Clubbing
статья по английскому языку по теме

                              Clubbing as leisure time

 Before you read about club culture in Britain, try to guess the answers to the questions below.

 TRUE OR FALSE?

 * You must be eighteen to go to a nightclub in Britain.  

* You should drink a lot of water when you are dancing

* It is a good idea to order a taxi to take you home. Going to nightclubs, or 'clubbing' as it is called, is very popular in Britain. From the age of about 15 young people like to go clubbing at the weekend. Usually friends meet in the evening and go to a pub or a cafe, or just sit at home and chat. Then, late in the evening after 10pm they travel to the centre of the town and wait in a queue outside the nightclub. The clubs are usually special buildings with a big space inside for dancing. There is a bar of course, and often a special room with chairs and sofas where it is less noisy. This is for people who are tired of dancing. They can rest here for a while. Some clubs only play one kind of music, but most have different music on different nights. If you want to go to a club you need to know what kind of 'night' the club is offering. For example, if you like 'Hip-Hop' then you probably don't want to go to a 'Disco' night.

 Clubbing Confusion

Do you know the difference between 'House' and 'Garage'? What does the 'Acid' in 'Acid Jazz' mean? There are so many different types of dance music that it can sometimes be difficult to understand what you are dancing to! Here are some simple definitions of popular styles.

House - This is the most popular form of dance music. It can have vocals, but the most characteristic element of House is a fast beat (110 beats per minute plus) and keyboards and synthesizers. House is also known as 'Techno'.

Garage - This music started in a New York club called 'Paradise Garage'. It is a dance version of disco with melodies, lots of vocals, but a fast, high energy beat.

Acid Jazz - This is just a mixture of modern hip-hop beats and old jazz records mixed together.

Ambient - this form of music is characterized by 'found sounds'. For example a DJ might use a recording of running water or an old recording of a politician's speech. These short recordings are called samples.

Trip-hop - This is a mixture of Hip-Hop and Dance music. It has fewer lyrics than Hip-Hop and more of an electronic sound.

The magazine “Speak Out” went to a club in Brighton, a town famous for its clubbing culture. There they met Helen, a fifteen-year-old girl who goes clubbing with her three friends every Friday.

SO Helen, why do you come to this club?

Helen This club is called 'The Escape'. I come here because on Fridays they have a 'Dance Night'. We are into hardcore dance music. On Saturdays it is a completely different scene: Eighties Pop and Seventies stuff. Sometimes my brother, who is 26, comes here on a Saturday.

SO So fans of different music come on different nights?        

Helen Yes, that's right.

SO What do you do before you go out on a Friday?

Helen We meet at my parents' house and get ready. You need to dress up in a special outfit for a proper dance night. You can't just come to the club in jeans and a t-shirt. People change their hairstyle too.

SO You 're wearing a long brightly-coloured dress, and your male friend is wearing white trousers and a kind of vest. Don't you normally wear these clothes, then?

Helen (laughs) At school we have a uniform! And at home I just wear jeans. But when you go clubbing you need a special outfit. And it's very hot here so you should wear light clothes that are easy to dance in.

SO But where is your coat? It is cold outside.

Helen (laughs again) Unfortunately, there isn't a cloakroom here so it's better not to bring a coat. It's a good idea to come to the club in a taxi. We all come together from my house and share the fare. We also order a taxi to take us home at 3 a.m. when the club closes. It's very expensive, but again, we share the cost. It's part of the clubbing culture. You can't turn up in a heavy coat!

SO What kind of music are you dancing to now?

Helen This is Trip-hop. It's got a melody, and some singing. But the most important thing is the heavy bass-beat. You have to move a lot, use a lot of energy dancing. It's great fun. You mustn't think too much about other people around you. You kind of dance on your own, in your own personal space and feel the music.

SO But don 't you get tired?

Helen In a minute we'll go to the chill-out room and sit down for a while. It's less noisy and smoky there. You shouldn't dance there, it's a room for

'chilling out': relaxing. It's also important to drink a lot of water during the night.

SO I thought people drank alcohol when they went

clubbing.

Helen Well, I'm 15, and so I can't drink. The legal age is 18. If you want beer or a cocktail, the barman must check your identification. You have to prove

you are old enough to drink. But anyway, you shouldn't drink when you dance. You get tired and dehydrated. The point of dance music is to dance, not to drink!

SO You 're right, I can't see anyone drinking here. And everyone is very young.

Helen This is an 'under-eighteens' night. Normally you must be eighteen to get into a club. At the door you probably noticed a bouncer. On a normal night he checks the identification of all the clubbers as they enter the club. You need to show a card with a photograph, like a driver's license. Otherwise you won't be allowed in. The bouncer also collects the cover-charge from the clubbers. Tonight the charge is five pounds. Usually I spend about forty pounds on a night out, including the taxi home.

SO Well it is 2 a.m. already and I am very tired. I think I should go home and sleep. Happy clubbing!