Passage Three
It is understood that a ballad is a song that tells a story, but a folk song is not so easily defined. A balled is a folk song, but a folk song is not a ballad until it tells a story. Folk song, then has included many kinds of music. For example, a sailor’s song of the sea is a folk song. The blues, a type of jazz popular in New Orleans, may be a folk song. In fact, there are folk songs for every job.
“Home on the Range” shows how a popular song may become a folk song. It was first picked up as a folk song in 1910 by John Lomax in San Antonio, Texas. Lomax heard the song from an old man who had been a cook many years before. The song was known all over the Midwest; thought it did not come to national attention until the early 1930s. By 1947 “Home on the Range” was so popular that it became the official state song of Kansas.
71. A folk song is also a ballad when it .
A. tells a story B. is sung by workers
C. makes the listeners feel sad D. covers many kinds of music
72. According to the author, which of the following is not always a folk song?
A. A ballad B. A sailor’s song C. A state song D. A goatherd’s song.
73. According to the passage, which of the following is not true of a folk song?
A. It is passed on orally B. It has different forms
C. It may talk about work D. It is found only in the western states
74. The author uses the example of “Home on the Range” to show that folk songs .
A. always tells a story B. are based on written forms
C. may come from popular songs D. have become state songs
75. The main topic of the passage is the .
A. different kinds of folk songs B. development of popular music
C. definition of a ballad D. importance of folk songs in American life