Archive for 'Music'
Les embouteillages! Posted by Elizabeth Schmermund on Jul 20, 2015
Normally I try to focus on writing about the fun things about summer: gardening, going to the beach, and going to music festivals. However, there is one unavoidable (and not-so-fun) fact of summer life in and around large French cities: les embouteillages! Un embouteillage is a traffic jam, and there can be a lot of…
French Songs: Partons Vite Posted by Elizabeth Schmermund on Jul 13, 2015
In my mind, learning French will always be linked with several songs, although one song stands out in particular. That song is Kaolin’s “Partons vite,” which translates as “let’s leave fast.” The reason? It’s catchy, there is just enough repetition to remember the lyrics easily, and the song uses simple words. Kaolin is a band…
La Fête De La Musique – World Music Day in France Posted by John Bauer on Jul 1, 2015
Pendant le moi de juin (During the month of June) there’s a big event that’s worth talking about that’s not mon anniversaire (my birthday) or du gâteau (cake). Every year on June 21 there is a huge party across all of France. C’est la fête de la musique ! Une fête (a celebration/festival) with all…
France’s 2015 Eurovision Submission! Posted by Josh Dougherty on May 21, 2015
On Saturday night, most of Europe will be tuning in to the finale of the 2015 Eurovision Song Contest. If you’re not familiar with this contest, it’s an annual song competition with countries in the European Broadcasting Union participating. This year, for its 60th anniversary, the contest is taking place in Vienna, Austria, because last year’s…
La vie en rose: Expressions with Pink Posted by Josh Dougherty on Apr 9, 2015
This week’s post’s title comes from a very famous song by French songstress Edith Piaf. This song has known international success – I would say in part to its catchy chorus. I chose the title because we’re going to continue with colorful expressions. Last time, we looked at le vert, and this time, we’re going…
Top 5 Francophone Albums Posted by Elizabeth Schmermund on Apr 6, 2015
Listening to music is a great way to learn another language. Why? It is easier to memorize melodies and lyrics together than to just memorize sentences. Something in my brain is triggered when I hear music and, although I wouldn’t say that I have a great memory, I remember every note and lyric of the songs…
Prends garde à toi! “Carmen” by Stromae Posted by Josh Dougherty on Apr 2, 2015
Yesterday, Belgian singer/songwriter Stromae released le clip (the music video) to his new single “Carmen.” Stromae (verlan for maestro) came to major popularity with his song “Alors on danse,” which topped the charts in France and Belgium and peaked at 19 in the USA. A remix of this song with self-proclaimed music god Kanye West…