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GENERAL ENGLISH · HISTORICAL FIGURES · INTERMEDIATE (B1-B2)

LOUIS
ARMSTRONG

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1 Warm up
Jazz is a type of modern music with origins in the African American community. Jazz is improvised,
which means that players make up the music as they play, without writing it down.

How much do you know about jazz? For each item below, three answers are correct, and one is
wrong. Cross out the wrong answer.

1. Styles of jazz: bebop / juicy / swing / trad

2. Instruments usually used in jazz music: piano / saxophone / trumpet / violin

3. American cities famous for jazz: Chicago / Nashville / New Orleans / New York

4. Popular 21st century jazz clubs: Cotton Club, Tokyo / Ronnie Scott’s, London / Uncle Sam’s Jazz
House, Miami / Village Vanguard, New York

5. Famous jazz musicians: Carlos Acosta / Duke Ellington / Louis Armstrong / Miles Davis

Louis Armstrong was a jazz musician known for playing the cornet and trumpet. Which correct items
in each list above relate to him? What else do you know about his life?

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2 Vocabulary
Part A: Match the two halves of these sentences. Then explain the meaning of the word in bold.

1. His painting style is so distinctive -

2. It’s hard to choose the most notable moment of my visit -

3. Many people have been critical of the government -

4. My doctor suggested I switch from butter to olive oil when I fry food -

5. The pianist gave an impressive solo performance -

6. What an innovative idea -

a. they just don’t trust them to make the right decisions.

b. no one else uses the brush in the same way.

c. but I’ll always remember the boat trip along the coast.

d. he says it’s healthier and it might even be cheaper too.

e. you could hear every note.

f. there’s nothing like this on the market at the moment.

Part B: Read the sentences and match the words in bold with their meanings.

1. I didn’t really understand this song until I saw the lyrics written down.

2. It’s likely that we will see more political activism from young people on the issue of climate change.

3. My mentor has helped me so much with the challenges that I faced in my first few months on the
job.

4. Several people called the police and reported an incident in the local park.

5. She felt she had to speak out about the unfair difference between salaries for men and women.

6. When artists work in a music studio, the vocals are usually recorded separately from the instruments.

a. someone who shares their knowledge and experience with a new person at work or in education

b. an unusual or negative event

c. the singing part of a piece of music

d. using direct action to achieve a change

e. the words of a song

f. say what you think about a situation that you feel isn’t right

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Answer the following questions.

1. In the first exercise, which item is a verb? What are the other items?

2. In the second exercise, which item is a verb? What are the other items?

3. Identify one pair of items with related meanings - one item is from the first exercise and one from
the second.

How do you think these words will be used in the story of Louis Armstrong’s life?

3 Listening 1
You are going to listen to information about the life of Louis Armstrong (1901-1971). Before you
listen, read the sentences and try to predict the correct option to complete each one. Then listen and
check your ideas.

1. Louis Armstrong never went to school / left school as a child / only had a couple of years of high
school.

2. Some of his first performances were on riverboats on the Mississippi / at clubs in New Orleans /
on Broadway in New York.

3. In his early work with his own band, he started to include new types of instruments / allow women
to play jazz in public / focus on solo performances.

4. During a European tour in the 1930s, Armstrong couldn’t play because he went blind for a few
months / had problems with his lips / had lost his trumpet.

5. In the 1950s and 60s, some fans felt his music was innovative / distinctive / old-fashioned.

6. In the 1960s, Armstrong wrote and recorded the classic song What a wonderful world / A perfect
day / I just called to say I love you.

7. The house where he lived in New York is now a jazz club / a music school / a tourist attraction.

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4 Language in context

These expressions originally come from the world of jazz, but we use them in everyday English as
well. Read these sentences from the recording and explain the meaning of the words in bold.

1. ... he found a mentor in Joe "King" Oliver and began to jam with him and play music professionally.

2. In 1919, Armstrong started to play gigs on Mississippi riverboats ...

3. In 1929, Armstrong moved to New York to star in a Broadway show: at last, his career was in full
swing.

Complete each sentence with the correct form of one word from the examples above.

1. The economy that we have today means that many workers can’t expect to find
a permanent job.

2. Are you listening to Taylor Swift? That’s my - I love her music!

3. The arts scene in Berlin is really these days.

5 Listening 2

Read the questions. Can you remember the answers? Listen again to check.

1. In what two ways did Armstrong benefit from the time he spent in a children’s home?

2. How did he benefit from his time on riverboats?

3. According to the recording, how was "scat" singing invented?

4. After 1929, Armstrong’s career was "in full swing." What are some of his achievements during this
time?

5. Why did some African Americans criticise Armstrong in the 1950s and 60s? Were they correct to
do this?

6. What part of the world did Armstrong tour when he was older?

7. For what reasons is Armstrong’s life especially notable?

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6 Language point
Read the information about consonant-vowel linking. Then do the following tasks.

Consonant-vowel linking

In fast natural speech, we don’t pronounce each word separately. Often words sound like
they are connected together, for example, when a word that ends with a final consonant
sound links to a vowel sound that starts the next word. This sometimes makes it hard to
understand what people are saying, even when you know all the words they are using.

Look at the underlined consonant-vowel links in the first sentences of the recording. Listen to this
part of the recording again and notice how the sounds link. Then practise saying the sentences with
the links.

Louis Armstrong was born in 1901. He was mostly raised by his grandmother in a very poor
area of New Orleans and had to leave school before he was a teenager in order to make a
living. After an incident with a gun in 1912, Armstrong was arrested and sent to a children’s
home. It was there that he learned to play the cornet and fell in love with music. On his
release in 1914, he found a mentor in Joe "King" Oliver and began to jam with him and play
music professionally.

Find more examples of consonant-vowel linking in the next lines of the recording.

In 1919, Armstrong started to play gigs on Mississippi riverboats where he came into contact
with famous jazz musicians and learned to read music. In 1922, he moved to Chicago to join
Oliver; their performances were very popular, and they made several recordings together.

Practise reading these lines out loud.

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7 Talking point

Discuss these questions in pairs or small groups.

1. What do you think is Armstrong’s greatest achievement?

2. What would you ask Armstrong if you could meet him?
3. Armstrong’s arrest as a young person was a negative event which led to a very positive result. Can
you think of any other examples of this sort of thing?
4. The young Armstrong was lucky enough to meet and work with Joe "King" Oliver and other
musicians. What are some of the most important benefits of having a mentor?
5. Which of these Louis Armstrong quotes do you like best and why?

Quote 1

"The memory of things (that are) gone is important to a jazz musician."

Quote 2

"Music is life itself. What would this world be without good music? No matter what kind it
is."

Quote 3

"Musicians don’t retire; they stop when there’s no more music in them."

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8 Optional extension
These are the lyrics of Louis Armstrong’s famous song, "What a wonderful world," but there are
mistakes in some lines. Read the lyrics (with the glossary) and think about which words might be
wrong. Watch the video (00:00 - 02:15) and listen to the song and correct the mistakes.
1. I see trees growing
2. Red apples too
3. See how they bloom
4. For me and you
5. And I think to myself
6. What a wonderful world

7. I see seas of blue

8. And waves of white
9. The light blessed day
10. The dark sacred night
11. And I think to myself
12. What a wonderful world

13. The colours of the rainbow

14. So lovely in the sky
15. Are also on the faces
16. Of people walking by

17. I see friends greeting friends

18. Saying how do you do
19. They really mean
20. I love you

21. Babies will cry

22. And then they’ll grow
23. They’ll learn a lot more
24. Than I’ll ever know
25. And I think to myself
26. What a wonderful world
27. You should think to yourself
28. What a wonderful world

Glossary:
bloom - produce and open a flower
blessed - bringing happiness from God
sacred - connected to God and therefore deserving respect

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