rhythm and more established European­American musical styles. It was a huge success and helped to make ragtime popular with the general public. Maple Leaf Rag was the first instrumental composition to sell over one million copies of sheet music. It was also the first music by an African American to find a large audience among European Americans.

　　Although the general ragtime style already existed before Joplin began composing, his work attracted a lot of attention from other ragtime composers of his time. Songs like Maple Leaf Rag influenced these composers mostly because they were very popular with the public. And many of them started to add similar fast and complex rhythm to their music. Later, composers came to appreciate the high quality of Joplin's music, which has continued to capture(引起) the imagination of many composers and musicians up to the present day. For example, many later jazz musicians were influenced by Joplin's complex African­style rhythm. Jazz, in turn, went on to influence many more popular music styles. These include the blues, rock and roll, soul, and even hip­hop. As a result, many music historians now list Joplin's work as an early basis of all modern popular music.

　　【解题导语】　本文是一篇说明文。美国黑人作曲家斯科特·乔普林创作的拉格泰姆音乐作品对美国音乐产生了巨大影响。

5．What do we learn about ragtime?

A．It originated in Europe.

B．It was started by Joplin.

C．It disappeared around the year 1900.

D．It was most popular during Joplin's time.

D　解析：细节理解题。由第一段的描述可知，拉格泰姆在20世纪初非常受欢迎，斯科特·乔普林是最有名的美国拉格泰姆作曲家。

6．Which of the following is TRUE regarding Maple Leaf Rag?

A．It was not serious music.

B．It made ragtime cheaper.

C．It was a mix of musical styles.

D．It failed to entertain audiences.

C　解析：推理判断题。由第二段中的The song showed Joplin's creative blend(融合) of African­American rhythm and more established European­American musical styles.可知，斯科特·乔普林在创作《枫叶拉格》这首歌曲时创造性地融合了非裔美国人的音乐节奏和更为成熟的欧美音乐风格。

7．How did other composers feel about Joplin's music?

A．It was top­class.

B．It was hard to play.