Phrases and Word Combinations

Unit Four

TEXT 14.03

From Ragtime

By E.L. Doctorow

Ragtime is a novel set in America at the beginning of this century. Its characters reflect all that is most significant and dramatic in America's last hundred years. One character, Coalhouse Walker Jr., a black pianist love affair with young Sarah and abandoned her to later reunite. But who bore his child was resentful when he came to rectify his actions. The novel will take you through the tragedy of their lives.

The author E.L. Doctorow, an American writer, is famous for his other novels which include Welcome to Hard Times and The Book of Daniel, which was nominated for a National Book Award.

One afternoon, a Sunday, a new model T-Ford² slowly came up the hill and went past the house. The boy, who happened to see it from the porch, ran down the steps and stood on the sidewalk. The driver was looking right and left as if trying to find a particular address; he turned the car around at the comer and came back. Pulling up before the boy, he idled his throttle and beckoned with a gloved hand. He was a Negro. His car shone. The brightwork gleamed... I am looking for a young woman of color whose name is Sarah, he said. She is said to reside in one of these houses.

The boy realized he meant the woman in the attic. Site's here. The man switched off the motor, set the brake and jumped down.

When Mother came to the door the colored man was respectful, but there was something disturbingly resolute and self-important in the way he asked her if he could please speak with Sarah. Mother could not judge his age. He was a stocky man with a red-complected shining brown face, high cheekbones and large dark eyes so intense as to suggest they were about to cross. He had a neat moustache. He was dressed in the affection of wealth to which colored people lent themselves.

She told him to wait and closed the door. She climbed to the third floor. She found the girl Sarah not sitting at the window as she usually did but standing rigidly, hands folded in front of her, and facing the door. Sarah, Mother said, you have a caller. The girl said nothing. Will you come to the kitchen? The girl shook her head. You don't want to see him? No, ma'am, the girl finally said softly, while she looked at the floor. Send him away, please. This was the most she had said in all the months she had lived in the house. Mother went back downstairs and found the fellow not at the back door but in the kitchen where, in the warmth of the corner near the cookstove, Sarah's baby lay sleeping in his carriage. The black man was kneeling beside the carriage and staring at the child. Mother, not thinking clearly, was suddenly outraged that he had presumed to come in the door. Sarah is unable to see you, she said and she held the door open. The colored man took another glance at the child, rose, thanked her and departed.

Such was the coming of the colored man in the car to Broadview Avenue. His name was Cualhouse Walker Jr. Beginning with that Sunday he appeared every week, always knocking at the back door. Always turning away without complaint upon Sarah's refusal to see him. Father considered the visits a nuisance and wanted to discourage them. I'll call the police, he said. Mother laid her hand on his arm. One Sunday the colored man left a bouquet of yellow chrysanthemums which in this season had to have cost him a pretty penny.

The black girl would say nothing about her visitor. They had no idea where she had met him, or how. As far as they knew she had no family nor any friends from the black community in the downtown section of the city. Apparently she had come by herself from New York to work as a servant. Mother was exhilarated by the situation. She began to regret Sarah's intransigence. She thought of the drive from Harlem, where Coalhouse Walker Jr. lived, and the drive back, and she decided the next time togive him more of a visit. She would serve tea in the parlor. Father questioned the propriety of this. Mother said, he is well-spoken and conducts himself as a gentleman. I see nothing wrong with it. When Mr Roosevelt³ was in the White House he gave dinner to Booker T. Washington. Surely we can serve tea to Coalhouse Walker Jr.

And so it happened on the next Sunday that the Negro took tea. Father noted that he suffered no embarrassment by being in the parlor with a cup and saucer in his hand. On the contrary, he acted as if it was the most natural thing in the world. The surroundings did not awe him nor was his manner deferential. He was courteous and correct. He told them about himself. He was a professional pianist and was now more or less permanently located in New York, having secured a job with the Jim Europe Clef Club Orchestra, a well-known ensemble that gave regular concerts at the Manhattan⁴ Casino on 155th Street and Eighth Avenue. It was important, he said, for a musician to find a place that was permanent, a job that required no travelling... I am through travelling, he said. I am through going on the road. He spoke so fervently that Father realized the message was intended for the woman upstairs. This irritated him. What can you play? he said abruptly. Why don't you play something for us?

The black man placed tea, on the tray. He rose, patted his lips with the napkin, placed the napkin beside his cup and went to the piano. He sat on the piano stool and immediately rose and twirled it till the height was to his satisfaction. He sat down again, played a chord and turned to them. This piano is badly in need of a tuning, he said. Father's face reddened. Oh, yes, Mother said, we are terrible about that. The musician turned again to the keyboard. "Wall Street⁵ Rag," he said. Composed by the great Scott Joplin.⁶ He began to play. Ill-tuned or not the Aeolian had never made such sounds. Small clear chords hung in the air like flowers. The melodies were like bouquets. There seemed to be no other possibilities for life than those delineated by the music. When the piece was over Coalhouse Walker turned on the stool and found in his audience the entire family: Mother, Father, the boy, Grandfather and Mother's Younger Brother, who had come down from his room in shirt and suspenders to see who was playing. Of all of

them he was the only one who knew ragtime. He had heard it in his nightlife period in New York. He had never expected to hear it in his sister's home.

Coalhouse Walker Jr. turned back to the piano and said "The Maple Leaf". Composed by the great Scott Joplin. The most famous rag of all rang through the air. The pianist sat stiffly at the keyboard, his long dark hands with their pink nails seemingly with no effort producing the clusters of syncopating chords and the thumping octaves. This was a most robust composition, a vigorous music that roused the senses and never stood still a moment. The boy perceived it as light touching various places in space, accumulating in intricate patterns until the entire room was made to glow with its own being. The music filled the stairwell to the third floor where the mute and unforgiving Sarah sat with her hands folded and listened with the door open.

The piece was brought to a conclusion. Everyone applauded. Mother then introduced Mr Walker to Grandfather and to Younger Brother, who shook the black man's hand and said I am pleased to meet you. Coalhouse Walker was solemn. Everyone was standing. There was a silence. Father cleared his throat. Father was not knowledgeable in music. His taste ran to Carrie Jacobs Bond.⁷ He thought Negro music had to have smiling and cakewalking. Do you know any coon songs?⁸ he said. He did not intend to be rude — coon songs was what they were called. But the pianist responded with a tense shake of the head. Coon songs are made for minstrel shows,⁹ he said. White men sing them in black face. There was another silence. The black man looked at the ceiling. Well, he said, it appears as if Miss Sarah will not be able to receive me. He turned abruptly and walked through the hall to the kitchen. The family followed him. He had left his coat on a chair. He put it on and ignoring them all, he knelt and gazed at the baby asleep in its carriage. After several moments he stood up, said good day and walked out of the door.

Commentary

1. Ragtime: the form of music, song and dance of black US origin, popular in the 1920's in which the strong note of the tune comes just before the main beat of the music played with it (syncopation)

2. a new model T-Ford: the model T-Ford, of which 15 million were sold, was the automobile that changed the pattern of life in the United States. It first appeared in 1908 and was one of the first cars to be made by assembly line methods and was the first gasoline-operated car sold at a price that many Americans could afford. The name of its builder, Henry Ford, became a household word around the world.

3. Theodore Roosevelt: (1858-1919), twenty-sixth president of the United States of America (1901-1909).

4. Manhattan: one of the five boroughs that make up New York City. Reputation as the cultural centre of the nation.

5. Wall Street: a street in New York dity, extending from Broadway to the East River, financial center of the United States.

6. Scott Joplin: (1868-1917), American composer of ragtime music, who was known as the "King of Ragtime". The son of a railroad laborer who had been a slave, Joplin showed musical ability by the time he was seven. He taught himself to play the piano and eventually became an itinerant musician, playing in cafes and honky-tonks and learning the music of the blacks in the Mississippf Valley.

7. Carrie Jacobs Bond: (1862-1946), songwriter, author of about 170 published songs, including "I Love You Truly" and "The End of a Perfect Day".

8. coon songs: White American Negro (Black) folksongs.

9. minstrel show: stage entertainment featuring comic dialogue, song and dance, in highly conventionalized patterns. Performed by a troupe of actors in blackface comprising of an interlocutor, two end men, and a chorus; developed in the United States in the early and mid-19th century.

SPEECH PATTERNS 11.03

1. ... there was something disturbingly resolute and self-important in the way he asked her...

There was something strange in (about) the way he greeted me that morning.

There was something disturbing (in) about the way the girl entered the room.

There is something special in the way she dresses on Sundays.

2. He was a stocky man with large dark eyes so intense as to suggest they were about to cross.

I think the speaker is about to conclude his speech.

I have a strange feeling that something terrible is about to happen.

The satellite launch is about to commence.

3. This was the most she had said in all the months she had lived in the house.

This was the most he had eaten in a long time.

This was the most I had heard from my family all year.

While your pupil is recovering he can only read the book.

This will be the most you can expect of him.

4. ... tuned or not the Aeolian had never made such sounds.

Clumsy or not she was a good basketball player.

Busy or not Mr Jones always finds time for his students.

ESSENTIAL VOCABULARY

1.set vt/i 1) to make to be in a specified condition, as to open the cage and set the bird free; to set the papers (a village, a house) on fire; to fix or determine (a rule, time, standard), as to set a wedding day, to set a new land, speed, record; 2) to give (a piece of work) for (someone) to do, e, g. Who sets the questions for the examination? The teacher sets the class various exercises. 3) to fix firmly (a part of the body, esp. regarded as showing one's intentions, feelings, etc.), E. g. He set his jaw and refused to agree to anything I said. She's set against her daughter's marriage. 4) to put into action, e. g. He set the machine going with a push; to set the ball rolling; 5) to cause (a liquid,

paste, soft material, etc.) to become solid, e. g. Set the jelly by putting it in a cold place. 6) to write or provide (music) for a poem or other words to be sung, e. g. The poem was set to an old working song tune.

to set eyes on to see, e. g. I hope I never set eyes on that fellow again.

to set someone's teeth on edge to frighten smb

to set one's heart (mind, hopes) on to be filled with strong desire for, e. g. The boy has set his heart on becoming an engineer.

set a 1) determined, e. g. He is very set on going and I can't make him see that it's a bad idea. 2) given or fixed for study, e. g. The examination will have questions on the set books (texts). 3) (of part of the body, manner, state of mind, etc.) fixed in position, unmoving, e. g. She greeted her guests with a set smile. 4) ready, prepared, e. g. Are you all set? Then let's go.

set n I) (informal) a group of people of a special type: the jet set. 2) (not pi) natural position of part of the body, e. g. From the set of her shoulders it was clear that she was tired. 3) setting of the hair, e. g. "Shampoo and set, please," she said abruptly.

2. abandon vt 1) to leave completely and for ever, desert, e. g. The sailors abandoned the sinking ship. 2) to leave (a relation or friend) in a thoughtless or cruel way, e. g. He abandoned his wife and went abroad. 3) to give up, esp. without finishing, e, g. The search was abandoned when the night came though the child had not been found.

N.B. to abandon may be used with far more negative reasons than to give up.

3. resent vt to show or feel indignation at, as to resent smb's behaviour (smb's words, an insult, smb's manner, etc.), e. g. Anyone would resent such treatment. The child resented being made fun of.

Note the pattern smb resents smth. Compare with the Russian patterns: кого-л. возмущает

что-л.; возмущает кого-л.

resentful a feeling or showing resentment, as to be resentful of smb (smth), e. g. The boy was resentful of the remark.

resentment n a feeling of indignation or annoyance; a deep sense of injury, as to (have) bear no resentment against smb (smth), e. g. His conduct aroused everybody's resentment.

4. suggest vt 1) to cause to come to the mind, e.g. The open window suggested that somebody else had got into the house.

2) to bring itself to the mind, e. g. An idea suggested itself, Harry has bad manners. Lack of proper home training suggests itself. 3) to give signs (of), e. g. Her expression suggested, anger/(that), she was angry.

suggestion n a slight sign, e. g. Her face held a suggestion of anger.

5. hand n 1) a performer; a practiser of a skill

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.

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

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 jellyinto 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) надежду; 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 mankeep 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.

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. Соберитесь 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.

Find more proverbs

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, to complete.

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

Russian	до	ре	ми	фа	соль	ля	си
English	C	D	E	F	G	A	B

Add more words

Understanding Music 11.03

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. As you 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.

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. Vysotsky’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 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 feel about this characterization? Who are your 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.

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 particularly expressive strands of oboe tone, was sufficiently promising to make the thought of even a familiar piece of Tchaikovsky seem exciting.

Nobody, at any rate, could have called the Rimsky familiar. Though it was performed in an arrangement by Maximilian Steinberg, this did not prevent the brazen battle scene, with its ferocious side-drum, from being a sensational display of Russian strength, or the woodwind passages in other movements from being an exquisite display of Russian sweetness.

The account of the symphony was quite remarkable. It was played with thrilling velocity (yet with sufficient breathing-space where Tchaikovsky asked for it), with beautifully characterized woodwind, keenly defined textures and a penchant for highlighting inner parts, especially if they happened to involve the horns. The conductor, Mark Ermler was more in his element in Tchaikovsky's fifth symphony.

Whether or not one actually liked the horn tune was beside the point. It was authentically Russian, and though, at the start of the slow movement, it sounded like an amplified saxophone, its eloquence was not to be gainsaid. In small details — such as the effect of the cellos and basses doing entirely different things at points in the finale — just as in the symphony's grand design, this was a stunning performance and perhaps, after all, a Festival event.

What one did expect and received was a performance of massive vocal integrity and a grand convincing enunciation of the music by Irina Arkhipova, with a recurring arm movement — hand stretched towards the audience.

In the event, the curtains of the Playhouse Theatre opened to reveal a company that were the epitome of everything we have come to expect from a Russian folk dance group — vast numbers, and endless variety of colourful and beautifully-em-broided costumes, and — most important of all — boundless energy and infectious enthusiasm. The musicians, all extremely accomplished, performed on zither and some remarkable varieties of shawm.

It all finished with the entire company lined up in front of the stage singing Auld Lang Syne — a characteristically warmhearted gesture to end a programme that was irresistibly good-natured, impeccably presented, skilfully performed, entertaining and enjoyable — and which left the audience clamouring insatiably for more.

(From: "The Scotsman," August 11, 1987)

12. Do some library research and write an essay on:

The development of music in the multinational countries (Russia, the USA, Canada).