Music Festivals A With a partner, list all the things that can go wrong at a music festival. Have you ever experienced any of these problems? B You are about to read an article about a music festival in the UK which has had a lot of problems. The following words are all used in the article. What do you think happened? 1. Revellers 2. Strikes 3. Tailbacks 4. Severe floods 5. Refunds 6. Turned away at the gates 7. Combat the crisis 8. Appalling 9. Suspend all services 10. Strive 11. A complete farce 12. Taken into police custody C Read the article and check your ideas. What went wrong? D The final line of the article says the local council has promised a full review into the situation Get into groups of 4. You have all been summoned to talk to the local council. Together you must decide: 1. Who is to blame for this mess? (And why are you not to blame?) 2. How should they be punished for it? 3. What can be done in the future to make sure this never happens again? Your teacher will give you role-playing cards. You will have a few minutes to prepare so use this time to ask for any vocabulary you might need.
Last Updated: Tuesday, 10 July 2012, 17:53 GMT 18:53 UK Revellers furious over festival chaos Music lovers are in uproar after bad weather and train strikes caused 15 kilometre tail-backs on the first day of the T in the Park music festival. The event, held in Balado near Kinross, was expected to attract 80,000 fans a day. However, many fans were turned away at the gates after severe rains caused the festival s only car park to flood early in the day. Many are now demanding refunds, despite the organisers promising to extend the festival for an extra day to combat the crisis. 09 Jul 12 09 Jul 12 06 Jul 12 03 Jul 12 25 Jun 12 A recent strike by the Scottish rail union, which has seen all trains in the region suspended since 6 July in a row over bonus payments, hasn t helped the situation. Festival organisers are describing the union s timing as appalling. We have fans coming here from all over the world and right now they simply can t get to us, said a spokesperson for the event. As always, we have strived to put on the best festival that we can. This festival has been held for the last 10 years and we ve never had any problems before. The timing is unfortunate, agreed a representative of the Scottish rail union. However, details of the strike have been available for many months on our official website. If fans are getting caught out, they only have themselves to blame. I m absolutely furious, said one music fan. First the trains are down and now we can t even drive to the event because of all the flooding! It s a complete farce! I d laugh if it wasn t so depressing, but I paid good money for this event! Many fans have turned to violence to show their displeasure. At least 166 people were arrested on the first day of the festival, 103 more than last year. Of these, 70 were taken into custody. It is unfortunate that fans are reacting this way, said Chief Superintendant Matt Hamilton, who is responsible for policing the event. If this carries on much longer, we will have to consider whether we should allow a festival next year at all. The local council has promised a full review into the situation.
You are one of the organisers You worked very hard to make sure this music festival is the best it could be. This has been the case for 11 years and there has never been a problem before. You are not God. There is nothing you can do about the weather. It was extremely generous of you to extend the festival by an extra day as this cost you over 7 million. In your opinion, the fault lies with the Railway Union. If their trains were running, fans wouldn t be having problems getting to you. Also, the fan s behaviour is completely unacceptable. If they want to complain, fine, but there are proper ways to do it. You are a music fan You are pissed off. You have just spent five hours stuck in a traffic jam in the pouring rain only to be turned away at the gates because the festival s carpark has flooded. You tried getting to the festival by train but the strike action meant that all trains were cancelled. You tried to get a refund but the organisers refused to give you one, instead saying the festival would run an extra day. This is no good: you have to go to work on Monday! This was supposed to be a great weekend but it s been ruined by bad organisation! You work for the Scottish Railway Union You don t really care about music and, to be honest, you re shocked that people are blaming you for the festival s problems. Your union has gone on strike to get better pay and working conditions for thousands of hard-working men and women. The problems of a music festival are tiny compared to that. These strike plans were clearly stated well ahead of time on your official website. In your opinion both the fans and the organisers are to blame for not being better organised. You work for the local council The T in the Park music festival is supposed to bring in lots of money and tourism to your area. Instead, it has given you a 23 million clean-up bill and over 100 people in prison. You have called representatives from the organisers, the railway union and the fans together to try to find out: 1. Who is responsible for this mess? 2. How should they be punished? 3. What can be done in the future to avoid these problems repeating?
Important Announcement about the T in the Park Festival Here at T in the Park, we are always striving to deliver the very best music to you in the very best possible way. For the last 11 years, we have been based at Melross farm at Balado near Kinross and I m sure you ll agree, we ve had some great times there. However, following the problems at last year s event, it has been decided that starting from this year, T in the Park will be held in a completely new venue: the stadium of Scottish football club Celtic FC! We are very excited to announce this change, which not only enables us to take advantage of the security and transport facilities in place at this historic club, but also gives us an increased capacity, from 70,000 in previous years to almost 100,000 now. Fans concerned about bad weather plaguing the event like last year needn t worry either. Whereas previous venues were completely exposed to the elements, Celtic s stadium comes with a sliding roof! This is a true first for the UK. All other high profile summer music events use the tried-and-tested open-air format, whereas this will be the UK s first ever stadium-based festival. We are obviously quite nervous about this and hope that you will continue to offer us your support in making this the best event possible. In all other respects, however, T in the Park will continue to follow the traditions of previous years, with all the very best music from the UK and beyond. T in the Park: a familiar name but a totally new concept! Tickets go on sale 8 th April 2013 at 9.00am
E Read the second article. What did the festival organisers decide to do? 1. Is this a good decision, do you think? 2. Will everyone be happy about it? F Look at the extracts below, which have been taken from the text. In each, the new T in the Park is being contrasted with its predecessor a) What is being contrasted each time? b) What word is used in each sentence to contrast one thing with something else? 1. T in the Park: a familiar name but a totally new concept! 2....this change... not only enables us to take advantage of the security and transport facilities already in place at this historic club, but will also ensure an increased capacity. 3. All of the other high profile summer festivals use the tried-and-tested open-air format, whereas this will be the UK s first ever stadium-based festival. 4. However, following the problems at last year s event, it has been decided to move the festival to a completely new venue: the stadium of local football club Celtic FC. 5. Whereas previous venues were completely exposed to the elements, Celtic s stadium comes with a sliding roof! 6. In all other respects, however, T in the Park will continue to follow the traditions of previous years. G Complete these sentences below using but, whereas and however. In some cases more than one answer is possible 1. T in the Park has always been held in open-air venues., this year it will take place in a stadium. 2. T in the Park has always been held in open-air venues this year it will take place in a stadium. 3. T in the Park has always been held in open-air venues, this year it will take place in a stadium. 4. T in the Park has always been held in open-air venues. This year,, it will take place in a stadium. 5. T in the Park has always been held in open-air venues, this year it will take place in a stadium.
H Look back at the sentences in 2. Use but, whereas or however to complete these rules 1. is always followed by a comma. 2. can be used to start a sentence which contains two contrasting ideas, or in the mid-position of a sentence. 3. and can be used to link two contrasting ideas within a sentence or to introduce a contrasting idea at the beginning of a new sentence. 4. can be used after the subject of the second contrasting clause. and cannot be used in this position. I Complete these sentences using but, whereas or however 1. I've never been a big music fan. My brother,, loves it and goes to concerts all the time. 2. I think festivals are a great way of discovering new bands I don't go to them very often because they are very expensive! 3. I know that British music is very popular at the moment., I find it a bit repetitive. 4. going to concerts means you get to see your favourite artist for longer, I think festivals are more fun. 5. The scariest thing I ever did at a concert was go crowd surfing. It was absolutely terrifying I'm glad I did it. 6. I love watching concerts live, I prefer to watch festivals on TV. H/W Write 5 sentences comparing yourself with a friend or family member. Use either but, whereas or however in each sentence 1. 2. 3. 4. 5.