EPISODE 102
LEVEL B2
READING COMPREHENSION
BEFORE THE CONCERT
„You do realize that people nowadays attend (= go to) concerts dressed quite casually, right?” Timothy, sporting a pair of jeans and a brown jacket, asks Julia, who is wearing a beautiful evening gown (= a dress, especially a long one worn on formal occasions).
„I sure do”, smiles Julia, „but it is fun to look so smart. The elderly ladies in the concert hall will be deeply impressed by me, while being full of contempt for you (= dislike and lack of respect)!”
„You know I respect the elderly”, says Timothy, „but not to the point of dressing as if I were old myself – or, at least, older than I am. My elder brother, on the other hand, does an admirable job of that. You’ll think he is 50 when you see him!”
„I’m very glad I will finally get to meet him. In the foyer, you said (= the large open area just inside the entrance of a public building where people can wait and meet each other)?”
„Right. I am sure he will come equipped with a pair of opera glasses – a lorgnette, as he calls it.”
„These cute little binoculars, you mean?”
„The last pair he owned came with an infrared light, so he could see the stage (= the area where the performers are) and light his program to read from it. Makes me laugh just to think of it.”
„Which seats do we have tonight?”
„Row 15 (= the 15th line of seats), sort of opposite the strings, so you’ll be able to watch the violins and violas.”
„Violins are beautiful, and how the musicians move the bows across the strings has something magical to it. But for the sheer pleasure of watching, I always prefer the woodwinds: the flute, the oboe, the clarinet… I might actually borrow your brother’s lorgnette to stare at them a bit!”
More contexts for the new words:
- The strings is the group of instruments which have strings (= thin wires stretched across the instrument) which you pull or hit with your fingers or rub with a bow (= a long thin piece of wood with hair from the tail of a horse stretched along) it to produce sound.
- The woodwinds are the musical instruments which are played by blowing through a thin flattened tube at one end or across a hole near one end; examples include the clarinet, flute, saxophone and bassoon.
- The brass is the third large group of instruments; it consists of instruments made of metal and played by blowing, such as the .
EXERCISE 1
Put the phrases in the right order, then answer the questions. Explain your opinions.
- is your favourite? / of instruments / Which group
- do you like / Which seats / in the theatre / to have / or at the cinema?
- often / attend concerts? / Do Poles
ENGLISH IN USE
Look at these sentences from the text:
The elderly ladies in the concert hall will be deeply impressed by me.
You know I respect the elderly.
My elder brother does an admirable job of that.
The adjective OLD can be graded regularly, i.e. OLD – OLDER – THE OLDEST. However, the forms ELDER and THE ELDEST are used when talking about family relationships. ELDERLY is an adjective which means the same as OLD, but sounds much more polite. THE ELDERLY is a polite way of referring to the elderly people as a group.
IDIOM CLOSE-UP
A/ How did he get so much support in the elections?
B/ He is IN TUNE WITH the current political issues.
When you are in tune with feelings, opinions, or needs of a group of people, you understand them. The opposite is to be out of tune.
PHRASAL VERBS CLOSE-UP
- When you TUNE IN, you listen to or watch a particular programme on the radio or television.
Millions of people tuned in to watch the election results.
Be sure to tune in to tomorrow’s show.
- When you TUNE (someone/ something) OUT, you ignore a person or not give your attention to what is happening around you
He talks such nonsense that I just tune him out.
I just tuned out and let John take over.
EXERCISE 2
Complete the diagram with the missing prepositions.
NEWS
OPERA EVACUATED
The National Opera was evacuated yesterday, as a result of a hoax bomb alert. Everyone was made to leave the building instantly, without the opportunity to visit the cloakroom and put on their coats. This was especially painful for the ladies, who were wearing only lacy gowns and fancy hats. Although the accompanying men behaved in a gentlemanly fashion and lent the women their tuxedos, this did not help much, and most of the audience caught colds in the freezing weather.
Unfortunately, the opera is not going to reimburse the viewers for the show. The spokesperson has explained that – in case of such emergencies – refunds are not available.
GLOSSARY
– hoax – false
– cloakroom – a room in a theatre, restaurant etc where you can leave your coat
– lacy – made of light delicate cloth with patterns of little holes in it
– tuxedos – very formal jackets
– reimburse – give back the money
>>Answers
KEY TO EXERCISES
Ex.1
- Which group of instruments is your favourite?
- Which seats do you like to have in the theatre or at the cinema?
- Do Poles often attend concerts?
Ex.2
- in
- in
- out
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