NCERT Solutions for Class 9 English Chapter 2 The Sound of Music

Thinking about the Text

I. Answer these questions in a few words or a couple of sentences

each.

Question 1. How old was Evelyn when she went to the Royal Academy of
Music?

Answer: Evelyn was sixteen years old when she went to the Royal Academy
of Music.

Question 2. When was her deafness first noticed? When was it confirmed?

Answer: Her deafness was first noticed when she was just eight years old. It
was confirmed by the time she was eleven.

II. Answer each of these questions in a short paragraph (30–40 words).

Question 1. Who helped her to continue with music? What did he do and say?

Answer: Ron Forbes who was a percussionist, helped her to continue with
music. He asked Evelyn not to listen through ears but to try to sense it some
other way.

Question 2. Name the various places and causes for which Evelyn performs.
Answer: Apart from the regular concerts, Evelyn performs in prisons and
hospitals. She also takes classes for young musicians.

III. Answer the question in two or three paragraphs (100–150 words).

Question 1. How does Evelyn hear music?

Answer: Evelyn hears music through different parts of her body. Ron Forbes
asked her to try to sense the music some other way instead of ears. He
started by tuning two big drums to varied notes.

Evelyn realized that she could feel the higher drum from her waist up and
the lower drum from her waist down. Forbes kept repeating the same
exercise, and then Evelyn realized that she could sense certain notes in
different parts of her body.

She says that when she plays the xylophone, she can feel the music passing
up the stick into her fingertips. When she leans against the drums, she could
sense the resonances flowing into her body. When she performs on a wooden
platform, she removes her footwear so that the vibrations pass through her
bare feet and up her legs.

Part II

The Shehnai of Bismillah Khan

I. Tick the right answer.

1. The (shehnai, pungi ) was a ‘reeded noisemaker.’

 2. (Bismillah Khan, A barber, Ali Bux) transformed the pungi into a
shehnai.

3. Bismillah Khan’s paternal ancestors were (barbers, professional

musicians).

4. Bismillah Khan learnt to play the shehnai from (Ali Bux,

Paigambar Bux, Ustad Faiyaaz Khan).

5. Bismillah Khan’s first trip abroad was to (Afghanistan, U.S.A.,

Canada).

Answer:

1. The pungi was a ‘reeded noisemaker.’

2. A barber transformed the pungi into a shehnai.

3. Bismillah Khan’s paternal ancestors were professional musicians.

4. Bismillah Khan learnt to play the shehnai from Ali Bux.

5. Bismillah Khan’s first trip abroad was to Afghanistan.

 II. Find the words in the text which show Ustad Bismillah Khan’s
feelings about the items listed below. Then mark a tick in the correct
column. Discuss your answers in class.

Bismillah Khan’s feelings about Positive Negative Neutral

1. teaching children music

2. the film world

3. migrating to the U.S.A.

4. playing at temples

5. getting the Bharat Ratna

6. the banks of the Ganga

7. leaving Benaras and Dumraon

Answer:

Bismillah Khan’s feelings about Positive Negative Neutral

1. teaching children music ✓

2. the film world ✓

3. migrating to the U.S.A. ✓

4. playing at temples ✓

5. getting the Bharat Ratna ✓

6. the banks of the Ganga ✓

7. leaving Benaras and Dumraon ✓

III. Answer these questions in 30–40 words.

Question 1. Why did Aurangzeb ban the playing of the pungi?

Answer: Aurangzeb banned the playing of the pungi because of the shrill
unpleasant sound of the instrument.
Question 2. How is a shehnai different from a pungi?

Answer: A shehnai’s stem is hollow, longer and broader than that of a pungi.
Shehnai has holes in its body.

Question 3. Where was the shehnai played traditionally? How did Bismillah
Khan change this?

Answer: Traditionally, shehnai was a part of the naubat or traditional

ensemble of nine instruments found at royal courts. It was played in temples
and at marriages.

Bismillah Khan took it onto the classical stage.

Question 4. When and how did Bismillah Khan get his big break?

Answer: Bismillah Khan got his big break with the opening of All India Radio
in Lucknow in 1938. He became an often-heard shehnai player on radio.

Question 5. Where did Bismillah Khan play the shehnai on 15 August 1947?
Why was the event historic?

Answer: Bismillah Khan played the shehnai from the Red Fort on 15 th August
1947. He was the first Indian to greet the nation with his Shehnai. The event
was historic because that is the day when India got independence. Bismillah
Khan played Raag Kafi to an audience that included Pandit Jawaharlal Nehru.

Question 6. Why did Bismillah Khan refuse to start a shehnai school in the
U.S.A.?
Answer: Bismillah Khan refused to start a shehnai school in the U.S.A
because he did not want to leave his country. He felt an unbreakable bond
with his towns – Dumraon and Benaras, and with River Ganga.

Question 7. Find at least two instances in the text which tell you that
Bismillah Khan loves India and Benaras.

Answer: Two instances in the text which tell us that Bismillah Khan loves
India and Benaras are given below:

He says that whenever he is in a foreign country, he keeps yearning to see

Hindustan.

He also says that when he is in Mumbai, he thinks of only Benaras and the
holy Ganga.

Thinking about Language

I. Look at these sentences.

• Evelyn was determined to live a normal life.

• Evelyn managed to conceal her growing deafness from friends and

teachers.

The italicised parts answer the questions: “What was Evelyn determined to
do?” and “What did Evelyn manage to do?” They begin with a to-verb (to
live, to conceal).

Complete the following sentences.

Beginning with a to-verb, try to answer the questions in brackets.

1. The school sports team hopes (What does it hope to do?)

2. We all want (What do we all want to do?)

3. They advised the hearing-impaired child’s mother (What did they

advise her to do?)

4. The authorities permitted us to (What did the authorities permit us to

do?)

5. A musician decided to (What did the musician decide to do?)

Answer:

1. The school sports team hopes to win the competition.

2. We all want to succeed in our lives.

3. They advised the hearing-impaired child’s mother to take care of the

child.

4. The authorities permitted us to perform the dance in the stadium.

 5. A musician decided to play the music in front of an audience.

II. From the text on Bismillah Khan, find the words and phrases
that match these definitions and write them down. The
number of the paragraph where you will find the
words/phrases has been given for you in brackets.

1. The home of royal people (1) ________

2. The state of being alone (5) ________

3. A part which is absolutely necessary (2) ________

4. To do something not done before (5) ________

5. Without much effort (13) ________

6. Quickly and in large quantities (9) ________ and ________

Answer:

1. The home of royal people (1) royal residence

2. The state of being alone (5) solitude

3. A part which is absolutely necessary (2) indispensable

4. To do something not done before (5) invent

5. Without much effort (13) effortlessly

6. Quickly and in large quantities (9) thick and fast

III. Tick the right answer.

1. When something is revived, it (remains dead/lives again).

2. When a government bans something, it wants it (stopped/started).

3. When something is considered auspicious, (welcome it/avoid it).

4. When we take to something, we find it (boring/interesting).

5. When you appreciate something, you (find it good and useful/find it of

no use).

6. When you replicate something, you do it (for the first time/for the
second time).
 7. When we come to terms with something, it is (still upsetting/no longer
upsetting).

Answer:

1. When something is revived, it lives again.

2. When a government bans something, it wants it stopped.

3. When something is considered auspicious, welcome it.

4. When we take to something, we find it interesting.

5. When you appreciate something, you find it good and useful.

6. When you replicate something, you do it for the second time.

7. When we come to terms with something, it is no longer upsetting.

IV. Dictionary work

• The sound of the shehnai is auspicious.

• The auspicious sound of the shehnai is usually heard at marriages.

The adjective auspicious can occur after the verb be as in the first sentence,
or before a noun as in the second. But there are some adjectives which can
be used after the verb be and not before a noun. For example:

• Ustad Faiyaz Khan was overjoyed.

We cannot say: *the overjoyed man.

Consult your dictionary and complete the following table. The first one has
been done for you.

Adjective Only before noun Not before noun Both before and after the
verb ‘be’

Indispensable ✓

Impressed

Afraid

Outdoor

Paternal

Countless

Priceless

Answer:

Adjective Only before noun Not before noun Both before and after the
verb ‘be’

Indispensable ✓

Impressed ✓ ✓

Afraid ✓ ✓

Outdoor ✓
Paternal ✓

Countless ✓

Priceless ✓ ✓

Indispensable: Electronic gadgets have become indispensable to modern life.

Impressed: He was impressed by his friend’s speech.

Afraid: Raghav is afraid of dark.

Outdoor: Outdoor games are necessary for keeping yourself healthy.

Paternal: My paternal uncle lives in Mumbai.

Countless: There are countless stars in the sky.

Priceless: Children’s smiles are priceless.

Speaking

I. Imagine the famous singer Kishori Amonkar is going to visit

your school. You have been asked to introduce her to the
audience before her performance. How would you introduce
her?

Answer: Do it yourself.

II. Use your notes on Kishori Amonkar to introduce her to an

imaginary audience.
You may use one of the following phrases to introduce a guest:

I am honoured to introduce…/I feel privileged to introduce…/We welcome

you…

Answer: I am honoured to introduce you to the finest female vocalist of her

generation, Kishori Amonkar. She is a Padma Bhushan awardee who was born
in 1931 to another great artist Smt. Mogubai Kurdikar. She is a singer
besotted by the mysterious world of the ragas. She dissects them until the
most subtle of shades emerge and re-emerge. She is highly inspired by the
teachings of the Vedic sages. She has been bestowed with several significant
awards – Sangeet Natak Akademi Award (1985), the Padma Bhushan (1987),
and one of the most prestigious awards in Indian Classical Music- Sangeet
Samradhini Award (1997).

Writing

I. “If you work hard and know where you’re going, you’ll get
there,” says Evelyn Glennie.

You have now read about two musicians, Evelyn Glennie and Ustad Bismillah
Khan. Do you think that they both worked hard? Where did they want to ‘go’?

Answer these questions in two paragraphs, one on each of the two

musicians.

Answer:

Yes, they both worked extremely hard. They wanted to pursue music as their
career and achieve heights.
Evelyn Glennie is an inspiration to everyone. She became profoundly deaf by
the time she was eleven years old. But, she did not let the disability become
a hurdle in pursuing her career in music. She auditioned at the Royal
Academy of Music in London when she was not even seventeen years old
and scored one of the highest marks in the history of the academy. In a field
like music that’s entirely linked to listening, she began to sense music
through different parts of her body. She brought percussion to the front of the
orchestra. She was awarded with the Royal Philharmonic Society’s Soloist of
the Year Award in the year 1991. She inspires people with her life and
optimism.

Ustad Bismillah Khan belonged to a family of professional musicians. Shehnai

was being used in temples and at marriages, but the credit of bringing the
shehnai onto the classical stage goes to Ustad Bismillah Khan. He took to
music in the early years of his life. At the age of three, he was quite
fascinated watching his uncles play the shehnai. On the day of India’s
independence, he was the first Indian to greet the nation with his shehnai.
He was strongly bonded to Benaras and the holy Ganga. He was awarded
India’s highest civilian award – the Bharat Ratna.

Access Answers to NCERT Solutions for Class 9 English Chapter 2 Poem Wind

Thinking about the Poem

I.

Question 1. What are the things the wind does in the first stanza?

Answer: The wind breaks the shutters of the windows, scatters the papers,
throws down the books on the shelf, tears the pages of the books and brings
the rain.
Question 2. Have you seen anybody winnow grain at home or in a paddy
field? What is the word in your language for winnowing? What do people use
for winnowing? (Give the words in your language, if you know them.)

Answer: Yes, I have seen my grandmother winnowing grain at home.

“Fatakna” is the word in my language Hindi for ‘winnowing’. A winnowing
basket is used for winnowing.

Question 3. What does the poet say the wind god winnows?

Answer: The poet says that the wind god winnows crumbling houses, doors,
rafters, wood, bodies, lives and hearts and then crushes them all.

Question 4. What should we do to make friends with the wind?

Answer: To make friends with the wind, we should build strong homes and
doors. We should strengthen our bodies and make the heart steadfast.

Question 5. What do the last four lines of the poem mean to you?

Answer: The last four lines give a very powerful message. They say that the
wind that blows weak fires is the same wind that makes strong fires flourish.

This implies that the weak people are broken by forces but the people who
are strong are strengthened by those forces. So, the friendship with the wind
or a strong force is good. We have to just stay strong mentally as well as
physically.

Question 6. How does the poet speak to the wind — in anger or with humor?
You must also have seen or heard of the wind “crumbling lives”. What is your
response to this? Is it like the poet’s?
Answer: The poet speaks to the wind with humor. He says that the wind
destroys houses, doors, rafters, wood, bodies and lives. He says that it
breaks the shutters of the windows and scatters the papers. But at the same
time, he also points out that the wind brings rain. He tells the readers that
we must become powerful and build strong houses because the wind only
damages weak things.

Yes, I too have seen the wind crumbling lives on the news channels. Winds
bring massive destruction sometimes. It uproots weak trees and even claims
the lives of people. But as the poet says, we must try to be more powerful
and build powerful structures.

II. The poem you have just read is originally in Tamil. Do you
know any such poems in your language?

Answer: Yes, I have read such a poem in my language Hindi by the name
“Toofan”.

You can download these NCERT Solutions for Class 9 English in PDF format for
free through the links provided. We also make sure that the NCERT Solutions
provided are designed to meet multiple criteria that an evaluator typically
looks for. This ensures that the answers are highly relevant and retain their
usefulness through various classes.

The Sound of Music (Prose)

The chapter “The Sound of Music” is about Evelyn Glennie, a person who
grew deaf. In such situations, people lose faith in themselves but she did not.
Her love for music kept her motivated. When she auditioned for the Royal
Academy of Music at the age of sixteen, she scored one of the highest marks
in the history of the academy!

You can download the solutions in PDF format for free through the link
provided below:
Chapter 2 The Sound of Music:

Wind (Poem)

The poem “Wind” by Subramania Bharati talks about how wind devastates
weak things, scatters papers, tears down pages, breaks the shutters of the
windows. The wind crashes all weaklings. But one must understand that the
wind can be made friends with if one is powerful enough.

You can download the solutions in PDF format for free through the link
provided below:

Chapter 2 Poem Wind:

Frequently Asked Questions on NCERT Solutions for Class 9 English Beehive

Chapter 2

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