sábado, 25 de octubre de 2025

SKELETON DANCE. HALLOWEEN

 


THE SKELETON DANCE VOCABULARY

bone  /bon/

bone n

(part of a skeleton)

hueso nm

 

Some dinosaur bones were discovered near the river.

bones npl

(human body, skeleton)

huesos nmpl esqueleto nm

 

My bones ache after that long hike.

bone n as adj

(made of bone)

de hueso loc adj

 

knee  /niː/

knee n

(body)

rodilla nf

 

Harold had a pain in his knee, and had to go to the doctor.

knee n

(of trousers)

rodilla nf

 

Brad tore a hole in the knee of his pants.

knee vtr

(hit with knee)

dar un rodillazo loc verb

 

thigh  /θaɪ/

thigh n

(upper leg)

muslo nm

 

The jeans fit tightly around Rick's thighs.

thigh n

(poultry: leg portion)

muslo nm muslito nm

 

Tamsin lifted the thigh from her plate and bit into it.

 

hip  /hɪp/

hip n

(anatomy: thigh joint)

cadera nf

 

Martha broke her hip when she fell down the stairs.

 

shake  /ʃeɪk/

shake [sth] vtr

(agitate)

agitar⇒ vtr

 

Shake the medicine to mix it. Agite la medicina para mezclarla

shake vi

(vibrate)

sacudir⇒ vtr

 

 

temblar⇒ vi

 

The building shook in the earthquake. El edificio tembló durante el terremoto El terremoto sacudió el edificio.

 

wiggle  /ˈwɪɡəl/

wiggle n

(wriggling movement)

contoneo nm

 

With a wiggle of her hips, Carol walked onto the dance floor.

wiggle vi

(move back and forth)

serpentear⇒ vi contonearse v

 

The worm was wiggling across the soil.

wiggle,
wiggle [sth]
 vtr

(move [sth] back and forth)

contonear⇒ vtr

 

Glenn wiggled his nose to make the small child laugh.

 


THE SKELETON DANCE LYRICS

Dem bones, dem bones, dem dancing bones.
Dem bones, dem bones, dem dancing bones.
Dem bones, dem bones, dem dancing bones.
Doin' the skeleton dance.
The foot bone's connected to the leg bone.
The leg bone's connected to the knee bone.
The knee bone's connected to the thigh bone.
Doin' the skeleton dance.
The thigh bone's connected to the hip bone.
The hip bone's connected to the backbone.
The backbone's connected to the neck bone.
Doin' the skeleton dance.
Shake your hands to the left.
Shake your hands to the right.
Put your hands in the air.
Put your hands out of sight.
Shake your hands to the left.
Shake your hands to the right.
Put your hands in the air.
Wiggle, wiggle, wiggle, wiggle, wiggle,
Wiggle, wiggle, wiggle, wiggle, wiggle,
Wiggle, wiggle... wiggle your knees.
Dem bones, dem bones, dem dancing bones.
Dem bones, dem bones, dem dancing bones.
Dem bones, dem bones, dem dancing bones.
Doin' the skeleton dance.



ALL ABOUT HALLOWEEN | PRACTICE ENGLISH WITH SPOTLIGHT

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PBzlPuQ6noo

Welcome to Spotlight. I’m Liz Waid. / And I’m Bruce Gulland. / Spotlight uses a special English method of broadcasting.

It is easier for people to understand, no matter where in the world they live.

 

Every October 31st children all across the United States do something strange.

They imagine they are someone or something else.

They put on strange clothes. They may even paint their faces or wear false hair. They walk around from house to house.

They knock on the door of the house. When someone opens the door all the children say the same thing: Trick or treat!

The person in the house gives them a sweet candy treat!

The children do this again and again for one house to the next. This is the holiday of Halloween.

 

Today’s Spotlight is on Halloween - and other holidays like it.

The tradition of Halloween is very old. In fact, people who study history believe that  Halloween traditions began as long as 2,500 years ago. They believe these traditions started in ancient Ireland, with the Celtic people.

The Celts of Ireland counted two parts of the year. The bright half of the year was summer. And the dark half was winter. They believed that the bright half of the year ended around October 31. After this day, winter was coming.

The Celtic people called this change in season Samhain, which means the ‘end of summer.’ Samhain was a special time. It was both a celebration of the end of summer, or life, and the beginning of winter, or death. So it was also a frightening time.

The Celts believed that there was a natural barrier between the world of the living and the world of the dead. But, at Samhain, the barrier disappeared. They believed that spirits could rise from the dead and come among the living.

 

Historians say that during the celebration of Samhain the Celts dressed themselves in different clothes. They walked through their villages making lots of noise. And they caused disorder in the village. They believed that this frightened the spirits away. Some historians also believe that the Celts sacrificed humans or animals during this celebration as a warning to the spirits.

 

Other people groups in other parts of the world also celebrated similar holidays.

Around the year 400, Christians came to Ireland. They began to celebrate Christian holidays at the same time the Celts celebrated their holidays. For many years the Christians had a celebration in  honour of saints - special people in the Church. They called this celebration ‘All Saints Day,’ or ‘All Hallows Day.’ It was a day to celebrate these special saints, or ‘holy,’ people. They celebrated ‘All Hallows Day’ on November 1st.

 

The night before a special day is called an “eve”. After a time, people began calling the  Samhain celebration ‘All Hallows Eve. ’ Since language is always changing, people soon shortened the name.

Instead of ‘All Hallows Eve’, they called it ‘Halloween’, and that is what we call it today!

 

In the 16th century, another tradition began. In the days leading up to the Samhain celebration, the people of Ireland and Britain dressed in different clothes. They went house to house. At each house, they sang songs to the dead. Then the people of the house  gave them small sweet cakes.

 

Irish settlers brought Halloween traditions to the United States in the middle 1800s. But people there did not really celebrate Halloween until almost 100 years later - during the early 1900s.

For most children today in the US, Canada, the UK and other places, Halloween is about candy and fun clothes.

But other people have a day like this to celebrate the people who have lived and died before us.

 

Many countries have a celebration to remember people who have died. Some celebrations are at different times of the year. They do not always call these celebrations ‘Halloween’. But the celebrations have similar meanings. So, how do you celebrate Halloween?

 

On Halloween in Belgium, there are parades and scary decorations like spiders and ghosts. But people also light candles. These candles help people remember their dead relatives.

In the Czech Republic they celebrate Dusicky. People visit the place where a family member is buried.

 

In China, people do not celebrate Halloween. But they have a very similar celebration called ‘Yue Lan’. It is the ‘Festival of the Hungry Ghosts.’ The people there believe that spirits visit the world for 24 hours. Some people burn pictures of fruit or money. They believe that the spirits can see these burned pictures. And the burned pictures bring calm and peace to the ghosts. This celebration is not a time for games or dressing up. Instead, it is a day to remember and respect the memory of dead ancestors.

 

In Mexico, the people celebrate ‘Dia  De Muertos’ - ‘the day of the dead.’ Some other Latin American countries also celebrate this holiday. It is not a scary day. It is a time to remember friends and family members who have died. A three-day celebration begins on October 31. During this time, families make special places in their homes to honour their dead friends and family. They place candy, photographs, fresh water, flowers, and food and drink in this special place. They burn candles and strong smelling incense to help spirits find their way home. The last day of the celebration  is called ‘All Soul’s Day’. On this day, living family members eat a meal at the gravesite where dead friends and family are buried. They tell stories and remember good times of when the person was alive.

 

And the tradition of Halloween is still popular in Ireland too! Today, on Halloween, Irish boys and girls dress like ghosts, witches, or other frightening creatures. They light big fires. Many children go around to different houses. They ask for fruits, nuts, or sweets.

 

Halloween can be a lot of fun for children. But it is also a good time to remember someone you loved who has died.

Do you celebrate Halloween? Do you have a tradition that helps you remember people who have died? Tell us about your experiences. You can leave a comment on our website.Or email us at radio@radioenglish.net. You can also comment on Facebook at Facebook.com/spotlightradio.

The writers of this program were Liz Waid and Adam Navis.

The producer was Michio Ozaki.

The voices you heard were from the United States and the United Kingdom.

You can listen to this program again, and read it, on the internet at www.radioenglish.net.

This program is called, ‘All About Halloween’.

Visit our website to download our free official app for Android and Apple devices.

We hope you can join us again for the next Spotlight program. Goodbye.

 

VOCABULARY

Hallow  UK:*/ˈhæləʊ/  US:/ˈhæloʊ/ 

hallow [sth]⇒ vtr    (make holy)  santificar⇒ vtr  consagrar⇒ vtr

 The ceremony is intended to hallow the ground near the church. 

La ceremonia tiene como finalidad santificar el terreno cerca de la iglesia.

hallow [sth] vtr        (consider holy)  santificar⇒ vtr  reverenciar⇒ vtr

 The Lord's Prayer begins: "Our Father who art in Heaven, hallowed be Thy name".

 El Padre Nuestro dice: "Padre nuestro que estás en el cielo, santificado sea tu nombre."

hallow n  archaic (saint)  santo, santa nm, nf

eve  UK:*'eve', 'Eve': /ˈiːv/  US:/iv/ ,

eve n  (night before)  víspera nf

 It was the eve of her job interview, so Maria decided to get an early night.

eve n  (day before)  víspera nf

 Harry spent the eve of his birthday in a state of excitement.

the eve of [sth] n  figurative (period prior to [sth]) (figurado)       la víspera de nf + prep  justo antes de loc adv

 The eve of war was a time of fear and anticipation.

 La víspera de la guerra fue un tiempo de miedo y anticipación.

eve n   literary (evening)  crepúsculo nm  anochecer nm  noche nm

 The young man worked from morning to eve, without stopping for a moment.

Bury   UK:*/ˈbɛri/ US:/ˈbɛri/ 

Inflections of 'bury' (n): npl: buries

Inflections of 'bury' (v): (⇒ conjugate) buries v 3rd person singular/ burying v pres p/ buried v past/ buried v past p

bury [sth]⇒ vtr          (put [sth] under the earth)                enterrar⇒ vtr

 The teacher buried the time capsule while the students watched.

 El profesor enterró la cápsula del tiempo mientras los estudiantes miraban.

bury [sb/sth]⇒ vtr     (person, animal: inter)                     enterrar⇒ vtr   sepultar⇒ vtr

 We buried my grandmother on a rainy day.

 Enterramos a mi abuela en un día lluvioso.

bury [sb/sth] vtr         (snow, debris: cover [sb], [sth])        cubrir⇒ vtr

 Snow buried the road.

 La nueve cubría la carretera.

bury [sth]⇒ vtr          figurative (feelings: suppress)          reprimir⇒ vtr  esconder⇒ vtr ocultar⇒ vtr

 After failing the interview, the applicant buried her disappointment and tried to be positive.

 Tras fracasar en la entrevista, la candidata reprimió su decepción e intentó ser positiva.

bury [sth] vtr              figurative (secret, bad news: hide)   esconder⇒ vtr  ocultar⇒ vtr  tapar⇒ vtr

 The government used coverage of the earthquake to bury the news about their tax increases.

 El gobierno usó la cobertura del terremoto para esconder la noticia sobre el aumento de impuestos.

bury yourself in [sth] v expr  figurative (engross yourself in [sth])   perderse en /  hundirse en  sumergirse en 

 On rainy days, the best thing to do is bury yourself in a good book.

 Los días lluviosos lo mejor es perderse en un buen libro.

bury [sth] in [sth] vtr + prep    clavar en vtr + prep   incrustar en vtr + prep

The nail was buried firmly in the wall.

 El clavo estaba firmemente clavado en la pared.

 

 


domingo, 12 de octubre de 2025

IF YOU'RE HAPPY AND YOU KNOW IT



 Esta ha sido la propuesta para empezar el curso cantando.  Os invito a que practiquéis en casa. Primero pronunciando atentamente, sin importar la velocidad. Poco a poco descubrirás que las palabras se unen ... Ánimo.

Hay diferentes versiones -variaciones.

La versión que vimos en clase está en:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=13wd8KvOt58


VOCABULARY

CLAP

clap⇒ vi /ˈklæp/  = aplaudir⇒ vtr  palmotear⇒ vi  batir palmas loc verb

 Ex. The audience clapped loudly as the band came on stage.  El público aplaudió fuerte cuando la banda salió al escenario

 

STOMP

stomp⇒ vi /ˈstɒmp/  (stamp, walk heavily) = pisar fuerte loc verb 

Ex.Don't stomp up the stairs - your sister's sleeping.   (No pises fuerte cuando subas las escaleras, tu hermana está durmiendo)

stomp on [sth/sb] vi + prep (trample on) = pisotear a vtr + prep  /  atropellar a vtr + prep

 Ex. Some shoppers got stomped on in the rush to get into the store.  (Pisotearon a algunos clientes en el apuro por entrar a la tienda)

 

NOD

nod⇒ vi /ˈnɒd/  (head gesture: yes) = asentir⇒ vi        Ex. Kyle nodded in agreement.  (Kyle asintió)

 

SHOUT

shout⇒ vi /ˈʃaʊt/  (yell)  (talk too loudly)=  gritar⇒ vi  /aullar⇒ vi  /chillar⇒ vi

 Ex. Fiona could hear the boss shouting from outside the building.  (Fiona podía escuchar a su jefe gritando desde afuera del edificio)

 Ex. I'm right next to you; there's no need to shout!  (Estoy al lado tuyo, no es necesario que grites)

shout [sth]⇒ vtr  (say loudly)

 Ex. Jim shouted something out of the window, but I couldn't hear what he was saying.  (Jim gritó algo por la ventana, pero no podía escuchar lo que decía)

 

 ‘shout’

When you shout, you speak as loudly as you can.

I can hear you – there's no need to shout.

‘Stop it!’ he shouted.

 

 ‘shout to’

If you shout to someone who is a long way away, you speak very loudly so that they can hear you.

‘What are you doing down there?’ he shouted to Robin.

People waved and shouted to us as our train passed.

 

 ‘shout at’

If you speak very loudly to someone who is near to you, for example because you are angry with them, don't say that you ‘shout to’ them. Say that you shout at them.

The captain shouted at him, ‘Get in! Get in!’

Dad shouted at us for making a mess.

You can use a to-infinitive with shout to or shout at. If you shout to someone to do something, or shout at them to do it, you tell them to do it by shouting.

A neighbour shouted to us from a window to stop the noise.

She shouted at him to go away.




miércoles, 24 de septiembre de 2025

HELLO - GOODBYE. THE BEATLES

 


"Hello, Goodbye" (sometimes titled "Hello Goodbye") is a song by the English rock band the Beatles, written by Paul McCartney and credited to Lennon–McCartney.



HELLO  GOODBYE (The Beatles)

 

You say "Yes", I say "No".
You say "Stop" and I say "Go, go, go".
Oh no.
You say "Goodbye" and I say "Hello, hello, hello".
I don't know why you say "Goodbye", I say "Hello, hello, hello".
I don't know why you say goodbye, I say hello.
I say "High", you say "Low".
You say "Why?" And I say "I don't know".
Oh no.
You say "Goodbye" and I say "Hello, hello, hello".
I don't know why you say "Goodbye", I say "Hello, hello, hello".
(Hello, goodbye, hello, goodbye. Hello, goodbye.)
I don't know why you say "Goodbye", I say "Hello".
(Hello, goodbye, hello, goodbye. Hello, goodbye. Hello, goodbye.)
Why, why, why, why, why, why, do you
Say "Goodbye, goodbye, bye, bye".
Oh no.
You say "Goodbye" and I say "Hello, hello, hello".
I don't know why you say "Goodbye", I say "Hello, hello, hello".
I don't know why you say "Goodbye", I say "Hello".
You say "Yes", I say "No".
(I say "Yes", but I may mean "No").
You say "Stop", I say "Go, go, go".
(I can stay still it's time to go).
Oh, oh no.
You say "Goodbye" and I say "Hello, hello, hello".
I don't know why you say "Goodbye", I say "Hello, hello, hello".
I don't know why you say "Goodbye", I say "Hello, hello, hello".
I don't know why you say "Goodbye", I say "Hello-wow, oh. Hello".
Hela, heba, helloa. Hela, heba, helloa. Hela, heba, helloa.
Hela, heba, helloa. (Hela.) Hela, heba, helloa.
Hela, heba, helloa.
Hela, heba, helloa. Hela, heba, helloa. Hela, heba, helloa.

Autores de la canción: John Lennon / Paul Mccartney




sábado, 14 de junio de 2025

SUMMERTIME

 

 Porgy and Bess es una ópera en tres actos con música de George Gershwin y libreto en inglés de Ira Gershwin y DuBose Heyward. Está basada en la novela Porgy de Heyward y en la pieza de teatro del mismo nombre coescrita con su esposa Dorothy. Las tres obras tratan sobre el estilo de vida de los estadounidenses negros en la ficticia Calle Bagre (Catfish Row) en Charleston, Carolina del Sur a principios de la década de 1930.

Originalmente fue concebida como una «ópera folclórica» de los Estados Unidos.

El estreno mundial en escena tuvo lugar en el Colonial Theatre de Boston el 30 de septiembre de 1935, el ensayo para una obra que se pretendía inicialmente para Broadway donde la inauguración tuvo lugar en el Alvin Theater de la ciudad de Nueva York el 10 de octubre de 1935.2​ En Broadway llegó a las 124 representaciones.

Utilizó un reparto conformado exclusivamente por cantantes negros con preparación en música clásica, una aventurada y visionaria visión artística para la época.
Aportó una gran riqueza de idiomas del blues y del jazz a la ópera. Gershwin la consideraba su mejor obra. Pero no fue aceptada en los Estados Unidos como una "verdadera ópera" hasta 1976, cuando la Houston Grand Opera produjo la partitura completa. Su estreno en la Metropolitan Opera en 1985 con Grace Bumbry y Simon Estes constituyó un triunfo artístico.

En la actualidad es considerada parte del repertorio de ópera estándar, aunque no está entre las más representadas. Porgy and Bess también se presenta internacionalmente y se han realizado diversas grabaciones de la obra. En las estadísticas de Operabase aparece la n.º 68 de las cien óperas más representadas en el período 2005-2010, siendo la 1.ª en Estados Unidos.

A pesar de su éxito, sigue causando controversia, dado que algunos la consideran racista al reflejar estereotipos de los negros norteamericanos.



El aria "Summertime" es con mucho, la pieza más divulgada de la obra, pues existen innumerables grabaciones e interpretaciones en vivo por diversos artistas, como las de Louis Armstrong y Ella Fitzgerald.



Esta ópera es admirada por la síntesis innovadora de las técnicas orquestales europeas, con las expresiones idiomáticas del Jazz y la música folk estadounidense conseguidas por Gershwin.

Porgy and Bess narra la historia de Porgy, un inválido afroamericano que habita los suburbios de Charleston, Carolina de Sur, y sus intentos por rescatar a Bess de las garras de Crown, su proxeneta y de Sportin' Life, un vendedor de drogas.

María Callas


Frank Sinatra


Celine Dion

Diana Navarro y María Espinosa


Pablo "Pomelito". Flamenco guitar




https://www.senalmemoria.co/articulos/summertime-una-cancion-con-miles-de-versiones

Summertime, una canción con miles de versiones
Summertime

Por: Javier Hernández Cruz


George Gershwin – Summertime – June McMechen. 1951

 

Summertime es una de las canciones más exitosas y cantada de toda la historia de la música. Originalmente es un aria de la ópera Porgy and Bess del compositor neoyorkino George Gershwin. En síntesis, es una canción de cuna, que alcanzó una gran popularidad desde el estreno de la ópera y ha sido versionada por miles de intérpretes hasta la actualidad.

 

Summertime and the livin' is easy,

Fish are jumpin', and the cotton is high.

Oh your daddy's rich, and your ma is good lookin',

So hush, little baby, don' yo' cry.

 

Porgy and Bess de Gershwin cuenta la historia del amor fallido entre un lisiado y una mujer de vida licenciosa. Su trama se desarrolla en un barrio bajo de Charleston, Carolina del Sur. Abundan el juego y la venta de drogas. Los únicos blancos que aparecen son policías y no cantan una sola nota, son personajes hablados. Por exigencias del compositor, el elenco de Porgy and Bess debía estar conformado únicamente por personajes de raza negra.

La primera versión completa de Porgy and Bess

En el Archivo Señal Memoria conservamos la primera grabación completa de Porgy and Bess. Fue grabada por el sello Columbia en 1951, en pleno auge de los discos Long Play.

¿Quién más ha cantado la obra de Gershwin fuera de la ópera?

Summertime ha sido cantada por todo tipo de intérpretes en los más diversos géneros musicales. Sin embargo, hay que tener presentes las versiones de tres grandes cantantes norteamericanas del siglo XX. Diferentes entre sí y vinculadas al jazz y el blues. Todas todas estas versiones, se encuentran en el Archivo Señal Memoria.


Janis Joplin




Janis Joplin - Summertime

Esta fue la canción más popular de su carrera. En esta se demostró su sello particular en la interpretación del blues. Una voz rasgada,  como si estuviera sufriendo de un dolor profundo, terrible, aunque placentero. En 1968, cuando salió, nadie estaba preparado para esa voz. Se suponía que las mujeres no cantaban así. Es por esto, que se puede decir que ella redefinió el concepto de las cantantes. Su versión contiene algunas variaciones en la letra original, pero el espíritu es el mismo.

 


Billie Holiday


Billie Holiday – Summertime – 1936


Otra versión importante de Summertime es la de Billie Holiday, la emblemática cantante de jazz. que el público apodó como Lady Day. La anterior es una grabación realizada en 1936, un año después del estreno de la ópera. Este fue su primer gran éxito radial.

 


Ella Fitzgerald

Y para terminar, 10 años antes que Janis, en 1958, la Reina del Jazz, Ella Fitzgerald graba a dúo con Louis Armstrong, algunas canciones de la ópera de Gershwin. De ese disco proviene esta versión de Summertime.


Ella Fitzgerald – Summertime - 1958