Exercise 1. Read the following text, and choose conjunctions from the list below to go in the gaps. (More than one answer may be possible.)

 

and because but if

so though until when

 

___________ I was a child I had violin lessons for six or seven years. Music gave me a lot of pleasure, and sometimes I used to dream of being a professional musician. But as time went on I realised that would never reach that standard, mainly ______________ I didn’t have a good enough ear. ___________ I gradually lost interest in the violin, and when I left school I stopped playing altogether. I may take up the violin again one of these days, __________ it will have to wait __________ I have time to practise properly.

Listening to music is a different matter. I go to concerts when I have time, and I often listen to music ___________ I am working. _______ I sometimes find it hard to concentrate on music and work at the same time. My job involves quite a lot of driving ______________ I usually take a few CD disks with me to play in the car. My tastes are quite varied. I like a lot of classical music (particularly Bach, Handel, Beethoven and Stravinsky), __________ opera leaves me cold. I am very fond of modern jazz (especially Miles Davis), and I have a passion for British and American folk music. The one thing I really can’t stand is pop music, especially ___________ it’s played loud.

Exercise 2. Read the following text and choose the best answer to the questions below.

American jazz is a conglomeration of sounds borrowed from such varied sources as American and African folk music, European classical music, and Christian gospel songs. One of the recognisable characteristics of jazz is its use of improvisation: certain parts of the music are written out and played the same way by various performers, and other improvised parts are created spontaneously during a performance and vary widely from performer to performer.

The earliest form of jazz was ragtime, lively songs or rags performed on the piano, and the best-known of the ragtime performers and composers was Scott Joplin. Born in 1868 to former slaves, Scott Joplin earned his living from a very early age playing the piano in bars around the Mississippi. One of his regular jobs was the Maple Leaf Club in Sedalia, Missouri. It was there that he began writing the more than 500 compositions that he was to produce, the most famous of which was “The Maple Leaf Rag”.

1. The world “conglomeration” (line 1) could best be replaced by

a. disharmony

b. mixture

c. purity

d. treasure

 

2. When a musician improvises, he

a. plays written parts of the music

b. performs similarly to other musicians

c. makes up music as he plays

d. plays a varied selection of musical compositions

3. According to the passage, ragtime was

a. generally performed on a variety of instruments

b. the first type of jazz

c. extremely soothing and sedate

d. performed only at the Maple Leaf club in Sedalia

 

4. Which of the following statements is true according to the passage?

a. Scott Joplin was a slave when he was born

b. Scott Joplin’s parents were slaves when he was born

c. Scott Joplin had formerly been a slave, but he no longer was after 1868

d. Scott Joplin’s parents had been slaves before Scott was born

 

5. The name of Scott Joplin’s most famous composition probably came from

a. the name of saloon where he performed

b. the maple tree near his Sedalia home

c. the name of the town where he was born

d. the school where he learned to play piano

Тематический словарь

 

Понятие	Определение
reggae	регги, реггей (ритмичная музыка в стиле "рок" вест-индского происхождения)
funk	фанк (сильно ритмизованный, чувственный музыкальный стиль, идущий от блюза - первоначально в джазе, а затем в поп-музыке, где из него возник в 70-х танцевальный "диско")
soul	соул, негритянская музыка
salsa	сальса (род карибской музыки)
Понятие	Определение
middle-of-the-road	рассчитанный на большую аудиторию; средний, посредственный (о музыке)
to compile	выбирать информацию, собирать материал из разных источников; состав-лять книгу, сборник
to absorb	понимать, постигать
It is not my scene.	Это не то, что мне нравится. У меня другие интересы.
disposable	доступный; предмет одноразового пользования, товары повседневного спро-са (к ним относятся продукты, напитки, газеты)
lyrics	слова популярной песни
Howdy	Привет (амер.)
to pass on	умереть, скончаться (of, from - от чего-л.)
excerpt	выдержка, извлечение, цитата; выбирать отрывки, делать выписки, выдерж-ки; подбирать цитаты
to paste	приклеивать, склеивать; заклеивать
impersonator	пародист; самозванец; человек, выдающий себя за кого-то другого
squawk	громкий, пронзительный крик; вопль

Exercise 1.