Lesson 4 Ex2, 3

I was trying to watch TV last night switching channels to find something worth seeing, and there came that stunningly beautiful song! The one they played at the party when I saw David for the last time. Whenever I hear it, it brings back lots of memories. So I was just sitting there with a lump in my throat trying to fight back tears…

2.

- What do you think of abstract art?

- I can’t say that I dislike abstract art paintings as a whole, but in fact I have mixed feelings about them. I’ve always struggled to understand abstract work. I hate the idea of art for art's sake, and I really don't like thinking that people are becoming wealthy by making art that they refuse to explain. How do we know they even meant anything at all, for instance, and aren't just laughing at us behind our backs!

On the other hand, I have encountered abstract art paintings that expressed such a rush of pure emotion that I felt overwhelmed looking at them. So, my feelings are definitely still mixed about abstract art paintings, and I am still not totally convinced that I like them.

3.

- I saw The Avengers last weekend. It was really cool!

- Well, I don't understand all the hype about it. It's just a nine days' wonder. Nobody will remember it in a year!

4.
There is going to be an exhibition at our art school next week. It's our tenth year so we’re very proud to welcome you. Every single student at the school did a painting, which will be on display. This year's exhibit will also include a professional wall, featuring the artwork of a number of professional artists. Come and feast your eyes on our fabulous paintings!

5.

A book that made me raise my eyebrows? Well, probably Michael Grant’s Lies, the third book of the series. A girl who died now walks among the living and other weird things like that. This one just kind of confused me. I saw no point to this; it was like a filler book in the series.

6.

You should have seen that amazing photo exhibition last month. They displayed a collection of the best pictures by different photographers. The photographs took my breath away! I was so impressed I even bought a bunch of postcards with the photos in the gift shop.

Lesson 6

Ex 3b Song “Yesterday”

Ex 4b

A: I was browsing the Internet last night and came across some interesting facts about famous songs. And there was some information about the Beatles songs. I started reading and got quite interested. I was particularly impressed by the story behind the song Yesterday. It was rather fascinating!

B: Oh, I love this song. It’s the one of a genius.

A: And the genius is Paul McCartney alone although it is credited to Lennon and McCartney. Paul is the only Beatle to appear on the recording and it was the first official song by the Beatles performed by a single member of the band.

B: Really? So what’s the story?

A: McCartney composed the entire melody in a dream one night in his room at the home of his then girlfriend Jane Asher and her family. When he woke up, he hurried to a piano and played the tune to avoid forgetting it. He liked the music but first couldn’t believe it was his own melody as he hadn’t written songs in this way before. He was worried that he may have copied someone else’s work. That’s why for about a month he went round to people in the music business and asked them whether they had ever heard it before. As he put it, it became like handing something in to the police. He thought if no-one claimed it after a few weeks then he could have it.

B: Did anybody claim to be the author?

A: No, he was finally convinced he hadn’t robbed anyone of their melody and so he began writing lyrics to suit it.It’s funny how, so as his memory of the melody wouldn’t “go away,” he wrote some simple words to go along with the phrasing of the melody line. The lyrics used to go, ‘ Scrambled eggs, oh, my baby, how I love your legs… ’ And the Beatles called it Scrambled Eggs for quite a long time because it took a while to finish it.

B: Scrambled Eggs?! What a title for that brilliant melancholy ballad he turned it into!

A: Yeah, I know, it’s amusing! The song was around for months and months before they finally completed it. And everybody was greatly annoyed by Paul’s work in progress. Every time the Beatles got together to write songs or for a recording session, this song would come up and it became a joke between them.

B: He was in the middle of creating a masterpiece I suppose.

A: Yes, and then Paul wrote nearly all of it, but they still couldn’t find the right title. They made up their minds that only a one-word title would suit, they just couldn’t come up with the right one. Then one morning Paul woke up and the song and the title were both there, completed. Later Lennon recalled, “I was sorry in a way, we’d had so many laughs about it.”

B: I wonder how old McCartney was when he wrote this hit.

A: It was recorded four days before McCartney's 23rd birthday.

B: That’s amazing! He really IS a genius!

A: McCartney has said it’s probably his best song. By the way, they carried out a survey for BBC Local Radio last year and found out that Yesterday is the second favourite Beatles song among the UK fans (the first being Hey Jude). It’s very special, anyway, one of the most successful songs ever!

Lesson 7 Ex 4c

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