The Elephant Orchestra - IELTS General Reading Sample With Explanation

IELTS Reading section contains three passages and forty questions. There are different types of questions present in IELTS Reading like - MCQs, matching, fill in the blanks, and more. This IELTS reading sample - The Elephant Orchestra is an IELTS General Training reading topic. IELTS reading practice papers contain similar topics for candidates to practice. This passage contains three question types:

1. Matching Paragraphs
2. Summary Completion
3. Short Answer Questions

The Elephant Orchestra - IELTS General Reading Sample

1. In Thailand, elephants are revered as a national symbol, but even there, the survival of great mammals is at risk. A century ago, more than 100,000 elephants worked in the Thai timber industry or roamed the forests. Today the number of elephants in captivity is just 2,500 and there are even fewer in the wild. Illegal hunting has taken a toll. Deforestation and the banning of logging have removed the elephants’ chief source of employment.
2. Recently, on the site of a former government logging camp, the Thai elephant conservation centre has been established. It is home to more than one hundred elephants retrenched from the logging industry. An American elephant specialist and his team have come up with an ingenious career alternative for these redundant employees. A select group of the centre’s residents have been chosen to play in the world’s first elephant orchestra. The project was initiated to create income for the operation of the Elephant Conservation centre.
3. The orchestra currently has twelve members, selected for their musical aptitude and motivation. They are aged seven to eighteen and play a variety of percussion and wind instruments in the Thai tradition – rentals which look like xylophones, slit drums, harmonicas, a bow bass, a gong and a thundersheet. The instruments are ‘elephant sized’ and specially designed to be played with trunks. Early in the project the organisers were unsure how the elephants would respond to musical training. Then one morning they were awakened to the sound of harmonicas.The elephants had picked up the instruments on their own and were wandering through the forest playing enthusiastically.
4. Making music comes naturally to elephants. They have huge brains and are highly sociable creatures. Their hearing is much better than their sight and they use a wide range of vocalisations.In performance, they stand in a line and prompted by the trainers, play their instruments. A strong sense of rhythm is evident as they flap their ears to the beat, swish their tails and generally rock back and forth. Some add to the melody with their own trumpeting. As the conductor paces up and down orchestrating proceedings, a trunk can sometimes be seen imitating the movement of his arm.
5. The elephants aren’t forced to learn complex patterns, so playing the instruments is quite easy. Commands are given only to indicate when to start and when to stop. The rest of the time, the players have the time to improvise. According to the trainers, the elephants love their work. The modest plan initially was to teach the elephants just to hit the instruments and then overdub those sounds with other music. But after only five practice sessions, a decision was made to record the performances intact with just the human noises removed. The players improvise distinct metres and melodies, then vary and repeat them.The resulting music is meditative, deliberate and delicate and it is real elephant music. Western listeners often describe it as ‘haunting’. To some ears it may seem monotonous but anyone not knowing they were listening to elephant music would assume that humans were playing.The first CD, classical in style, has sold well, so soon there will be a pop techno and country versions in production.
6. Playing music is not the only creative form of activity the elephants of the centre engage in. For several years now, a number of residents have been painting. They use acrylic paints on large canvases and have a preference for broad strokes and bold colours. Last year, elephant paintings helped raise over $25,000 at charity auctions internationally. These art sales together with profits from the CD are helping to fund the centre’s operations. The proceeds go towards an orphanage, hospital and mobile veterinary clinic for elephants and to support the training school.
7. Animal rights’ advocates might object to these non-traditional occupations for elephants. But, Thai elephants have always had to work for a living. If they weren’t playing music or painting pictures, they would be dragging logs or carrying tourists.Given those choices, playing music and painting are not such bad options.

Question 27-32

The passage The Elephant Orchestra’ has paragraphs labelled (A-G).
In which paragraph can the following information be found? Use only ONE letter for each answer.
Note: You may use each letter more than once.
(Guide: Candidates need to answer questions by finding the correct paragraph from A to G)

27. Description of the type of music produced by the elephants

Answer: E

Supporting sentence: “The resulting music is meditative, deliberate and delicate and it is real elephant music. Western listeners often describe it as ‘haunting’. To some ears, it may seem monotonous but anyone not knowing they were listening to elephant music would assume that humans were playing.”

Keyword: resulting music, real, elephant music, meditative, delicate, deliberate

Keyword location: Section E, 7th line

Explanation: the section talks about the kind of music that is produced by the elephants as meditative, deliberate, and delicate. Some describe the elephant music as haunting and some call it monotonous.

Also check:

28. Details of how the income generated is used

Answer: F

Supporting sentence: “Last year, elephant paintings helped raise over $25,000 at charity auctions internationally. These art sales together with profits from the CD are helping to fund the centre’s operations. The proceeds go towards an orphanage, hospital and mobile veterinary clinic for elephants and to support the training school.”

Keywords: charity, orphanage, fund, hospital, support

Keyword location: Section F, 4th line

Explanation: The charity that was based on collecting funds by auctioning elephant paintings were used to fund the operations of the centre. Also, the income generated will be donated to orphanage, hospital and mobile veterinary clinic for elephants and to support the training school.”

29. Description of the musical instruments

Answer: C

Supporting sentence: “They are aged seven to eighteen and play a variety of percussion and wind instruments in the Thai tradition – rentals which look like xylophones, slit drums, harmonicas, a bowed bass, a gong and a thunder sheet. The instruments are ‘elephant sized’ and specially designed to be played with trunks.”

Keyword: instruments, elephant-sized, designed

Keyword location: section C, 4th line

Explanation: the passage highlights the musical instrument as elephant-sized and designed specifically to be played with the help of the trunks.

30. Forthcoming projects for the orchestra

Answer: E

Supporting sentence: “The modest plan initially was to teach the elephants just to hit the instruments and then overdub those sounds with other music. But after only five practice sessions, a decision was made to record the performances intact with just the human noises removed.” “The first CD, classical in style, has sold well, so soon there will be a pop techno and country versions in production.”

Keyword: first CD, production

Keyword location: Section E, 10th line

Explanation: The passage highlights that the first CD was selling well with the recorded performances and removal of the human voices. The orchestra plans to vary the versions as pop techno and country to start the production as its project.

31. Situation of elephants in Thailand

Answer: A

Supporting sentence: “In Thailand, elephants are revered as a national symbol, but even there, the survival of great mammals is at risk. A century ago, more than 100,000 elephants worked in the Thai timber industry or roamed the forests. Today the number of elephants in captivity is just 2,500 and there are even fewer in the wild.”

Keyword: Thailand, elephants, 100,000, 2500, today, a century ago

Keyword location: section A, 1st line

Explanation: the passage underlines the past and the current situation of the elephants in Thailand. About 100 years ago, the number of elephants working in the timber industry of Thailand was around 100,000. But today, the number of elephants that are held captive is just 2500. However, the number of elephants are freely roaming in the wild is very less in comparison.

32. How the orchestra got started

Answer: B

Supporting sentence: “An American elephant specialist and his team have come up with an ingenious career alternative for these redundant employees. A select group of the centre’s residents have been chosen to play in the world’s first elephant orchestra. The project was initiated to create income for the operation of the Elephant Conservation centre.”

Keyword: world’s first elephant orchestra

Keyword location: section B, 5th line

Explanation: the passage lists the beginning of the elephant orchestra when an American elephant specialist selected the center’s residents to play in the orchestra. This project aimed to generate income for the functioning of the conservation center for elephants.

Questions 33-37

Complete the summary. Choose your answers from the list below.

Note: There are more words than spaces so you will not use them all. You may use any word more than once.

In order to raise funds for the Thai Elephant Centre a number of creative [33]___________________have been developed, including the first Elephant Orchestra. The elephants play a variety of instruments and their [34]________________are being sold to [35]________________income. These intelligent animals also produce paintings, which have been sold at international auctions. The [36]________________support an orphanage, hospital and [37]________________ facility.

List of Words

painting projected
music initiatives
occupation proceeds
production generate
recordings training

(Guide: Candidates need to complete the summary by choosing answer choices from the list of words mentioned below)

33.

Answer: Initiatives

Supporting sentence: “A select group of the centre’s residents have been chosen to play in the world’s first elephant orchestra. The project was initiated to create income for the operation of the Elephant Conservation centre.”

Keyword: project, initiated

Keyword location: section B, 5th line

Explanation: the passage lists the beginning of the elephant orchestra when an American elephant specialist selected the center’s residents to play in the orchestra. This project aimed to generate income for the functioning of the conservation centre for elephants.

34.

Answer: recordings

Supporting sentence: “But after only five practice sessions, a decision was made to record the performances intact with just the human noises removed.”

Keyword: record performances

Keyword location: section E, 5th line

Explanation: the elephant music by playing instruments is recorded and these performances were recorded without alterations, but the human noises were removed from the recorded series.

35.

Answer: generate

Supporting sentence: ” The first CD, classical in style, has sold well, so soon there will be a pop techno and country versions in production. These art sales together with profits from the CD are helping to fund the centre’s operations.”

Keyword: sold well, profits, sales, fund

Keyword location: section E and Section F

Explanation: The keywords like helping to fund are similar to the words given in the question as help to generate. The elephant instrument music recordings as well as the elephant paintings were a source of generation of income for the orchestra and the elephant conservation centre.

36.

Answer: proceeds

Supporting sentence: “The proceeds go towards an orphanage, hospital and mobile veterinary clinic for elephants and to support the training school.”

Keyword: proceeds

Keyword location: section F, 5th line

Explanation: the given keyword is already stated in the passage as ‘proceeds’ which are similar to the term generation of income.

37.

Answer: training

Supporting sentence: “The proceeds go towards an orphanage, hospital and mobile veterinary clinic for elephants and to support the training school.”

Keyword: training

Keyword location: section F, 6th line

Explanation: The exact keyword can be spotted in the passage as the income or fund generated is used as a donation to the orphanage, hospital, veterinary clinic for elephants, and in the support of the training school.

Question 38

(Guide: Candidates need to write the main idea of the passage as an answer)

What is the main idea of this passage?

Answer: B

Supporting sentence: “Animal rights’ advocates might object to these non-traditional occupations for elephants. But, Thai elephants have always had to work for a living. If they weren’t playing music or painting pictures, they would be dragging logs or carrying tourists. Given those choices, playing music and painting are not such bad options.”

Keywords: playing music, painting pictures, dragging logs, carrying tourists

Keyword location: section G, 2nd line

Explanation: The passage revolves around the adoption of creative initiatives to keep the elephants away from local dangers of getting hunted or captivated to perform tasks in timber industries or carry tourists. Since instincts of playing music or painting are quite natural to the elephants, these projects have helped to keep the elephant family out of the danger of getting endangered.

Complete the sentences below with the words from the paragraph.

(Guide: Candidates need to answer the below questions by taking words from the passage)

39. Making music comes ………….. to elephants.

Answer: Naturally

Supporting sentence: “Making music comes naturally to elephants. They have huge brains and are highly sociable creatures.”

Keyword: naturally

Keyword location: section D, 1st line

Explanation: the keyword naturally fits perfectly as the elephants are quite social creatures with instincts of music as inbuilt or natural in them.

40. Animal rights’ advocates might object to these ……………………. for elephants.

Answer: non-traditional occupations

Supporting sentence: “Animal rights’ advocates might object to these non-traditional occupations for elephants.”

Keyword: non-traditional occupations

Keyword location: section G, 1st line

Explanation: The use of the keyword is justified in the passage according to the question as the animal rights activists raise objections towards the non-traditional occupations like playing music and painting for elephants.