- •Unit 1 Monologues
- •What types of music do you know?
- •What style of music do you enjoy or hate? Why? (How do they make you feel?)
- •Do you agree with Leo Tolstoy’s words that “music is the shorthand of emotion”?
- •Why are musical festivals very popular?
- •Do you agree that music can help make world peace?
- •What do you know about the Beatles, a famous British band?
- •Are words the only way to communicate? Can you think of any other ways in which we communicate ideas or feelings?
- •Describe the last performance you attended. Should anybody go and see it?
- •11.What would it be like for you to perform in front of an audience? (How would you prepare? How would you feel on stage after the performance? )
- •12.What can you say about your character and the character of your friends? Your parents and teachers?
- •13. What is a habit? What habits do you know? Is it easy to change them? Do you have any habits? Do you want to get rid of them or change them?
- •14. Do you think animal therapy is useful?
- •What are the pros and cons of public transport?
- •What are the pros and cons of travelling abroad?
- •Have you ever seen animals talking? What do you know about animal talk?
- •What do you think about regional dialects? (Should all speakers of a language use the same form or not? Should dialects be encouraged or discouraged?)
- •19. Is it important to learn a foreign language? Why?/Why not?
- •Dialogues
Do you agree with Leo Tolstoy’s words that “music is the shorthand of emotion”?
It probably means that music says everything you want to say in the shortest time possible. You don’t need to go into long explanations. The saying mentions emotions, so I think it means that music says things we can’t put into words and expresses things better than words. I would definitely agree with the quotation.
Send a letter to your English pen-friend, describing the last musical festival you attended (when it happened, how you went there, who with, what the weather was like, what you did/saw, your feelings)
Hi Craig!
How are you? I’m having a great summer. I must tell you about an interesting festival I went to last week. It’s called
the WOMAD festival which means The World of Music, Arts and Dance.
I went with my classmates, Ben and Charlotte. Ben drove us in his car but we all pitched in for petrol. When we got there, it was already packed with people. It was interesting to hear bands from all over the world play their music. There were loads of stalls there selling hand-crafted goods and I bought a colourful scarf. I wear it all the time now.
The weather wasn’t so great though. We had to cover our trainers with plastic bags to protect them from all the mud. We looked silly, but so did everyone else, so it didn’t matter. Everyone still seemed to be having a good time. We’re planning to go again next year. Maybe you could join us.
Anyway, must go. Keep in touch. Sue
Why are musical festivals very popular?
The reasons that musical festivals are very popular are that music is a universal language and brings people together. In many local musical festivals there are activities designed for children. There are also workshops, multi-media exhibits and stalls selling all kinds of hand-crafted goods. People enjoy events like this because they feel they are
coming together to share something. Festivals like these usually take place in the summer and people like to get out and enjoy the good weather.
Do you agree that music can help make world peace?
I do not think music alone can create peace in the world, but I do believe that it has the power to bring people together despite their differences. Music can be seen as an international language, which many people from different countries in the world understand. There is so much fighting in the world over differences in the way we look, speak and behave. But people from different cultural backgrounds can share the enjoyment of a particular style of music or band. In the last few years we have seen many occasions when music has helped to bring people together on issues such as the environment and world hunger. Artists have supported peace demonstrations or even organised whole events to promote peace and anti-war messages.
What do you know about the Beatles, a famous British band?
The Beatles is a British popular music group who made their first record in 1962 and became the most famous and successful group ever. Their records include love Me Do, I Want to Hold your Hand, A Hard Day’s Night, Yellow Submarine, and Sgt pepper’s lonely Hearts Club Band. They had a great influence on the development of popular music. When they separated in 1970, each member of the group continued to make music. The members of the Beatles were George Harrison, John Lennon, Paul McCartney, and Ringo Starr.