La fête de la musique started on 21st June 1982, it was promoted by Jack Lang who was then Minister of culture ( ministre de la culture) under the president of France ( le président de la France ), François Mitterrand.
Here is a link to a video produced by l'INA ( Institut National de l'audiovisuel) on an event in 1982, in Puteaux , near Paris:
Every year, on 21st June, there are events all over France when amateurs and professional perform in the streets. You can have:
Des chanteurs ( singers)
Des chorales ( choirs)
Des groupes ( bands)
Des fanfares ( brass bands)
Des quatuors ( quartets)
Des duos ( duets)
With all sorts of instruments, such as:
Des violons ( violins)
Des violons alto ( violas)
Des violoncelles ( cellos)
Des contrebasses ( double bass)
Des flûtes ( flutes)
Des clarinettes ( clarinets)
Des trompettes ( trumpets)
Des tambours ( drums)
Des batteries ( drumkits)
and plenty more....
Alliance Française de Bristol et Bath did not celebrate la fête de la musique but the Ecole Française de Bristol did and several French tutors from the Alliance joined in. Ecole Française de Bristol teaches young children from the age of 3 to 12 or 13 and then, students come to French lessons to Alliance Française either in Bristol or in Bath. For more info...
Saturday, 23 June 2012
Sunday, 17 June 2012
Did you know that it is father's day in France too?
C'est la fête des pères! Time to make a cake perhaps.... Read the poem below about a cake written by Alice, a student in Gwen' s French tuition class. She started with a tiny bit of French and this is what she could write after a few months of French lessons in a group of 8 students:
Dans une ville il y a une rue
Dans la rue il y a une maison
Dans la maison il y a un couloir
Dans le couloir il y a une cuisine
Dans la cuisine il y a une cuisiniere
Dans la cuisiniere il y a un four
Dan ce four il y a un gateau!
Le gateau est prêt!
Le gateau renversa le four
Le four renversa la cuisiniere
La cuisiniere renversa la cuisine
La cuisine renversa le couloir
Le couloir renversa la maison
Et tout le monde mangea le gateau!
Alice
Our French intensive classes are nearly all full for June and July, but we'll be starting our regular French lessons in September. For more info...
Dans une ville il y a une rue
Dans la rue il y a une maison
Dans la maison il y a un couloir
Dans le couloir il y a une cuisine
Dans la cuisine il y a une cuisiniere
Dans la cuisiniere il y a un four
Dan ce four il y a un gateau!
Le gateau est prêt!
Le gateau renversa le four
Le four renversa la cuisiniere
La cuisiniere renversa la cuisine
La cuisine renversa le couloir
Le couloir renversa la maison
Et tout le monde mangea le gateau!
Alice
Our French intensive classes are nearly all full for June and July, but we'll be starting our regular French lessons in September. For more info...
Sunday, 10 June 2012
Did you know that it is the tennis final at Roland Garros this afternoon?
The final ( la finale) is between Nadal and Djokovic under rather grey skies in Paris.
Why are the stadium and the tournament called Roland Garros? Roland Garros, who lived at the beginning of the 20th century, was more of a football player than a tennis man although he did play tennis with his friend, Emile Lesieur. Roland Garros is mainly known for his bravery as an airpilot during the first world war. When the tennis stadium was built so that the Coupe Davis could take place in Paris in 1927, Emile Lesieur, who was then president of Le stade français, insisted that the stadium should be named Roland Garros in memory of the very brave airpilot of the first world war. Roland Garros was killed in October 1918 during a fight above the Ardennes.
Here is some tennis vocabulary :
A as in 30A: equality of points during a game such as 30-30
As: ace
Juge de chaise ou arbitre de chaise: main umpire who sits on a raised chair.
Juge de ligne: line judge
Juge de filet: net judge
Balle de match: match point
Balle de set ou de manche: set point
Break: same as in English
Double faute: double fault
Faute: out
Terre battue: clay court
Tie-break ou jeu décisif
Let ou filet
Rallye: same as in English
We have been busy organizing our intensive French courses and now, nearly all the classes in Bristol are full but do consider joining our regular French lessons in September. For more info...
Why are the stadium and the tournament called Roland Garros? Roland Garros, who lived at the beginning of the 20th century, was more of a football player than a tennis man although he did play tennis with his friend, Emile Lesieur. Roland Garros is mainly known for his bravery as an airpilot during the first world war. When the tennis stadium was built so that the Coupe Davis could take place in Paris in 1927, Emile Lesieur, who was then president of Le stade français, insisted that the stadium should be named Roland Garros in memory of the very brave airpilot of the first world war. Roland Garros was killed in October 1918 during a fight above the Ardennes.
Here is some tennis vocabulary :
A as in 30A: equality of points during a game such as 30-30
As: ace
Juge de chaise ou arbitre de chaise: main umpire who sits on a raised chair.
Juge de ligne: line judge
Juge de filet: net judge
Balle de match: match point
Balle de set ou de manche: set point
Break: same as in English
Double faute: double fault
Faute: out
Terre battue: clay court
Tie-break ou jeu décisif
Let ou filet
Rallye: same as in English
We have been busy organizing our intensive French courses and now, nearly all the classes in Bristol are full but do consider joining our regular French lessons in September. For more info...
Sunday, 3 June 2012
Did you know that it is Mother's day in France today?
La fête des mères is a tradition that goes back to the ancient Greeks and appeared in England in the 15th century when it was called Mothering Sunday, it became official in the UK in 1914.
It started being mentioned in France in the early 20th century but officially, in 1929, and was called: la journée des mères. Under le régime de Vichy, in 1941, le maréchal Pétain asked for it to be put in the calendar ( le calendrier) and became la fête des mères. It became a law in 1950 and it was decided it would take place on the last Sunday in May unless it coincided with Whitsun ( la Pentecôte) in which case it would be a week later. This is exactly what has happened this year so today: dimanche 3 juin, c'est la fête des mères!
Of course, children make cards and presents at school and give them to their mothers, here is an example:
If you would like to find out more about France, think of joining one of our French tuition classes in Bristol or in Bath. For more info...
It started being mentioned in France in the early 20th century but officially, in 1929, and was called: la journée des mères. Under le régime de Vichy, in 1941, le maréchal Pétain asked for it to be put in the calendar ( le calendrier) and became la fête des mères. It became a law in 1950 and it was decided it would take place on the last Sunday in May unless it coincided with Whitsun ( la Pentecôte) in which case it would be a week later. This is exactly what has happened this year so today: dimanche 3 juin, c'est la fête des mères!
Of course, children make cards and presents at school and give them to their mothers, here is an example:
If you would like to find out more about France, think of joining one of our French tuition classes in Bristol or in Bath. For more info...
Sunday, 27 May 2012
Did you know that Le Festival de Cannes chose the best film of the year this evening?
The jury ( le jury) du Festival de Cannes chose Michael Haneke' s latest film, Amour to receive La Palme d'Or.
The main actors of Amour are French: Jean-Louis Trintignant and Emmanuelle Riva, which is rather nice as no French film and no French actors were rewarded this year.
Le Festival de Cannes which was called until 2002 Le Festival International du Film drew, yet again, lots of stars who climbed the famous stairs ( les marches ) on the red carpet ( le tapis rouge).
The festival started in 1946 and La Palme d'Or was introduced in 1955. The design is taken from Cannes coat of arms ( les armoiries )
and is also a reminder of the palm trees ( les palmiers sur la Croisette ) where all the starlets ( les starlettes ) congregate in the hope of finding fame!
Watching and discussing films are very popular activities among students taking French tuition with Alliance Française de Bristol et de Bath.
If you are interested in films, come to us! For more info...
The main actors of Amour are French: Jean-Louis Trintignant and Emmanuelle Riva, which is rather nice as no French film and no French actors were rewarded this year.
Le Festival de Cannes which was called until 2002 Le Festival International du Film drew, yet again, lots of stars who climbed the famous stairs ( les marches ) on the red carpet ( le tapis rouge).
The festival started in 1946 and La Palme d'Or was introduced in 1955. The design is taken from Cannes coat of arms ( les armoiries )
and is also a reminder of the palm trees ( les palmiers sur la Croisette ) where all the starlets ( les starlettes ) congregate in the hope of finding fame!
Watching and discussing films are very popular activities among students taking French tuition with Alliance Française de Bristol et de Bath.
If you are interested in films, come to us! For more info...
Sunday, 20 May 2012
Did you know that Alliance Française de Bristol is organizing a guided walk of Bristol, in French?
Anne, French tutor and qualified guide, is taking a group of students having French tuition with Alliance Française around Bristol on 24th May.
La visite guidée will be entirely in French and will enable students to discover Bristol through its architecture, its culture, its people and its street art.
It is appropriate to choose a poem written by one of our students on Bristol. Marion joined Gwen's French class after Christmas with very little French. This is what she was able to write in April:
Dans Bristol
Dans Bristol il y a une colline
Dans cette colline il y a une rue
Dans cette rue il y a une maison
Dans cette maison il y a un couloir
Dans ce couloir il y a un escalier
Dans cet escalier il y a une chambre
Dans cette chambre il y a un lit
Dans ce lit il y a un père
Dans ce père il y a une bouche
Dans cette bouche il y a un ronflement
Le ronflement (comme un rouleau compresseur) renversa le père
( et la mère
et les enfants)
Le père ( et sa bouche) renversa le lit
Le lit renversa l'escalier
( avec la mère et les enfants)
L’escalier renversa le couloir
Le couloir renversa la maison
La maison renversa la rue
La rue renversa la colline
La Famille de Berker se trouva dans Bristol centre pour le petit déjeuner
Marion
If you would like to find out more about the guided walk ( there are a couple of places left) go to our website. For more info...
Sunday, 13 May 2012
A liitle poem written by a student in one of the French classes in Bristol:
Our French teacher, Gwen, has a group of students who hardly had any French when they started in the Autumn, here is a poem written in March by Klaudia:
Sous la maison il y a un petit appartement.
Dans le petit appartement il y a un escalier.
Sous l'escalier il y a une piece.
Dans la piece il y a un petit chat.
Dans le petit chat il y a une souris.
Dans la souris il y an une petite graine.
La petite graine dort dans la souris.
La souris dort dans le petit chat.
Le petit chat dort dans la piece.
La piece dort sous l'escalier.
L'escalier dort dans le petit appartement.
Le petit appartement dort sous la maison.
Et tout va bien.
Our French intensive courses will be starting in June for Alliance Française de Bristol only, not Bath. Enrolment is on Thursday, 17th May or on another date to suit you. Contact us soon if you wish to join, for more info...
Sous la maison il y a un petit appartement.
Dans le petit appartement il y a un escalier.
Sous l'escalier il y a une piece.
Dans la piece il y a un petit chat.
Dans le petit chat il y a une souris.
Dans la souris il y an une petite graine.
La petite graine dort dans la souris.
La souris dort dans le petit chat.
Le petit chat dort dans la piece.
La piece dort sous l'escalier.
L'escalier dort dans le petit appartement.
Le petit appartement dort sous la maison.
Et tout va bien.
Our French intensive courses will be starting in June for Alliance Française de Bristol only, not Bath. Enrolment is on Thursday, 17th May or on another date to suit you. Contact us soon if you wish to join, for more info...
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)