Friday, November 27, 2015

Happy 90th Birthday to the Grand Ole Opry (1)

Celebrating the legendary radio show that made country music famous!

On November 28, 1925, no one anticipated the enormous success that awaited a small country music program making its radio debut. Yet the Grand Ole Opry would become an international phenomenon, and 90 year later, it is considered to be “country’s most famous stage.”

Opry’s history is a glimpse into country music, its artists and its evolution.

Tremendous growth
In 1925, the show featuring local musicians was broadcast live from a Nashville, Tennessee, radio station. Some area leaders disliked the show because they preferred a more cultured image for their city.

Listeners, though, related to the realistic themes inherent in country music.

The Grand Ole Opry's popularity grew, and people began stopping by to watch the musicians perform. Before long, the audience had outgrown the radio station, prompting a move to a new location.

By the 1930s, families across the United States were gathering around their radios for their favorite Saturday night broadcast, which had expanded to four hours of live performances.

Within 10 years, only one Nashville venue was large enough to hold Opry audiences, and 1943, the Grand Ole Opry made Ryman Auditorium its home.


Info Cloud
Teaching Topic: Happy Birthday to You 教學主題: 收版稅的生日快樂歌
If today is your birthday, then happy birthday! Now Steve and I would like to sing for you the most frequently sung English song in the whole world, “happy birthday to you”. But sorry, we can’t.

Sorry everybody, you see even though “happy birthday to you”was written way back in the 1890s, it’s still not in a public domain yet which means it’s illegal to sing a song in public without permission from the copyright holder.

And getting permission costs big money thousands of dollars for a single use that’s why you really hear the song sung in movies or on TV shows.

Yes, now restaurant employees aren’t allowed to sing a song to customers either because technically restaurants are public places.

And so many restaurant chains have created their own happy birthday song to avoid paying the expensive licensing fee.

Okay, in Europe copyright protection lasts for the life of the composer plus 70 years. Now since the last co-author of the song died back in 1946, you’ll be able to sing “happy birthday to you” in the streets of Paris and Berlin for free starting next year, but if you are in the US where copyright laws are different, you’ll have to wait until 2030.

Language Lab
evolution n. [volut 字根-滾, 捲]
a process of slow change and development
- Nuclear families are the products of social evolution.
- The movie talked about the evolution of the music industry in the 70s.
evolve v.
to change or develop slowly often into a better, more complex, or more advanced state : to develop by a process of evolution
- This tiny company evolved into an international enterprise. 這家小公司後來演變成國際企業

cultured adj.
having or showing good education, tastes, and manners
- He's a cultured man who has very elegant taste.
- Her cultured manner attracted my attention. 她優雅的行為吸引我的注意
grown or made under controlled conditions
- cultured cells/pearls

inherent adj.
belonging to the basic nature of someone or something
- There are inherent risks in any form of investment.
- Elisa's marital problems are due to her inherent distrust of men.

auditorium n.
/ˌɑːdəˈtorijəm/
a large room or building where people gather to watch a performance, hear a speech, etc.
- The band concert will be held in the newly renovated auditorium.
the part of a building (such as a theater) where an audience sits
- Eating and drinking are prohibited in the auditorium.

a glimpse into

mms://203.69.69.81/studio/20151127baa81519ec9d6f4981edbfaa0b360124869be7bf1aeea0d444b356387bbc82b1952.wma

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