What’s Their Real Name? Issue 279 POP STAR NAMES

DYLAN MADONNA YUSUF ISLAM EMINEM SHAKIRA SADE TINA TURNER DEAN MARTIN What’s Their Real Name?

 Madonna

EMINEM

Source: www.speakup.com.br Edition 79 after read the podcast do the exercise.

BEFORE YOU READ.

TASK 1. Speaking. With your partner(s) discuss these questions.

a.                   Do you like your name? Why (not)?

b.                   Do you know why your parents chose your name? Tell your partner(s)

c.                   Do you think names and people’s characteristics are often matched? Why (not)?

d.                   Would you ever consider changing your name? Why (not)?

e.                   How many different names do you have? Does everybody call you the same way?

TASK 2.  Vocabulary. Match the English words / expressions on the left with their Portuguese translations on the right. If you don't know, guess!

1 such weird names                    - surdos

2 stage names                                     - ‘grudam’, ‘pegam’.

3 attempts                                - “nome de guerra”, apelido.

4 surname                                 - escondeu.

5 knife                                               - espinhosa.

6 to avoid                                 - faca, facão.

7 moniker                                 - ferrão,picada.

8 Welsh                                     - ficou com.

9 settled on                               - galês.

10 shimmering                           - gíria.

11 hid                                       - nome, apelido.

12 handles                                 - nomes artísticos.

13 stick                                    - o rebatizou.

14 sting                                    - para evitar.

15 spiky                                    - pontos de vista alternativos.

16 re-christened him                            - por causa de uma loja de aparelhos acústicos.

17 after a... hearing-aid shop      - sobrenome.

18 deaf people                           - nomes tão estranhos.

19 sharp features                        - tentativas.

20 outsider’s viewpoint               - traços brutos, ásperos.

21 slang                                    - brilhante, reluzente.

Now check your ideas in the Glossary. How many did you do correctly?

READING

TASK 3. Prediction. You are going to read a text about celebrities whose “stage name” is different from their real name. Work with a partner and think of as many reasons as possible why people choose to change their name. Aim for at least 7!
When you have finished, check with the rest of the class.

TASK 4. Reading for Specific Information. Read the whole text as quickly as possible and complete this grid:

1.Artist	Real name	Reason for change
David Bowie
Elton John
George Michael
Sting
Ringo Starr
Axl Rose
Joe Strummer

Compare your answers with your partner(s)

TASK 5. Competition. Can you match the real names on the left to the stage names on the right? Try, then check. How many did you guess correctly?  

Alecia Moore	·         Ricky Martin
Annie Mae Bullock	·         Tina Turner
Brian Warner	·         Dido
Cordazer Calvin Broadus	·         Sade
Dido Florian Cloud de Bounevialle Armstrong	·         Pink (or P!nk)
Eileen Regina Edwards	·         Roger Waters (Pink Floyd)
Enrique Martín Morales	·         Michael Bolton
George Waters	·         Fatboy Slim
Helen Folasade Adu	·         Moby
Helen Folasade Adu	·         Shaggy
Henry Olusegun Olumide Samuel	·         Snoop Dogg
James Todd Smith	·         LL Cool J
Joseph Saddler	·         Grandmaster Flash
Louis Firbank	·         Vanilla Ice
Mary O’Brien	·         Puff Daddy
Michael Bolotin	·         Sade
Orville Richard Burrell	·         Seal
Quentin Cook (aka Norman Cook)	·         Marilyn Manson
Richard Melville Hall	·         Shania Twain
Robert Van Winkle	·         Dusty Springfield
Roberta Joan Anderson	·         Joni Mitchell
Sean John Combs	·         Lou Reed

AFTER YOU READ

TASK 7. Speaking and / or writing. Discuss some /all of these questions with your partner(s). If you like, you can write your opinions for homework and show them to your  teacher.

a.                   Do you think the reasons for changing names mentioned in the text are justified? Why (not)?

2. How many of these artists do you think REALLY needed to change their name? Why?
3. Project: Write a brief biography of one of the artists mentioned in this article. Visit their official website or do some general internet research. Include information like:

Real name, place and date of birth, musical influences, discography, career, interesting facts. You could also write a quiz to test your fellow classmates.

Adele - Set fire to the rain

For more information keep in touch through Source: http://www.englishexercises.org/makeagame/viewgame.asp?id=5890

Author of this Exercises:Students.EnglishHouse

 

 

plaiedplaypleyI let it fall, my heartshearthaert

And as it fell, you raseroserosaroses to claim it,
It was dark and I was over,
Until you kissed my  and you saved me,
My handshendshandhandes, they were strong, but my knees were  too weak,

 

To stand in your arms without falling to your feet,

But there's a  to you that I never knew, never knowknewnewknewe,
All the things you'd saidsaysoodsays, they were never true, never true,
And the games you'd play, you would usallysometimesoftenalways win, always win,

But I set  to the rain,
Watched it pour as I touched your face,
Well, it burned while I ,
'Cause I heard it screaming out your name, your name,

When layinglayiedlaiedlays with you I could stay there,
Close my eyes, feel you here ,
You and me togothertogathertogether, nothing is better,

'Cause there's a side to you that I  knew, never knew,
All the things you'd say, they were never , never true,
And the games you'd , you would always win, always win,

But I set fire to the ,
Watched it pour as I touched your ,
Well, it burningburnedburnned while I cried,
'Cause I heard it screamiedscreamedscreaming out your name, your name
I set fire to the rain,
And I threwedthrewthrow us into the flames,
Well, I felt something die,
'Cause I knew that that was the firstlastlastest time, the last time,

Sometimes I  up by the door,
And heard you calling, must be waiting for you,
Even now when we're  over,
I can't help myself from looking for you,

I set fire to the rain,
WatchingWatchedWatches it pour as I touch your face,
Well, it burned while I ,
'Cause I heard it screaming out yournyouryours name, your name
I set  to the rain,

 

And I threw us into the ,
Well, I felt something dieingdieddie,
'Cause I knew that that was the last time, the lastoldnewfirst time, oh,
Oh, no,
Let it burn, oh,
 it burn,
Let it burn.

Speakup in Class, BARRY SEARS: YOU ARE WHAT YOU EAT – Issue 280

You Are What You Eat

Source: Speak Up
Language level: Advanced
Speaker: Mark Worden
Standard: British accent




 

BARRY SEARS: YOU ARE WHAT YOU EAT – Issue 280

For more info http://englishtips-self-taught.blogspot.com/2011/02/you-are-what-you-eat.html all credits for SPEAKUP

BEFORE YOU READ.

TASK 1. Speaking. With your partner(s) discuss these questions.

a)    What is your general attitude towards diets and dieting? Why?

b)    Do you think diets create more problems than solutions, or is it the other way round? Why?

c)    Have you ever tried a diet? Why (not)? If so, was it successful?

d)    How many kinds of diets do you know about?

e)    What do you know about “the Zone Diet”?

TASK 2. Glossary. It is a good idea to familiarise yourself with the vocabulary in the glossary before you do the reading TASKS. Work with your partner(s). Try this idea:

a) Cover the Portuguese words/phrases and look at the English words/expressions only. Do you know any of these words/expressions in English? Write your ideas. Check them with other members of the class.

b) Look at the glossary and check your ideas. How many are correct?

c) Test yourself and/or your partner(s). It is not important to memorise the vocabulary, but to be familiar with it. 

READING

TASK 3.  Prediction. You are going to read the first 4 paragraphs of the article about Barry Sears and the Zone Diet. The following keywords and phrases are included in the text (in this order). Work with your partner(s) and predict what the text will be about. Make some notes.

scientific method

Heart disease

diabetes

cancer

cheap carbohydrates

cheap vegetable oils

type 2 diabetes

neurological disorders

life expectancy

personal reasons

bad genes

30 years ago.

TASK 4. Reading for Specific Information. Read the first 4 paragraphs only of the article as quickly as possible and find answers to TASK 3. Compare ideas with your partner(s). How many were correct?

TASK 5. Prediction #2. Before you read the rest of the article, work with your partner and try to predict the answer to these questions. Make some notes.

a)    What does the scientific establishment think of the Zone Diet today?

b)    Why did the establishment change its views on Dr. Sears?

c)    What is the main cause of obesity in America, according to Dr. Sears?

TASK 6. Reading for detailed information.  Now read the rest of the article and find answers to TASK 5. 

 

 

AFTER YOU READ

TASK 7. Speaking and writing. Discuss some/all of these questions with your partner(s). If you like, you can write your opinions for homework and show them to your teacher.

a)    What do you think of The Zone Diet? Is it scientifically right or not? Why?

b)    Would you be prepared to try it? Why (not)?

c)    Do you think it is yet another diet, amongst the thousands that exist and appear every year? Why (not)?

d)    Do you think following the diet could be dangerous, due to insufficient data on long-term effects?

e)    Do you think the idea of Toxic Fat Syndrome should be taken seriously? Why (not)? 

Kennedy Center Honors of 2009: Grace Bumbry, Robert De Niro, Mel Brooks, Dave Brubeck, and Bruce Springsteen

One of the best way is listen to the Voa's podcasts keep in touch through the website http://www.voanews.com  http://www.manythings.org

Source: VOANEWS

Welcome to THIS IS AMERICA in VOA Special English. I'm Steve Ember. And I'm Barbara Klein. Each year, the John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts in Washington honors performers for their lifetime of work. This year the Kennedy Center will honor Mel Brooks, Dave Brubeck, Grace Bumbry, Robert De Niro and Bruce Springsteen.

Opera singer Grace Bumbry earned starring roles as a soprano and mezzo-soprano in some of the world's most famous opera houses. Her warm voice and wide range brought roles including Carmen, Salome, Aida, Tosca, Medea and Bess.

She was born in nineteen thirty-seven in Saint Louis, Missouri. At seventeen, she won her first big competition. The prize was a scholarship to a local music school.

But the school would not let her attend classes with other students because she was African-American. The school offered her private lessons instead. Her parents refused.

Grace Bumbry went on to study music at Boston University and Northwestern University. She also studied at the Music Academy of the West in Santa Barbara, California.

In nineteen sixty, at the age of twenty-three, she made her international debut at the Paris Opera. She appeared as Amneris in Verdi's "Aida." Her performance is said to have made her an instant star.

(MUSIC)

In nineteen sixty-one, Grace Bumbry became the first black singer ever to perform at the Bayreuth Festival in Germany. Again, some people objected because of her race. In the end, her performance as Venus was a great success.

The seventy-two year old singer is retired now from opera. But she continues to sing in concert and teaches students around the world.

ROBERT DE NIRO IN RAGING BULL:

"Some people aren't that lucky. Like the one that Marlon Brando played in, 'On The Waterfront.' An up-and-comer who's now a down- and-outer. Do you remember that scene in the back of the car with his brother Charlie a small time racket guy? And it went something like this…

It wasn't him Charlie, it was you. You remember that night at the Garden. You came down in my dressing room and you said, 'Kid, this ain't your night.' We're going for the price on Wilson?' 'Remember that? 'This ain't your night?' My night. I could've taken Wilson apart that night. So what happens? He gets a title shot outdoors in the ballpark, and what do I get, a one-way ticket to Palookaville. I was never no good after that night, Charley. It was like a peak you reach, and then it's downhill."

Robert De Niro won an Academy Award for best actor for the nineteen eighty movie "Raging Bull." He played boxing champion Jake La Motta. The movie is a good example of how far the actor will go to perfect a role. To prepare for "Raging Bull" he gained twenty-seven kilos and became a boxer.

He also won an Oscar for best supporting actor. He played the young Vito Corleone in the second "Godfather" movie in nineteen seventy-four.

Robert De Niro has appeared in more than seventy films. He has also produced and directed several movies, including "Everybody's Fine," released this year. He was born in New York City in nineteen forty-three.

(MUSIC)

Mel Brooks is a comedian, actor, writer, producer, director and composer. He has a long list of credits from television, film and stage. In fact, he is one of only a few entertainers ever to have won an Oscar, an Emmy, a Grammy and a Tony award.

Mel Brooks began doing live comedy acts in the early nineteen fifties. He later wrote for TV comedy shows before making his mark on the Hollywood film industry. His awards include a best writing Oscar for the nineteen sixty-eight movie "The Producers."

Other notable early films included "Blazing Saddles" and "Young Frankenstein," both from nineteen seventy-four.

(SOUND FROM "YOUNG FRANKENSTEIN")

The American Film Institute has a list of the one hundred funniest movies. "Young Frankenstein," "Blazing Saddles" and "The Producers" are all listed among the top twenty. In recent years a musical play based on "The Producers" became a big hit.

Mel Brooks was born in nineteen twenty-six in Brooklyn, New York. He is known for his sometimes shocking humor that makes fun of people and situations.

(MUSIC)

The Library of Congress calls jazz pianist and composer Dave Brubeck a living legend.

The nineteen fifty-nine album "Time Out" by the Dave Brubeck Quartet was the first jazz album to sell more than one million copies. It includes the well known "Take Five," written by Paul Desmond.

Dave Brubeck was born in Concord, California, in nineteen twenty. He began piano lessons at the age of four. By fourteen he was performing in local bands.

During World War Two, Dave Brubeck, who is white, formed one of the first racially mixed bands in the Army. After leaving the Army he studied with the French composer Darius Milhaud.

Dave Brubeck formed his first quartet in nineteen fifty-one. The group's unusual mix of jazz and classical styles earned praise around the world. Since then Dave Brubeck has had many different quartets and produced many different works, including two ballets and a musical.

His best known jazz works include "In Your Own Sweet Way," "The Duke" and "Blue Rondo a La Turk."

(MUSIC)

Bruce Springsteen has sold more than one hundred twenty million albums. Most of his songs tell stories about American life. Many are about his life growing up in the state of New Jersey, where he was born in nineteen forty-nine.

His first song to enjoy widespread success was "Born to Run." It was the title song from his nineteen seventy-five album.

(MUSIC)

The Rock and Roll Hall of Fame has a list of the five hundred songs that shaped rock and roll. "Born to Run" is number twenty-one on the list. Also listed are "Thunder Road," which was on the same album, and "Born in the U.S.A."

(MUSIC)

The nineteen eighty-four album "Born in the U.S.A." has sold more than fifteen million copies in the United States alone. It is considered one of the greatest rock and roll albums of all time.

Bruce Springsteen is also known for his live performances. He and his E Street Band remain one of the top selling acts in the world.

Bruce Springsteen, Dave Brubeck, Mel Brooks, Robert De Niro and Grace Bumbry will be honored at the Kennedy Center on December sixth.

Our program was written by June Simms and produced by Caty Weaver. I'm Steve Ember. And I'm Barbara Klein.

Perhaps you would like to listen to these, too.

• Kennedy Center Honors of 2008 - Barbra Streisand, Morgan Freeman, George Jones, Twyla Tharp, Pete Townshend and Roger Daltrey
• Kennedy Center Honors of 2007 - Brian Wilson, Steve Martin, Leon Fleisher, Martin Scorsese, and Diana Ross