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Exercises
1. COMPREHENSION
Complete the table using information from the text
2. WRITING
a. Write a paragraph, describing camera obscura. Translate your paragraph into Russianb. Write a paragraph giving the comparison of the camera obscura and the modern camera. Use the first paragraph of the text “Camera” as a support.
3. DISCUSSION
a. Name all the steps in the development of the camera in photography during the 19th and 20th centuries.b. Speak on the functions of the components of any modern camera.
2.2 Saxophone
The saxophone or sax is a conical instrument of the wind family, usually made of brass and played with a single-reed mouthpiece like the clarinet.
The saxophone was created in the early 1840s by Adolphe Sax, a Belgian-born instrument-maker and clarinetist working in Paris, and was first officially revealed to the public in the patent of 1846. He drew up plans for 14 different types of saxophones, but they were not all realized.
It is likely that Sax’s intent was to invent an entirely new instrument which suited his desires both tonally and technically and possessed a new level of flexibility. This would explain why he chose to name the instrument the “voice of Sax.” In short, Sax intended to harness the finesse of a woodwind with the power of a brass instrument. The saxophone is most commonly associated with popular music, big band music, and jazz, but it was originally intended as both an orchestral and military band instrument.
Construction. The saxophone combines in its construction the single reed and mouthpiece of the clarinet, a metal body, and a widened version of the conical bore of the oboe. The body contains openings, covered by keys, which can be opened or closed in groups by means of finger plates, operated by the fingers of either hand. Most saxophones are curved at the end and resemble the bass clarinet; a few, such as the soprano saxophone, are straight and resemble the standard clarinet. The most common saxophones are the soprano, the alto, the tenor, and the baritone. The tone quality ranges from soft, flutelike, and mellow to brassy and metallic.There is some debate amongst players as to whether the curve affects the tone or not.
Materials. Nearly all saxophones are made from brass. After completing the instrument, manufacturers usually apply either a coating of clear or colored lacquer, or plating of silver or gold, over the bare brass. The lacquer or plating serves to protect the brass from corrosion, to enhance sound quality, and/or to give the saxophone an interesting visual appearance.
Other materials have been tried with varying degrees of success. Prior to 1960, some instruments were plated with nickel as a cheaper alternative to silver; prior to 1930, it was common for instruments to be sold with a bare brass finish (without lacquer or plating).
The saxophone was created in the early 1840s by Adolphe Sax, a Belgian-born instrument-maker and clarinetist working in Paris, and was first officially revealed to the public in the patent of 1846. He drew up plans for 14 different types of saxophones, but they were not all realized.
It is likely that Sax’s intent was to invent an entirely new instrument which suited his desires both tonally and technically and possessed a new level of flexibility. This would explain why he chose to name the instrument the “voice of Sax.” In short, Sax intended to harness the finesse of a woodwind with the power of a brass instrument. The saxophone is most commonly associated with popular music, big band music, and jazz, but it was originally intended as both an orchestral and military band instrument.
Materials. Nearly all saxophones are made from brass. After completing the instrument, manufacturers usually apply either a coating of clear or colored lacquer, or plating of silver or gold, over the bare brass. The lacquer or plating serves to protect the brass from corrosion, to enhance sound quality, and/or to give the saxophone an interesting visual appearance.
Other materials have been tried with varying degrees of success. Prior to 1960, some instruments were plated with nickel as a cheaper alternative to silver; prior to 1930, it was common for instruments to be sold with a bare brass finish (without lacquer or plating).
Words
Musical instruments and music variations
band music оркестровая музыкаbass бас, басовый
brass instrument медный духовой инструмент
clarinet кларнет
flute флейта
jazz джаз
oboe гобой
wind instrument духовой инструмент
Elements of saxophone construction
bell раструб (в частности у духовых музыкальных инструментов), расширениеbody корпус
bore отверстие
finger plate наборный диск, пластина
keys клапаны, клавиатура
mouthpiece мундштук
opening отверстие
reed язычок в музыкальных инструментах (в фаготе, гобое, саксофоне)
Materials
gold золотоlacquer лак
nickel никель
silver серебро
Quality of the musical instrument
appearance внешний видbrassy металлический (о звуке)
finesse тонкость, изящество
flexibility гибкость, переналаживаемость
level уровень
mellow мягкий, неторопливый
tone звук, тон
Processess
create создаватьcurve изгибать
enhance усиливать, улучшать
protect защищать, предохранять
realize осуществлять, выполнять
reveal открывать; показывать
Verbs with abstract positive meaning
desire желатьenhance усиливать, улучшать
intend намереваться
possess обладать
resemble напоминать
suit подходить, соответствовать
EXERCISES
1. COMPREHENSION
a. Complete the table using information from the text.
2. WRITING
Write a summary of the text using the table and the diagram above as a support.
The main points of your summary should include history of the invention of the saxophone and the elements of its construction.
3. DISCUSSION
Answer the following questions:
a. What kind of music is the saxophone associated with?
b. What kind of music was the saxophone originally intended for?
c. Why did Sax name the instrument “the voice of Sax”?
d. What qualities did Sax try to harness in his instrument?
2.3 Microphone
A microphone, sometimes referred to as a mike or mic, is an acoustic to electric transducer that converts sound into an electrical signal. Microphones are used in many applications such as telephones, tape recorders, hearing aids, motion picture production, live and recorded audio engineering, in radio and television roadcasting and in computers for recording voice and numerous other computer applications.
Invention. The word “microphone” (Greek mikros “small” and phone “sound”) originally referred to a mechanical hearing aid for small sounds.Invention of a practical microphone was crucial to the early development of the telephone system. Emile Berliner[3] invented the first microphone on March 4, 1877, but the first commercially practical microphone was the carbon microphone invented in October, 1876 by Thomas Edison. Carbon microphones found use as early telephone repeaters, making long distance phone calls possible in the era before vacuum tubes. Many early developments in microphone design took place at Bell Laboratories.
All microphones capture sound waves with a thin, flexible diaphragm (or ribbon in the case of ribbon microphones). The vibrations of this element are then converted by various methods into an electrical signal that is an analog of the original sound. Most microphones in use today use electromagnetic generation (dynamic microphones), capacitance change (condenser microphones) or piezoelectric generation to produce the signal from mechanical vibration.
Invention. The word “microphone” (Greek mikros “small” and phone “sound”) originally referred to a mechanical hearing aid for small sounds.Invention of a practical microphone was crucial to the early development of the telephone system. Emile Berliner[3] invented the first microphone on March 4, 1877, but the first commercially practical microphone was the carbon microphone invented in October, 1876 by Thomas Edison. Carbon microphones found use as early telephone repeaters, making long distance phone calls possible in the era before vacuum tubes. Many early developments in microphone design took place at Bell Laboratories.
All microphones capture sound waves with a thin, flexible diaphragm (or ribbon in the case of ribbon microphones). The vibrations of this element are then converted by various methods into an electrical signal that is an analog of the original sound. Most microphones in use today use electromagnetic generation (dynamic microphones), capacitance change (condenser microphones) or piezoelectric generation to produce the signal from mechanical vibration.
Laser microphones
A laser microphone is an exotic application of laser technology. It consists of a laser beam that must be reflected off a glass window or another rigid surface that vibrates in sympathy with nearby sounds.
This device essentially turns any vibrating surface near the source of sound into a microphone. It does this by measuring the distance between itself and the surface extremely accurately; the tiny fluctuations in this distance become the electrical signal of the sounds picked up. Laser microphones are new, very rare and expensive, and are most commonly portrayed in the movies as spying devices.
This device essentially turns any vibrating surface near the source of sound into a microphone. It does this by measuring the distance between itself and the surface extremely accurately; the tiny fluctuations in this distance become the electrical signal of the sounds picked up. Laser microphones are new, very rare and expensive, and are most commonly portrayed in the movies as spying devices.
Words
Concepts related to sound devices
capacitance (эл.) емкостьelectromagnetic generation электромагнитное генерирование
flexible diaphragm гибкая диафрагма
gramophone граммофон
original sound первоначальный звук
phonogragh фонограф
piezoelectric generation пьезоэлектрическая генерация
ribbon ленточка
sound wave звуковая волна
vibration вибрация
convert превращать
transmitter передатчик
Exercises
1. COMPREHENSION
Complete the table using information from the text.
2. WRITING
a. Write a summary of the text, using the table above as a support.3. DISCUSSION
Which devices could not operate without a microphone? Why?
2.4 Audio storage processes
(wire recording, magnetic tape recording, compact discs)
Wire recording is a type of analogue audio storage in which the recording is made onto thin steel or stainless steel wire. The first wire recorder was the Valdemar Poulsen Telegraphone of the late 1890s, and wire recorders for dictation and telephone recording were made almost continuously by various companies through the 1920s and 1930s. They were most famously introduced as consumer technologies after World War II.
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