Question 23 is based on the passage you have just heard.

听力原文

        (22) [Welcome to the tour of the Hill House.] This house, built in 1904, is one of the most well-known works of Charles Hill, the famous architect. It was designed and built for a local entrepreneur and his family.

        (22) [Before starting the tour, let me give you a brief introduction about the design of this amazing building.] (23) [Prior to beginning his design, the architect spent some time in the client’s old home, observing their life and studying their habits.] This meant that he could design the house according to the needs of the family. (24) [The client’s main desire was to have a home with unique design,] so the architect was given complete freedom.

        The building style is radically different from what was the fashion of the period. At the time, most large homes were constructed of timber and brick. This one, however, is made of concrete, a novel construction material in those days. The interior of the house, including fittings and furniture, was also designed by the same person. Most of the furniture you will see is original and in good condition. (25) [However, those pieces in the children’s bedrooms are copies built to the designs of the architect.] Fortunately, all the blueprints for both the building and its contents have been preserved, so we’ve been able to replace badly damaged furniture.

        Let’s begin our tour starting from the rooms.

23. What did the architect do before beginning his design?

解析：C。录音中提到，在开始设计之前，建筑师花了一些时间在客户的老房子里，观察他们的生活，研究他们的习惯。C项几乎全部原词复现，故C项为正确答案。

错项排除：A项利用录音中的studying、blueprints、famous和building进行干扰，但建筑师研究的是客户的习惯（studying their habits），并不是建筑蓝图，A项细节拼凑，故排除。录音中虽然提到了房子的主人是一名当地的企业家，但这是导游对房子进行的介绍，并不是建筑师询问的客户的家庭背景，故B项排除。录音中说建筑师花了一些时间待在客户的老房子里（spent some time in the client’s old home），并不是参观，故D项排除。