GCSE English Language 2.0 – Musicals – Paper 2

Section A – Reading

Read Text 1 (fiction) below and then answer Questions 1–2.

This extract is from the novel The Song of the Lark (1915) by Willa Cather. Thea Kronborg, a young woman from a small town in Colorado, has moved to Chicago to study music. Here, she attends a symphony concert for the first time.

She had been to so few concerts that the great house, the crowd of people, and the lights, all had a stimulating effect. During the first number Thea was so much interested in the orchestra itself, in the men, the instruments, the volume of sound, that she paid little attention to what they were playing. Her excitement impaired her power of listening. She kept saying to herself, ‘Now I must stop this foolishness and listen; I may never hear this again’; but her mind was like a glass that is hard to focus.

She was not ready to listen until the second number, Dvorak’s Symphony in E minor, called on the programme, ‘From the New World.’ The first theme had scarcely been given out when her mind became clear; instant composure fell upon her, and with it came the power of concentration. This was music she could understand, music from the New World indeed! Strange how, as the first movement went on, it brought back to her that high tableland above Laramie; the grass-grown wagon trails, the far-away peaks of the snowy range, the wind and the eagles. When the first movement ended, Thea’s hands and feet were cold as ice. She was too much excited to know anything except that she wanted something desperately, and when the English horns gave out the theme of the Largo¹, she knew that what she wanted was exactly that.

Glossary

Largo¹ – a slow, dignified movement in a piece of music

Read Text 2 (non‑fiction) below and answer Questions 3–4.

This is an edited extract from My Life (1927) by Isadora Duncan, an American dancer who became a pioneer of modern dance. Here, she reflects on her art and recalls how she began dancing and teaching as a young child in San Francisco.

My Art is just an effort to express the truth of my Being in gesture and movement. It has taken me long years to find even one absolutely true movement. From the first I have only danced my life. As a child I danced the spontaneous joy of growing things. As an adolescent, I danced with joy turning to apprehension of the first realisation of tragic undercurrents; apprehension of the pitiless brutality and crushing progress of life.

When I was about six years old, my mother came home one day and found that I had collected half a dozen babies of the neighbourhood—all of them too young to walk—and had them sitting before me on the floor while I was teaching them to wave their arms. When she asked the explanation of this, I informed her that it was my school of the dance. She was amused, and placing herself at the piano, she began to play for me.

This school continued and became very popular. I followed my fantasy and improvised, teaching any pretty thing that came into my head. In the evenings my mother played to us while I composed dances. A dear old lady friend who came to spend the evening with us very often said I reminded her of Fanny Elssler¹. ‘Isadora will be a second Fanny Elssler,’ she would say, and this incited me to ambitious dreams.

Glossary

Fanny Elssler¹ – a famous Austrian ballet dancer of the 19th century

SECTION A – Reading

You should spend about 1 hour 10 minutes on this section.

Read Text 1 and answer Questions 1–2.

Q1. From paragraph 1, identify one word or phrase that shows Thea is overwhelmed by the concert experience. (1 mark)

Q2. Read this extract.

The first theme had scarcely been given out when her mind became clear; instant composure fell upon her, and with it came the power of concentration. This was music she could understand, music from the New World indeed! Strange how, as the first movement went on, it brought back to her that high tableland above Laramie; the grass-grown wagon trails, the far-away peaks of the snowy range, the wind and the eagles. When the first movement ended, Thea’s hands and feet were cold as ice. She was too much excited to know anything except that she wanted something desperately, and when the English horns gave out the theme of the Largo, she knew that what she wanted was exactly that.

In the extract, how does the writer use language to show the power of music over Thea? Use examples from the extract and relevant subject terminology. (6 marks)

Read Text 2 in the Source Booklet provided and answer Questions 3–4.

Q3. Read this extract.

When I was about six years old, my mother came home one day and found that I had collected half a dozen babies of the neighbourhood—all of them too young to walk—and had them sitting before me on the floor while I was teaching them to wave their arms. When she asked the explanation of this, I informed her that it was my school of the dance. She was amused, and placing herself at the piano, she began to play for me. This school continued and became very popular.

From the extract, identify one thing that shows Duncan’s mother supported her dancing. (1 mark)

Q4. The writer reflects on how dance shaped her life from childhood. How does the writer try to interest and engage the reader? You should include:

• the writer’s use of language
• the writer’s use of structure
• the effect on the reader.

Use examples from the whole text and relevant subject terminology. (10 marks)

Questions 5–6 are on both Text 1 and Text 2.

Remember to refer to both texts in your answers.

Q5. Text 1 and Text 2 both show people being deeply affected by the experience of music and performance. The experiences are different, but they share similarities. Write a summary giving three separate ways the experiences are similar. Support each separate similarity with evidence from both texts. (6 marks)

Q6. Compare the writers’ ideas and perspectives about the power of the performing arts. You should compare:

• the main ideas
• the points of view
• the presentation of these ideas and views.

Use examples from both texts to support your comparison. (16 marks)

SECTION B – Writing

Answer ONE question in this section. You should spend about 45 minutes on this section.

EITHER

Q7. Write an imaginative piece that starts with the line: ‘The curtain rose and the silence was unlike any they had known.’

*Your response will be marked for the accurate and appropriate use of vocabulary, spelling, punctuation and grammar. (40 marks)

OR

Q8. Write about a time when you, or someone you know, was completely captivated by a performance. Your response could be real or imagined.

*Your response will be marked for the accurate and appropriate use of vocabulary, spelling, punctuation and grammar. (40 marks)

Sources:

Text One: Willa Cather, The Song of the Lark (Houghton Mifflin, 1915). Public-domain text via Project Gutenberg.

Text Two: Isadora Duncan, My Life (Horace Liveright, 1927). Public-domain text via Project Gutenberg Canada.