Аракин. Учебник английского языка для студентов языковых специальностей. Аракин. Учебник английского языка для студентов языковых специал. Практический курс английского языка 4 курс Под редакцией В. Д. Аракина
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11. Answer the questions and do the given assignments: a) 1. Who was the man who arrived one Sunday afternoon to the house? 2. Why was the man looking for the young woman of colour? 3. Why was the girl Sarah accustomed to sitting at the window? 4. What made Sarah ask Mother send the visitor away? 5. Why was Mother outraged when she returned downstairs? 6. Why did Mother decide to give him more of a visit next time? 7. Why did the Negro suffer no embarrassment in the parlour? 8. How did the Negro describe his career as a pianist? 9. What was the source of Father's irritation when he finally asked the Negro to play the piano? 10. Why did the Negro agree to play the piano for them? 11. What was it in the music he played that changed the mood of the family. 12. Do you think the Negro accomplished what he had hoped for from the visit? b) The title "Ragtime" is supposed to be the symbolic representation of the atmosphere which characterizes the scene of the novel. Do you feel that the rhythm and the intonation of E. Doctorow's prose imitate those of ragtime? (whose characteristic features are syncopation, swing, high tension, fluctuation between the regular rhythm of sharp harmonic accents and a lively irregular ragged melodic line, the incongruity, that is a special charm of the music). c) 1. Discuss the stylistic means the author uses to create tension: 1) the incongruity of the sensational plot and the dry tone in which it is described, 2) the common situation and the formal tone, 3) the contrast of different styles, 4) the contrast of actions and their implications. 2. Describe how the author contrasts the young man's behaviour and appearance with the music he plays. Pay attention to the epithets, similes, metaphors, repetitions and gradation, abrupt changes from short sentences to long ones, and then back again. Observe the proportion of short sentences, the telegraphic style, the use of asyndeton, polysyndeton, inversion and parallel constructions; how is the compact, dynamic way in the speech of the characters presented? Pay attention to the fact that the characters have no names. What effect is achieved by this? Should proper names have been used, in your opinion? Justify your answer, hi whose voice is the narration of the story? Where do the narrator's sympathies lie? 12. Explain what is meant by: 1. He was dressed in the affection of wealth to which coloured people lent themselves. 2. She is said to reside in one of these houses. 3. A bouquet of yellow chrysanthemums which in this season had to have cost him a pretty penny. 4. The surroundings did not awe him nor was his manner deferential. 5. Oh, yes, Mother said, we are terrible about that. 6. There seemed to be no possibilities for life than those delineated by the music. 7. This was a most robust composition, a vigorous music that roused the senses and never stood still a moment. 8. ... until the entire room was made to glow with its own being. 9. His taste ran to Carrie Jacobs Bond. 10. He thought Negro music had to have smiling and cakewalking. 13. Give a summary of the text (p. 104). 14. Make up and act out dialogues between: 1. Mother and Father before the tea. 2. Mother and Sarah after the visit of the Negro pianist. 3. Father and Mother's Younger Brother about the pieces the pianist had played. V 15. Sometimes we accept invitations to go to the event, just to be polite, so we don't hurt other people's feelings. Write about an experience you didn't enjoy, but which you felt obliged to participate in. VOCABULARY EXERCISES 1. Study the essential vocabulary and translate the illustrative examples into Russian. 2. Translate the following sentences into Russian: A. 1. He was given a little money and at times, in the spirit of adventure, he would set off to explore the town. 2. You should set aside some money for a rainy day. 3. He tried to set aside his dislike of his daughter's fiancee. 4. We should set off before dawn to get there on time. 5. The redundancies set off strikes throughout the area. 6. The bank helps peple wanting to set up business. 7. He set out to climb Everest. 8. Put the jelly into the ice-box to set. 9. We are all set, 10.1 like the setting of the show. 11. He has set his heart on becoming a ballet dancer. 12. They sat up till the small hours seating the world to rights. 13. Did someone set fire to the house deliberately? 14. Di had never set foot in Italy before. 15. Jill is very set in her ways. 16. Stephen tut-tutted his way through the end-of-vacation examination papers he had set his freshmen students. 17. The chauffeur regretfully abandoned his plans for an afternoon at the railings. 18. Anthony could not have blamed Steve if through resentment he now decided to abandon his brother to the dreadful struggle that was to come. 19. The Forsytes resented encroachments on their property. 20. Kit had been called out once before during the night and his body resented the second disturbance. 21. He was a big man who resented the buttons on his shirts. B. 1. It is said that the business of words in prose is primarily to state; in poetry not only to state but also (and sometimes primarily) to suggest. 2. White gloves to the elbow suggested a Royal Garden party. 3. It would be dreadful if something terrible happened and I were not at hand. 4. He spoke German without any suggestion of French accent. 5. Gentlemen, give a big hand to the band. 6. "I'm old enough to play poker and do something with it. I'll try my hand to-night," thought Hurstwood. 7. My doubts on that point, if I had any, were soon cleared. 8. The debate was conducted in the depressing atmosphere of a half-empty Chamber. 9. The curator's conduct through the museum was informative. 10. A pianist, bandleader, composer and arranger, Duke Ellingfon, had a major impact on jazz composition and playing. 11. It is the highland nearest to the shore which falls most abruptly. 12. When the adjective "abrupt" is used speaking about words and manners we mean that they are sudden and unconnected. 13. They say that to be ignorant of one's ignorance is the malady of the ignorant. 14. He had been working at hospital for so long that he ignored the "No smoking" sign. 3. Give the English equivalents for: приводить в определенное состояние, в движение; освобождать; пускать в ход машину; начать дело; сосредоточить мысль на чём-л.; твердеть; заживать; положить на музыку; задерживать; бросить привычку; бросить курить; бросить жену; оставить (потерять) на- дежду; оставить друга в беде; покинуть свой пост; отказаться от усилий; покинуть тонущий корабль; возмущаться чьим-л. поведением; негодовать на чье-л. отношение; обижаться на замечание; затаить обиду; внушать; вызывать; подсказывать (мысль); намекать; наводить на мысль; говорить о; говорить само за себя; рабочий сцены; из первых рук; продолжительные аплодисменты; сделанный ручным способом; имеющийся в распоряжении; на руках; руки прочь; с одной/другой стороны; убирать со стола; откашливаться; распутывать дело; проясняться (о погоде); вести разговор; дирижировать оркестром; вести дела; вести переговоры; водить группу туристов; проводить урок; проводник; кондуктор; писать музыку; улаживать ссору; успокаиваться; крутой поворот; резкие манеры; отрывистый стиль; крутая тропинка; сказать что-л. резко (отрывисто); не принять к сведению чеи-л. совет; пропустить замечание мимо ушей; не обратить внимание; игнорировать чье-л. присутствие; ничего не понимать в искусстве; не подозревать о существовании кого-л. (чего-л.); невежественный человек; держать кого-л. в неведении; пренебречь обязанностями; запустить дом (дела); не заботиться о детях; запустить занятия. 4. Paraphrase the following sentences using the essential vocabulary: 1. Please, will somebody start the discussion? 2. Mrs Cassidi was fully determined to give her son a good education. 3. If you don't want to get some lung disease you must givemp smoking altogether. 4. Is there any wonder she felt injured about your criticism, it was so bitter. 5. Let's resolve this problem once and for all. 6. After many attempts the scientist eventually managed to carry put his experiment successfully. 7. The path was so steep that we could hardly make it. 8. She knew so many things that the average girl of eight did not know. 9. She paid no attention to the hint. 10. The bad mistakes you sometimes make bring to mind the idea of bad knowledge of. grammar. 11. When working he always keeps his tools within easy reach. 12. Pull yourself together, and start from the very beginning. 5. Use the essential vocabulary in answering the following questions: 1. When do people carry a chip on their shoulder? 2. What do some people do when they are in a tight corner and they can see no way out? 3. Why didn't you have a chance to tell him what you think of the whole situation before he left? 4. Why hasn't the orchestra played yet? 5. Why does the man keep working when he must be in so much pain after the accident? 6. What did his poor answer imply about his knowledge of the subject? 7. What do you do with your test paper after finishing it? 8. Why can't you put these questions on the examination paper? 9. When did the robbers manage to escape? 10. Why wasn't Mary able to express herself clearly? 6. Choose the right word: to ignore, to neglect or their derivatives. 1. The easiest way is to just... the letter, act as if I've never get it 2. Sometimes he was so busy that he ... to shave for a day, often his shirts needed changing and he ... these too. 3. She ... him, and let him standing with an outstretched hand. 4. The children were suffering from ... . 5. For a week afterwards he ... the financial pages. 6. He is also absorbed in sports to the ... of his studies. 7. If any exceptions to these rules occurred, they were quite simply ... . 8. The house was in a ... state. 9. The young officer decided that he could safely ... the whole thing. 10.... of the truth he committed the crime. 7. Fill in the blanks with postlogues: 1. It was a popular tune of the day set... new words. 2. The bad weather will set... our building plans. 3. There is no one to set... him as an actor. 4. The judge set... the decision of the lower court. 5. She set... her house work straight after breakfast 6. The pupils cleared ... when they saw the teacher. 7. Clear ... of the room, I want some peace and quiet. 8. Clear ... your desk before you leave school. 8. Make up short situations or a story using the essential vocabulary. 9. Translate the following sentences into English: 1.Она поклялась никогда не переступать порог этого дома. 2. Учитель задал ученикам трудную задачу. 3. Он откашлялся и продолжал рассказ. 4. Опасность миновала, можно было действовать без промедления. 5. Дети, давайте поаплодируем артистам. 6. С одной стороны, работа была трудной, с другой — очень заманчивой. 7. Через несколько минут корабль должен был пойти ко дну, и капитан приказал команде покинуть его. 8. Водитель резко повернул машину, чтобы не столкнуться с автобусом, идущим навстречу. 9. Старая леди была шокирована грубыми манерами молодого доктора. 10. Со- беритесь с мыслями и начните ответ сначала. 11. Несколько слов, случайно оброненных им, наводили на мысль, что все сказанное было чистейшей выдумкой. 12. У нее ужасно болела голова, но она, не обращая внимания на боль, продолжала работать. 13. Грейс возмущалась, когда ее называли ребенком. 10. a) Give the Russian equivalents for the following English proverbs: 1. He who pays the piper calls the tune. 2. Don't take your harp to the party. 3. A bird in the hand is worth two in the bush. b) Explain in English the meaning of each proverb. c) Make up a dialogue to illustrate one of the proverbs. CONVERSATION AND DISCUSSION MAN AND MUSIC TOPICAL VOCABULARY 1. Musical genres (styles): classical music (instrumental, vocal, chamber, symphony), opera, operetta, musical, ballet, blues, ragtime, jazz, pop, rock, folk (country) music, electronique music, background music, incidental music. 2. Musical forms: piece, movement, sonata, area, fantasy, suite, rapsody, concerto, solo, duet, trio, quartet, quintet, sixtet (etc.), chorus. 3. Musical rhythms: polka, waltz, march, blues, ragtime, jazz, swing, bassanova, sambo, disco, rock. 4. Musical instruments: (string group): violin, viola, celo, bass, harp; (wind group): flute, oboe, clarinet, bassoon; (brass group): trumpet, French horn, tuba; percussion, piano, accordion, guitar, saxophone, synthesizer, acoustic, electronique, electric instruments. 5. Music makers: composer, conductor, musician, soloist, virtuoso, minstreller group, team, band, orchestra. 6. Music making: to write authentically Russian, Afro-American, etc. musk, to compose, to arrange, to transcribe, to make music/to perform, to improvise, to interpret, to accompany, tocomplete. 7. Musical equipment: tape-recorder, video cassette-recorder, tuner, amplifier, player, equalizer, (loud) speaker, turn-table. 8. Musical events: (made up) concert, recital, jam session, festival, competition. 9. Miscellany: major, flat, baton, bow, drum sticks, under the baton, single, album, track, record jacket (sleeve), score, spiritual, beat, video-clip, syncopation, harmony. Names of Notes
Understanding Music If we were asked to explain the purpose of music, our immediate reply might be "to give pleasure". That would not be far from the truth, but there are other considerations. We might also define music as "expression in sound", or "the expression of thought and feeling in an aesthetic form", and still not arrive at an understanding of its true purpose. We do know, however, even if we are not fully conscious of it that music is a part of living that it has the power to awaken, in us sensations and emotions of a spiritual kind. Listening to music can be an emotional experience or an intellectual exercise. If we succeed in blending the two; without excess in either case, we are on the road to gaining the ultimate pleasure from music. Haying mastered the gift of listening to, say, a Haydn symphony, the ear and mind should be ready to admit Mozart, then to absorb Beethoven, then Brahms. After that, the pathway to the works of later composers will be found to be less bramblestrewn than we at first imagined. Music, like language, is a living, moving thing. In early .times organised music belonged to the church; later it became the property of the privileged few. Noble families took the best composers and the most talented performers into their service. While the status of professional musicians advanced, amateur musicians found in music a satisfying means of self- expression, and that form of expression broadened in scope to embrace forms and styles more readily digested by the masses. It is noteworthy that operas at first were performed privately, that the first "commercial" operatic venture took place early in the seventeenth century, this leading to the opening of opera houses for the general public in many cities. By the middle of the nineteenth century, composers were finding more and more inspiration of their heritage. The time had come to emancipate the music of their country from the domination of "foreign" concepts and conventions. One of the first countries to raise the banner was Russia, which had various sources of material as bases of an independent musical repertory, Russian folk songs and the music of the old Russian Church. The composer to champion this cause was Glinka, who submerged Western-European influences by establishing a new national school. Glinka's immediate successor was Dargomizhsky, then Balakirev. His own creative output was comparatively small; he is best remembered as the driving force in establishing "The Mogutschaya Kuchka", a group which included Borodin, Cui, Moussorgsky and Rimsky-Korsakov. Tchaikovsky (1840-1893) worked independently and was the first Russian composer to win widespread international recognition. It is a narrow line that divides Operetta from Musical Comedy, both blending music and the spoken word. When we think of operetta, such titles come to mind as The Gipsy Baron (Johann Strauss), The Merry Widow and The Count of Luxembourg (Lehar). Of recent years these have been replaced in popular labour by "Musicals" which placed more emphasis on unity and theatrical realism, such as Oklahoma, My Fair Lady, The Sound of Music and West Side Story. In early times instrumental music broke away from occasion associated i^hsaqred worship into secular channels. In succeeding genenations instrumental players were engaged to provide music forvarious public functions. Humble bands of players developed into small orchestras, these in time to symphony orchestras. Later, orchestras of the cafe type assumed in-creased numerical strength and more artistic responsibility, while "giving the public what it wants". For many generations Band Music — music played by military bands, brass bands, and pipe bands on the march, in public parks, and in concert halls — has held its place in public favour, especially in Great Britain. At the turn of the present century American popular music was still clinging to established European forms and conventions. Then a new stimulus arrived by way of the Afro-Americans who injected into their music-making African chants and rhythms which were the bases of their spirituals and work songs. One of the first widespread Afro-American influences was Ragtime, essentially a style of syncopated piano-playing that reached its peak about 1910. Ragtime music provided the stimulus for the spontaneous development of jazz, a specialized style in music which by the year 1920 had become a dominating force in popular music, and New Orleans, one of the first cities to foster it. In the early twenties America became caught up in a whirl 6f post-war gaiety. The hectic period would later be known as the Jazz Era. Soon jazz had begun its insistent migration across the world, while Black musicians of America were recognised as the true experts in the jazz field, the idiom attracted white musicians, who found it stimulating and profitable to form bands to play in the jazz style. Prominent among these white band-leaders were Paul Whiteman and George Gershwin, 7 whose 1924 Rapsody in Blue was the first popular jazz concerto. While many self-appointed prophets were condemning jazz as vulgar, and ethers smugly foretelling its early death, some notable European composers attempted to weave the jazz idiom into their musical works. These included Debussy, Ravel, Stravinsky, Shostakovitch. (Here one is reminder & it several composers, including Debussy, Ravel, Liszt, Bizet and Richard Strauss, befriended the much-maligned saxophone, invented about the middle of the nineteenth century, and introduced it into Iheeoncert-hall) Before we leave George Gershwin, we should mention his Porgy and Bess which brought something daringly different to opera: the music, Gershwin's own, sounds so authentically Afro-American, that it is surprising that this rich score was written by a white American. We are forced to contemplate the fact, that notwithstanding the achievements of Debussy, Stravinsky and many others, the experience of music in the western art tradition remains essentially unchanged. It's still composed by highly trained specialists and played by professional musicians in concert halls. There was a time in the sixties when it looked as if the situation was about to be broken up by a new and revolutionary popular music of unprecedented and unexpected power. The so-called "Rock Revolution" began in fact in the mid-fifties, and was based firmly on the discontent of the youngejr generation who were in revolt against the values of their elders; naturally they espoused new musical values, and equally naturally these values represented'a negation of everything in the musical world their elders inhabited — the virtual elimination of harmony, or at least its reduction to the few conventional progressions of the blues, an emphasis on the beat, new type of voice production owing much to sophisticated use of amplification and simplification of instrumental technique. There followed rapidly an extraordinary musical eruption based on the percussive sound of the electric guitar, the rock'n'roll beat and blues harmony. We should remember that the Beatles, the Rolling Stones, and many other leading groups and individual performers from the early sixties onward based their music on the sound of electric guitars and percussion. Now what? In this technological age it is not surprising that electronics should have invaded the field of music. This new phase has brought experiments intended to give music of the popular genre a new sound. Though many may be alarmed at such explorative tampering with sound, it must be admitted that the possibilities of electronically-produced music are immense. Never before has music — all kinds of music — been so popular. Never before has the world had greater need of its stimulation and comfort. We find the ultimate satisfaction in music, be it "classical" or "popular", when we have learnt how to reject the spurious and accept the genuine; when we have learnt how to listen. 1. Asyou read the text a) took for the answers to theses questions: 1. What is the purpose of music in your opinion? Can music be defined in only one way? 2. In what genres did the music develop? 3. What was the Russian contribution to the art of music? 4. In what way did instrumental music become engaged for various functions? 5. What created the development of jazz and who facilitated the development? 6. How did the youth of the 60-s respond to the highly trained specialist and professional music? 7. In your opinion should musicians have musical training? 8. What do you know about the Beatles and their contribution to the pop-music world? 9. In-your opinion how will the technological age through radio, television and video influence the world of music ? b) Find in the text the facts the author gives to illustrate the following: 1. Music like language is a living moving thing. 2. Music may be used as the lines of communication between people. 3. Jazz does not cling to dance rhythms any longer, as the 20th century European music reflects African rhythms. c) Summarize the text in five paragraphs specifying the development of 1) opera, 2) operetta and musicals, 3) instrumental music, 4) Jazz and 5) rock. 2. Use the topical vocabulary in answering the following questions:1 1. What musical genres do you know and what role does folk music play in all of them? 2. What is meant by the terms classical or serious music, pop, rock, jazz and contemporary music? 3. Do you think the different musical genres named above are strictly separated or do they overlap in some ways? In what ways? What genre do you prefer? 4. What role does music play in your life? Do you want music just to make you happy or does the music that you prefer vary with your mood? How does it vary? 5. Do you think that at school music should be given the same emphasis as subjects such as maths, literature, etc.? 6. Of which instruments does a symphony/chamber orchestra consist? What are the most popular instruments of pop groups, jazz or rock? 7. Why has the guitar become a very popular instrument in recent years? Do you prefer V. Vysotsl^s performances with an entire orchestra or simply with a guitar? Why? 8. What is your favourite instrument? Can you play it? Does it help you to ___________ 1 You may wish to bring in record jackets (sleeves), tapes, and advertisements for concerts or programmes, which depict current popular or classical music. These can serve as supplementary materials for several activities in the unit. understand music? 9. The;human voice is regarded as a most refined instrument the proper use of which requires a great deal of training. How do you Jfeel about this characterization? Who areyour favourite singers? 10. Do you like opera? Do you agree with the opinion that operas are hard to follow while musicals are more up-to-dale and easier to understand? What other forms have appeared of late? 11. How can you account for the large scale popularity of rock? Is it only an entertainment to young people or does rock music represent their values? What values? 12. Why are some rock fans less interested in the music of the past? Can you think of any similar examples when people attracted by a new style of music forget about the past? 13. What do you know about video clips? How do they affect music? 14. What do you know about the International Tchaikovsky Competitions? How often are they held and on what instruments, do contestants perform? Can you give some names of prize winners or laureates of the Tchaikovsky Competitions? What do you know about their subsequent careers? 3. Give your impressions of a concert (recital) you have recently attended. Use the topical vocabulary. Outline for giving impressions: 1. Type of event. 2. What orchestra, group performed? 3. Programme. Were the musical pieces well-known, popular, new, avant-guard, etc.? 4. Who was the conductor? 5. Was the event interesting and enjoyable in your opinion? 6. Name the soloists. 7. What did critics say about the event? Do you share their points of view? 8. What impression did the event make on you? Did you take a solemn oath never to attend one/again ? 4. Pair work. Make up and act out a dialogue. (Use the chiches of agreement, disagreement and reacting to opinion or persuasion (pp. 287, 290, 291): 1. You are at a concert of contemporary music, about which you are not very knowledgeable. Your friend tries to initiate you in it. 2. Your father/mother cannot stand rock music and he/she never listens to it. You try to convince him/her that rock music is important in your life. 3. You are talking on the telephone with your friend who wants you to accompany her to a piano recital. You are reluctant to join her. 4. You are an accomplished jazz musician. But you never participated in jazz sessions. Your friend urges you to be more daring and try your hand at it. 5. Your sister has just come back from the Bolshoi Theatre where she heard Glinka's Ruslan and Ludmtia. She tries to describe how much she enjoyed the opera, but you, being no great lover of opera music, turn a deaf ear. 6. You are fond of Tchaikovsky's music and always ready to talk about it. Your friend asks you to tell him/her more. 5. Below are opinions on the development of music. a) Spend a few minutes individually thinking of further arguments you will use to back up one of the opinions: 1. The line between serious music and jazz grows less and less clear. 2. A certain amount of so-called avant-guard music in our modern art tries to shock and be original for originality's sake. 3. In any age the advanced of today in music may become the commonplace of tomorrow. 4. Soviet composers have contributed as much as Russian composers to the World of Music. 5. Radio, television, cinema and video bring "new sounds" into our homes. b) Now discuss the opinions with your partner. One of the students is supposed to play the role of a student who is not knowledgeable in music. The other — to present a student whose hobby is music. Keep interrupting each other with questions. Use the topical vocabulary. 6. Group work. Split into buzz groups of 3—4 students each. Discuss the following, using the expressions of agreement or disagreement (p. 290): 1. "Some people prefer only classical music and find contemporary music to be cocaphony." "Stop being conservative," say others. "We need something 'far out' to shock the audience." Which side do you agree? Composer A. Ribnikov says: "Ours is an age of great technological progress and accompanying emotional stress, which requires new forms of expression in music." Can his opinion help you formulate your answer? 2. As you know composers sometimes arrange (transcribe) music which is written for one group of instruments and apply it to another. One brilliant transcription is R. Schedrin's approach to G. Bizet Carmen in which he uses only string and percussion groups, thus adding to the music the incomparable colour range and bringing the 19th century music into the present day. What other examples of transcription do you know and what is your opinion of this art? 3. Many modern composers and performers change the sound of live instruments by making technical adjustment (for example "prepared piano"1) a) What other examples of changing instruments do you know and do you find such change necessary? b) Will musicians have to sell their instruments in order to pay for tuition as engineers? 4. In the opinion of D. Kabalevski there are two kinds of beauty in the world. One is passed on from generation to generation, the other is temporary. The most important thing is to differentiate between them. In order to do this one needs to develop taste which is acquired first of all through the study of established classics. How is your opinion different from that of D. Kabalevski? 7. When you criticize you normally try to find faults rather than virtues, but it certainly does not exclude the expressions of virtue. Read the following dialogue where the characters make comments about themselves and others. Note down the expressions in bold type. Be ready to use them in dialogues in class: Liz and Michael on the way home from a jazz concert. Michael: Perhaps you might consider me a bit of a fanatic about jazz ... but that was a fantastic concert, wasn't it? Liz: I'm not exactly — how shall I say? I suppose I'm not crazy about jazz, and the melodies were hard to follow. Could you perhaps help me to understand it better? Michael: I've tried to help many people... I've done my best to open a jazz club, so I've become quite good at interpreting jazz, though I had no one to rely on. Anyway, in the first place there are two elements in jazz. One is the playing of instruments so that they sound like the half-shouted, half-sung blues of Negro folksong. The other is the steady, unchanging 1-2-3-4 __________ 1 "prepared piano" involves stuffing the inside of the piano with a variety of paraphernalia, including units and bolts in order to alter the normal piano timbre. beat initiated from the French military marching music the blacks heard in New Orleans where jazz was born around 1900. Liz: Well, I'm an easy-going person really unless of course you start discussing jazz. Then I'm a bit vicious. Basically I'm receptive to any music that has harmony and melody. That's me. But I didn't even recognize any of the tunes, though I have heard some jazzmusic before. Michael: Well, that's riot surprising, since another important feature of jazz is "improvisation" or "making it up as you go along", therefore tunes can sound different each time you hear them. Liz: Well, I think I've kept myself —- yes, I've kept myself respectable — that's the word I'd use — respectable and dignified on my appreciation of jazz. The musicians played with great skill and speed. And when they improvised they played a completely new variation of the basic tune every time. Michael: Absolutely. That's one of the greatest thrills of a jazz session. Tunes are not the most important feature of jazz. It's not the composer but the performer who makes a good piece of jazz. In fact it's almost impossible to write down much of a jazz in musical notes! Liz: In that case jazz is rather elicit and separate from other kinds of misic, if only the performer knows what's being played. I say, get rid of these thugs who call themselves professional musicians — get rid of them. Michael: Professional or not, you leave the musician out' of it for a while/As for jazz, it has influenced many kinds of music, particularly pop which still borrows from jazz its beat, its singing style and its improvisation. Liz: You shouldn't be asking me what I think of jazz... But what I think of rock music... this music is a mess. Michael: But how do you explain the fact that hurfdreds and thousands of young people simply go mad over rock music? For example, I listened to Shubert's messes. I'm not saying that I didn't understand them. As a matter of fact I enjoyed listening to them. But music like that isn't able to give me anything new, whereas rock music feels a thousand times nearer, more immediate. Liz: No, Michael, I'm unable to understand it. And that's probably my main fault, I should say. Then... Professional musicians are always neatly dressed... But heavy metal rock players! Well... you'd have to see them to believe it. There is only one hope for it — a special section (department) for rock music at the Composer's Union that will do something about the situation. Michael: So you're the sort of ordinary decent person who wants to restore the position ot classical music. Liz: Yes and no... But I'll let you have the last word on jazz and I'll stick to my own opinion on rock. 1. Have you ever been to a live jazz concert/rock music concert? What is your impression of them? 2. Do you agree with all that is said in the dialogue? In what statements concerning jazz or rock music do you find the criticism appropriate? 8. When criticising someone, describe, don't judge. Always focus on, tad confine criticism to observable behaviour. For instance, telling your pupil who is not practising his music "Of late you've been practising less than usual and we need you in the concert" is more likely to encourage practice than snapping "You are irresponsible and lazy. Practise more from now on." a) Below are statements about music which express different opinions. Imagine that they are your opinions and change them into subjective arguments. (Use the expressions showing critisism.): 1. "There is only one way to come to understand music by learning to play a musical instrument whether an external one like the piano or flute or by training the human voice to become an instrument." 2. "However good recorded music might be, it can never really take the place of a live performance. To be present at an actual performance is half the enjoyment of music." 3. "I find I have to defend jazz to those who say it is low class. As a matter of fact all music has low class origin, since it comes from folk music, which is necessarily earthly. After all Haydn minuets are only a refinement of simple, rustic German dances, and so are Beethoven scherzos. An aria from a Verdi opera can often be traced back to the simplest Neapolitan fisherman." b) Team up with your partner who will be ready to give critical remarks on the statements given above. Use the cliches expressing criticism. c) As a group, now decide which event you will all attend together. When giving your criticism try to be honest, but tactful. 9. Group work. Discuss the effect of rode music on young people. After a proper discussion each group presents its critical remarks. First read this: There are world-wide complaints about the effect of rock. Psychologists say that listening to rock music results in "escapism" (abandoning social responsibilities). They also add that some rock rftiislc (for example certain heavy metal songs) affect young people like drugs. There are well-known cases of antisocial and amoral behaviour on the part of young "music addicts". How cfo you feel about this opinion? 10. Most of the expressions which you found in the dialogue (Ex. 7) are used to criticise something or somebody. Below is a review of the Russian Festival of Music hi which a Scottish journalist extolls the virtues of Russian music, a) Read the text and note down any useful expressions in giving a positive appraisal of music, b) Discuss the text with your partner. A Feast of Russian Arts The strong and impressive Russian theme at this year's Edinburgh Festival commemorates the 70th anniversary of the Russian Revolution. The festival opened on August 9 with three giant companies, the Orchestra of the Bolshoi Theatre in Moscow and Leningrad's Gorky Drama Theatre, and the spectacular young traditional folk music and dance group Siverko, from the arctic city of Arkhangelsk. Other musicians in the first week included the Bolshoi Sextet, and the final week sees the arrival of the Shostakovich Quartet. The first of the four programmes by the Orchestra of the Bolshoi Theatre, in an Usher Hall draped with garlands, was a fascinating demonstration of Russian tone quality and Russian interpretation. After the two national anthems the rustling, atmospheric opening movement of the suite from Rimsky-Korsakov's Invisible City ofKitezh, with some |