The Dollar-a-Year Man Reading Answers

Dec 23, 2022

The Dollar-a-Year Man Reading Answers states how John Lomax set out to record American folk music. The Dollar-a-Year Man Reading Answers tests the understanding ability of the candidates. The Dollar-a-Year Man Reading Answers us taken from Cambridge IELTS 10 Student's Book with Answers. In this passage, 3 different IELTS Reading question types are given: Matching information, Complete the summary by filling the blanks, Answer in one-three words, and Multiple Choice questions. The test-takers will find IELTS reading practice papers very helpful as they get an understanding of IELTS reading topics from these.

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Section 1

Read the Passage to Answer the Following Questions

The Dollar-a-Year Man Reading Answers

How John Lomax set out to record American folk music

In the early 1930s, folklorist, platform lecturer, college professor and former banker John Avery Lomax was trying to recapture a sense of direction for his life. For two decades he had enjoyed a national reputation for his pioneering work in collecting and studying American folk songs; no less a figure than President Theodore Roosevelt had admired his work and had written a letter of support for him as he sought grants for his research. He had always dreamed of finding a way of making a living by doing the thing he loved best, collecting folk songs, but he was now beginning to wonder if he would ever realise that dream.
Lomax wanted to embark on a nationwide collecting project, resulting in as many as four volumes, and ‘complete the rehabilitation of the American folk-song’. Eventually, this was modified to where he envisioned a single book tentatively called American Ballads and Folk Songs, designed to survey the whole field. It called for first hand field collecting, and would especially focus on the neglected area of black folk music.
In 1932, Lomax travelled to New York and stopped in to see a man named H.S. Latham of the Macmillan Company. He informally outlined his plan to Latham, and read him the text of an earthy African American blues ballad called ‘Ida Red’. Latham was impressed, and two days later Lomax had a contract, a small check to bind it, and an agreement to deliver the manuscript about one year later. The spring of 1932 began to look more green, lush and full of promise.
Lomax immediately set to work. He travelled to libraries at Harvard, the Library of Congress, Brown University and elsewhere in order to explore unpublished song collections and to canvas the folk song books published over the past ten years. During his stay in Washington, D.C., Lomax became friendly with Carl Engel, Music Division chief of the Library of Congress. Engel felt that Lomax had the necessary background and energy to someday direct the Archive of Folk Song. Through funds provided by the Council of Learned Societies and the Library of Congress, Lomax ordered a state-of-the-art portable recording machine. More importantly, the Library of Congress agreed to furnish blank records and to lend their name to his collecting; Lomax simply had to agree to deposit the completed records at the Library of Congress. He did so without hesitation. On July 15, 1933, Lomax was appointed an ‘honorary consultant’ for a dollar a year.
Together with his eighteen-year-old son Alan, he began a great adventure to collect songs for American Ballads and Folk- Songs, a task that was to last for many months. Lomax’s library research had reinforced his belief that a dearth of black folk song material existed in printed collections. This fact, along with his early appreciation of African American folk culture, led Lomax to decide that black folk music from rural areas should be the primary focus. This bold determination resulted in the first major trip in the United States to capture black folk music in the field. In order to fulfil their quest, the two men concentrated on sections of the South with a high percentage of blacks. They also pinpointed labouring camps, particularly lumber camps, which employed blacks almost exclusively. But as they went along, prisons and penitentiaries also emerged as a focal point for research.
The recordings made by the Lomaxes had historical significance. The whole idea of using a phonograph to preserve authentic folk music was still fairly new. Most of John Lomax’s peers were involved in collecting- songs the classic way: taking both words and melody down by hand, asking the singer to perform the song over and over until the collector had ‘caught’ it on paper. John Lomax sensed at once the limitations of this kind of method, especially when getting songs from African-American singers, whose quarter tones, blue notes and complex timing often frustrated white musicians trying to transcribe them with European notation systems.
The whole concept of field recordings was, in 1933 and still is today, radically different from the popular notion of recording. Field recordings are not intended as commercial products but as attempts at cultural preservation. There is no profit motive, nor any desire to make the singer a ‘star’. As have hundreds of folk song collectors after him, John Lomax had to persuade his singers to perform, to explain to them why their songs were important, and to convince the various authorities – the wardens, the trustees, the bureaucrats – that this was serious, worthwhile work. He faced the moral problem of how to safeguard the records and the rights of the singers – a problem he solved in this instance by donating the discs to the Library of Congress. He had to overcome the technical problems involved in recording outside a studio; one always hoped for quiet, with no doors slamming or alarms going off, but it was always a risk. His new state-of-the-art recording machine sported a new microphone designed by NBC, but there were no wind baffles to help reduce the noise when recording outside. Lomax learned how to balance sound, where to place microphones, how to work echoes and walls, and soon was a skilled recordist.

Question :1-5 Complete the Summary

*Do not include more than three words in your answer

Lomax began the research for this project by looking at 1.----------------------that were not available in the book form, as well as at certain books. While he was doing this research, he met someone who ran a department at the 2------------------- in washington. As a result of this contact,he was provided with the very latest kind or 3.------------------ for his project.

Lomax believed that the places he should concentrate on were 4.---------------- in the south of the US. While he and his son were on their trip,they added 5.--------------- as places where they could find what they were looking for.

Question: 1

Answer: Song Collections
Supporting Sentence: He travelled to libraries at Harward,the Library of Congress,Brown University and somewhere else in order to explore unpublished song collections and to canvas the folk song books published over the past 10 years.
Keyword:Unpublished,song collections,folk song books
Keyword Location: paragraph D ,2nd Line
Explanation: After reading the text, it is obvious that the ideal response would be song collections. This is because the poet is asking about something that is not accessible in the form of a book.

Question: 2

Answer: Library of congress
Supporting Sentence: During his stay in Washington DC,Lomax became friendly with Carl Engel,Music division chief of the library of congress.
Keyword:Met Carl Engel,Library of Congress
Keyword Location: Paragraph D,4th Line
Explanation: Carly Engel, a librarian at the Library of Congress, and Lomax met, as is made apparent in the fourth sentence of Paragraph D.

Question:3

Answer: Portable recording machine
Supporting Sentence: Through funds provided by the Council of Learned Society and Library of Congress, Lomax ordered a state of art portable recording machine.
Keyword: ordered,portable recording machine
Keyword Location: Paragraph D,8th line
Explanation: We must discuss the tools he was given for his endeavour, and in paragraph D's eighth sentence, it is made plain that he has ordered a portable recorder.

Question:4

Answer: Rural areas
Supporting Sentence: This fact,along with this early appreciation of African American Folk Culture,Led Lomax to decide that black folk music from rural areas should be the primary focus.
Keyword: Rural areas, primary focus,black folk music
Keyword Location: Paragraph E,6th line
Explanation: Lomax made the decision to concentrate on black folk music in rural regions, most of which were in the southern states.

Question:5

Answer: Prison and penitentiaries
Supporting Sentence: But as they went along, prisons and penitentiaries also emerged as a focal point for research.
Keyword: research, Prison and penitentiaries
Keyword Location: Paragraph E,10th line
Explanation: When they were travelling and came across prisons and penitentiaries, a topic that they could explore and focus on developed.

Question 6-10: Matching information to sections of text

Choose the correct section

A reference to the speed with which Lomax responded to a demand

Answer: Section D
Supporting Sentence : Lomax simply had to agree to deposit the completed records at the library of congress, He did so without any hesitation
Keyword: Agree,hesitation
Keyword Location: Section D,10th Line
Explanation: The only place in the whole article where it is said that Lomax complied with a request promptly and without reservation is in Section D.

A reason why Lomax doubted the ineffectiveness of a certain approach.

Answer: Section F
Supporting Sentence: Because collecting classical music was the major topic of the entire section and it also served as one of the constraints, Lomax felt that these limitations were improper for the type of music he had in
mind.
Keyword: Limitations,classical way
Keyword Location: Section F,2nd line
Explanation: In the whole section, the main thing described was collecting the classical music, and it became one of the limitations, so lomax believed that these were inappropriate for the kind of music he was planning.

Reasons why lomax was considered suitable for a particular official post

Answer: Section D
Supporting Sentence : Engel felt that Lomax had the necessary background and energy to someday direct the Archive of Folk Song
Keyword: necessary background
Keyword Location : Section D,Line 5
Explanation: The justification Engel gave for believing Lamox was qualified for a specific position, as Lamox jobs are previously listed in Section A above, but Section D gives an exact and complete description of the sole future formal employment discussed with Lamox.

A reference to a change of plan on Lomax’s part

Answer: Section B
Supporting Sentence : Lomax wanted to embark on a nationwide collecting project,resulting in as many as four volumes,and completed the rehabilitation of the American Folk Song. Eventually this was modified to where he envished a single book tentatively called American Ballads and Folk Songs,designed to survey the whole field.
Keyword: modified
Keyword Location: Section B,2nd line
Explanation: It has been made apparent in the supplied section that Lomax originally intended to publish a book with four volumes but later changed his mind and chose to produce just one book.

a reference to one of Lomax's theories being confirmed

Answer: Section E
Supporting Sentence : Lomax's library research had reinforced his belief that a dearth of black folk song material existed in printed collections.
Keyword: belief,existed
Keyword Location: Section E,5th line
Explanation: Section E talks about Lomax's argument, which holds that printed collections of black folk music were scarce. When he conducted his investigation in the library, his hypothesis was verified. The sole reference that indicates that his theory is accurate is Section E.

Question 11-13: Multiple Choice with multiple answers

Question11:

Answer: D - the reluctance of people to participate in his project
Supporting Sentence: As have hundreds of folk song collectors after him,John Lomax had to persuade his singers to perform,to explain to them why their songs were important.
Keyword: persuade
Keyword Location: SectionD,7th line
Explanation: The fact that John Lomax had to convince these singers to perform in the aforementioned phrase suggests that at first they were not interested or willing to do so.

Question:12

Answer: E-making sure that participants in his project were not exploited
Supporting Sentence: He faced the moral problem of how to safeguard the records and the rights of the singers
Keyword : Safeguard
Keyword Location: Section G,7th line
Explanation: In the paragraphs above, he expressed his belief that it is his duty to safeguard singers' records, rights, and assurances against exploitation.

Question :12

Answer: F-factors resulting from his choice of locations for recording
Supporting Sentence: He had to overcome the technical problems involved in recording outside a studio

Question:13

Keyword: Technical problems,outside a studio
Keyword Location: Section G,9th line
Explanation: There is a component that supports the aforementioned claim; he must deal with noise problems, but his equipment lacks the necessary technology to do so because it lacks a windscreen.

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