Dave's ESL Cafe's Student Discussion Forums

[aya0109]

I want to study English!
So I will listening song.
So please tell me that what song is best for studying English.

[dicivi]

You have posed a very tough question. Many songs are sung by people with regional accents, words are frequently slurred to make them fit the melody, the lyrics are often full of slang and colloquialisms and if that wasn't bad enough words are sometimes distorted to make a rhyme. I truly believe that a student of English should not use music as a learning tool.

I would advise looking for video documentaries on the internet. There are many provided by Nova and lots by the BBC. The English here is usually of a high standard and seeing the visual effects makes it easier for the viewer to understand the dialogue.
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[Lorikeet]

I think using songs to learn English is another way to enjoy the language, but I wouldn't recommend it as the only thing to do for the reasons given by dicivi. However, I remember singing songs in all the languages I learned. It was fun and it helped. I'd suggest getting some older songs, where you can understand the words! Also, some songs will have the words on the Internet, so you can use that to help too. Some of the more popular songs nowadays are more difficult to understand, and contain a lot of words you might not want to use in a work or school situation. Then again, I'm old, so I don't care for the new stuff too much

[ad-miral]

I would recommend "yesterday" from Beatles because it's easy to sing and makes fun if you play it with the guitar.
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[dicivi]

Even though I don't listen to older ballads anymore I think I would agree with Lorikeet - perhaps you should listen to some music like "Smile" by Tony Bennett, "My Way" by Frank Sinatra and "Moon River" by Barbra Streisand. These artist have good diction and you can catch almost every word. You can find these all on Youtube.

As for the Beatles - I love their music but it's a bit abstract at times. I feel that passages like "...wearing a face in a jar by the door" OR "She is well acquainted with the touch of the velvet hand - like a lizard on a window pane" could be a bit confusing. I'm still trying to sort some of it out!
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"What one values in serving others is ability" Lao Tzu
Tutoring via Skype and easy to navigate web pages.

[Jenniferdu521]

yeah
Learn to sing English song might be a assistant way to learn English, but not the only way.
I like singsing, so I decide to learn some English songs, Although I know they must be very difficult.
Yesterday, I heard a song named "any man of mine" I like it very much and try to learn it.
Hope I can do it!

[Demodi]