are often compared to guitars designed today
C. were made of wood D. were played sitting down
Question 38. Why is graphite a good material for guitar necks?
A. It has been used for tennis rackets. B. It is heavier than wood.
C. It is more flexible than wood. D. It is not affected by atmospheric conditions.
Question 39. Which material was disliked by musicians?
A. metal B. wood C. plastic D. carbon fibre
Question 40. Which one of the following subjects is NOT referred to?
A. companies that make guitars B. materials guitars are made of
C. the role of technology D. other musical instruments
Question 41. Recent technological innovations___________
A. have not really improved the electric guitar
B. have been ignored by musicians
C. cannot determine the way the guitar will be played
D. are not what musicians hoped for
Question 42. The writer uses the word "guitar" sixteen times in the passage. What other word(s) is/are used instead of "guitar"?
A. axe B. instruments C. both of them D. none of them
Đề thi thử THPT 2021 - Tiếng Anh - GV Vũ Thị Mai Phương - Đề 12 - có lời giải
