Test 1 Key
PART 1
Question 1
Woman:
Question 2
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Man:
‘Woman:
You'll hear people talking in eight different situations. For questions 1 to 8,
choose the best answer (A, B or C).
You hear a woman talking on the radio about an actor.
{pause}
tone
Like many actors, he always seems to be in the news for one reason or
another. | know celebrities can be given a tough time, but he seems to get
off relatively ightly. He's in loads of movies these days - and so he should
be. His performances were fairly patchy when he was starting out, in my
opinion, but that's never the case these days. And the signs are he'll continue
to develop, especially now he's getting to play lead roles in popular theatre
productions, too. if you ever get the chance to see him on stage, you won't
be disappointed. Otherwise, catch him at a cinema near you!
pause]
one
[The recording is repeated.]
[pause]
You hear a hairstylist talking about ber career.
[pause]
tone
You initially started off doing the hair of models in the fashion industry. What
made you move to TV?
‘The fashion industry turned me off quite a bit actually. | didn’t like working
with people who had such a high opinion of themselves. My attitude is that
you should treat everyone the same and | found | was constantly having to
bite my tongue because of the way | was treated there. The TV's different:
much more a case of being respected for what you can offer regardless of
your status ... and that suits me. The TV people acknowledge you as a fellow
professional and they're much more down-to-earth.
[pause]
tone
[The recording is repeated.]
[pause]Question 3
Man:
Question 4
Woman:
Man:
Woman:
Man:
Woman:
Man:
Woman:
Man:
Test 1 Key
You hear a comedian called Geoff Knight talking on the radio about his
profession.
[pause]
tone
When I'm doing my comedy act, at theatres or clubs or on TY, Ill often get
my ideas from keeping my ears close to the ground. | try to pick up on all the
strange and humorous everyday stuff, sometimes even boring ... that you get
in life ... and | build it into my act. Obviously | do also get ideas from listening
to other comedians too. | like to think that three generations of one family
can sit at my show and know they won't feel threatened, because I'm not
rude. Even in big arenas people feel like ’m talking to them individually. It's a
comfort thing for them.
Ipause}
tone
(The recording is repeated.]
[pause]
You hear a conversation between a customer and a coffee shop employee.
{pause}
tone
Excuse me. Could someone come over and clear one of the tables in the
window please?
Oh yes. I'm sorry. We've just had a really busy lunch break and, between you
and me, my colleague's new and hasn't really got the hang of things yet.
Yes, you look as if you've been really busy.
We should be able to get straight now it's a bit quieter. I'll get my colleague to
come and clear your table right away.
Hmmm ... It certainly needs it!
Anyway, what can I get you? Coffee and cake or ...
V'I just have coffee please.
And I'll get @ cloth to wipe the table.
[pause]
tone
[The recording is repeated.]
[pause]
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Question 5
Woman:
Man:
Woman:
Man:
Woman:
Man:
Woman:
Man:
Question 6
124
Man:
You hear a man telling a friend about an art exhibition.
[pause]
tone
Hi Mark, how did you like the exhibition?
It was alright, actually. I've got the catalogue here. Would you like to have a
look?
| don't usually bother with them, personally. They've always felt ike a bit of a
waste of money.
| know what you mean, but somebody lent me this one.
So ... what's the gallery like?
Really cool, using natural light to show off the paintings ~ saves energy too,
you know ...
| expect it was crowded.
Well, 'd expected there to be masses of people, so | wouldn't be able to see
anything. In fact, | nearly had the place to myself.
pause}
tone
(The recording is repeated.)
pause]
You overbear a man ringing a sports shop.
[pause]
tone
Hello, Colin Foggerty here. | was in the shop last week, and bought a pair
of the new Comfort football boots. | asked about a discount I'd heard about
for members of Kirkley Rangers football club, which I'm a member of.
‘The assistant was by herself and said she didn’t know anything about it. |
then checked on the football club website, and it confirms what | thought.
| emailed you at the shop this morning and was told that the shop gives
special discounts for official club purchases, but I'm still not sure whether
the discount is applicable to ordinary club members like me. So | thought I'd
better ring and sort it all out.
[pause]
tone
[Che recording is repeated.)
[pause}Question 8
Man:
Woman:
Man:
Woman:
Man:
Woman:
Man:
Test 1 Key
You hear a man telling a friend about his work.
[pause]
tone
‘So you've been at the company for five years, how do you feel its going?
‘Well, the boss sees me as someone who'll go far but | don’t really know if
I want to. I mean I've seen what happened to Joe who was promoted last
year to sales manager. At the time, | thought ‘lucky him’, but he isn’t enjoying
it, The working environment isn’t as friendly and supportive as it was when
I first joined ~ mainly because of all the targets we've been set. Sad that
management feels the need to play with what was a winning formula. Still,
let's see what the future brings.
[pause]
tone
{The recording is repeated.]
pause]
You hear two people talking about a country walk they're doing.
[pause]
tone
Are you feeling tired?
No, I'm fine, just stopping to look at the scenery. It's beautiful, isn't it?
Fabulous, but keep moving it's too cold to stand still.
Well, we knew that when we set off. The forecasts better for tomorrow. | did
say we should wait.
Sorry, | know, but let’s carry on because there’s only another five kilometres to
go. Right or left here?
Left, | think, according to the map. Five kilometres you said? It'll be just about
dark when we get to the end.
If we do get there! I'm only joking!
[pause]
tone
[The recording is repeated.)
[pause]
That's the end of Part One.
Now turn to Part Two.
[pause]
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PART 2
126
You'll hear a presentation given by a university student called Megan
Rowwlings about a forest survival course she went on in Australia, For
questions 9 to 18, complete the sentences with a word or short phrase.
You now have forty-five seconds to look at Part Tivo.
[pause]
tone
Hi, my name's Megan and I’m going to tell you about a forest survival course
in Australia. So how did | come to do a course like that? Well, 'd been
thinking about what to do in my summer holiday and my professor suggested
I should do some teaching at a summer camp he was running, but | wanted
to get away from academic stuff for a while. Then my father found the website
about survival courses while looking for something to interest my brother. And
that was it!
‘The course leader, John, was a very experienced survival expert with an
impressive range of skills. | can’t tell you how absolutely terrifying the
experience of being in the forest was at times but John’s humour eased the
tension, for which | was really grateful. He also knew exactly when to offer
support and when to leave us to it.
Chris was his assistant, and he brought different qualities to the group. He
was never short of enthusiasm, and was particularly keen on insects ~ he told
us the name of every one we came across in the forest. He also knew all the
facts about plants so that over the five days, we got to know what was safe
to eat while we were there and what we had to avoid. That information proved
really valuable.
‘There were ten of us on the course and we made a great team. | thought I'd
struggle with the tasks that made big physical demands because of my size,
but I soon learnt that mental toughness was equally important. And in fact
that turned out to be something | didn’t have a problem with.
John drilled into us the importance of staying safe at all times. In that respect,
possessing sufficient seff-awareness is key ... knowing our own capabilities
and limitations could save our lives. All this holds back panic, which is often a
greater danger thar the situations we find ouiselves in,
‘We'd all been equipped with a mini survival kit which contained things like
a first aid kit and water sterilisation tablets, and of course we'd all brought
other things as well, including some fancy gadgets which were never used
... but nobody else had thought about plastic bags to keep stuff dry in our
rucksacks. | passed mine around and they were much appreciated.
Our first task was to make tools that we could use. For example, did you
know you can actually make a spear from a branch if t's strong enough? We
were shown how to make a knife out of a stone that was lying on the forest
floor. It took me quite a long time to make one but it was great for all sorts of
tasks.Test 1 Key
The next thing was to find a water source. We found a small stream and we
followed that some distance to where it finally joined a river. John told us that
because the water at that point was quite fast-flowing, it was drinkable as
long as we boiled it. There was also a small lake nearby but we were advised
not to use that because of the wild animals that were often there.
Our first meal in the forest was what we collected ourselves, such as berries.
Then, after all that walking and looking for food, we were ready for a good
night’s sleep. | didn’t find making a shelter too problematic actually, which
was just as well because if lighting a fire without matches had been left to me,
then we'd have been shivering all night!
The thing that | found most interesting about the course was that many of the
skills | use as a student at university are invaluable for survival too. Of course,
you'd expect team-building to be useful. But what | hadn't expected was that
being good at time management would also be an advantage.
{pause]
Now you'll hear Part Two again.
tone
[The recording is repeated.]
pause]
‘That's the end of Part Two.
Now turn to Part Three.
pause]
127Test 1 Key
PART 3 You'll hear five short extracts in which people talk about a problem they
had in their first few weeks in a new job. For questions 19 to 23, choose
what problem (A to H) each speaker says they had. Use the letters only once.
‘There are three extra letters which you do not need to use.
You now have thirty seconds to look at Part Three.
(pause)
tone
Speaker 1
Well! work for an IT company and | love it because it’s really stimulating. |
work hard but the rewards are there. At the same time it’s quite laid back
~at least where the dress code is concerned anyway. My first few weeks
were great. My friend works in the adjoining building so we often had lunch
together. The problem was, she had a longer lunch break than me and |
started wandering back a few minutes over the hour. | didn’t think anyone
would notice but my colleagues soon had a quiet word with me ~ in the nicest
possible way of course! | don't do that anymore,
(pause)
Speaker 2
My first job was for a finance company. I'd beaten off quite a few candidates
to get the job and | was riding high. I'd bought a new suit and briefcase and
walked in there on the first day thinking ‘This is it. Now I’m going to show
‘them what I'm made of.’ | thought | knew it all. 'd correct colleagues if they
said something wrong and | was always talking about what I'd learnt at
university. Anyway, in my fourth week the boss called me in and told me I'd
done something that had lost the company quite a lot of money. I learnt a lot
that day.
{pause}
Speaker 3
I worked for a small company locally. it was my first job back after maternity
leave and | was really glad to be back at work. 1 got on well with my
colleagues and the work was fine, but | really didn’t like the boss. Anyway,
I got quite friendly in the first few weeks with the receptionist, She was a
nice young girl - very chatty, She asked me how | was getting on and | said |
really liked the job and everything, but not the boss. Stupid | know. Anyway, it~
turns out that the receptionist was the boss's niece! Small world. | should've
noticed their surnames were the same!
[pause]
128Test 1 Key
Speaker 4
Well, | didn't really need the job in the supermarket. You know, I was retired
and just wanted something to fil the time and the extra money was useful.
'd been a manager for an engineering company in the past so | knew how
things worked. | did my job. | was always on time, But | resented being told to
do things that weren’t in my job description, and | didn’t think that was fair. |
didn’t say anything but | think they knew I wasn’t happy. In the end, | decided
| didn’t fit in. On reflection, | think retirement suits me better.
[pause]
Speaker 5
I've never been very confident so | was really surprised when | was offered a
job in a very posh law company. | decided to really show them that | was up
to doing the job, but I went a bit too far — volunteering to do everything, taking
clients’ names and details home to memorise so | could greet them by name
when they came in and so on. | overdid it actually because | wasn't being
myself. After a few weeks, my colleagues told me to relax and that | was
doing fine as | was. | didn’t need to prove anything, I love my job now.
[pause]
Now you'll bear Part Three again.
tone
[The recording is repeated.]
[pause]
That's the end of Part Three.
Now turn to Part Four.
[pause]
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1 Key
PART 4
130
Interviewer:
Karen:
Interviewer:
Karen:
Interviewer:
Karen:
Interviewer:
Karen:
Interviewer:
You'll hear an interview with an international concert pianist called Karen
Hong. For questions 24 to 30, choose the best answer (A, B or C).
You now have one minute to look at Part Four,
[pause]
tone
‘My guest today is the international concert pianist, Karen Hong. Welcome
Karen, 'm sure you're busy with your piano practice!
Don’t apologise! But you're right - | do an average of six hours’ practice a
day. People think when you're a performer, you just know the pieces of music
by heart and don’t need to practise, but this isn’t true! For one thing, you
might be performing a piece for the first time. For another, even pieces you
know well stil need maintenance and repair work on them. Also, every pianist
at whatever level needs to do their drills and finger exercises as a warm-up.
| remember you saying before that your parents are both very dynamic,
motivated people.
Yes absolutely. My mother would repeat to me ‘You have this opportunity to
develop your talent. Neither your father nor | had this. Don’t waste it.’ She
made me do three hours’ practice a day even before I was allowed out with
my friends. She's never cared about the fame or fortune aspect of my career.
To this day, she'll still tell me if she thinks | haven't done enough practice
before a concert. Dad's different ~ he can’t hide his delight at my success.
You won a major competition for young musicians, and for a couple of years
you seemed to be forever in the limelight.
I got numerous offers to do advertising ... even modelling! When you're
thrown into all that, it's really easy to become disorientated and forget what
brought you to everyone's attention in the first place. | reached a point where
I didn't believe all the hype about me. | kept asking myself what my celebrity
was really based on. | was doing more than 100 concerts a year so { didn't
have nearly enough time to rehearse propery. I'd walk onto a stage and feel |
was insulting my own ability.
‘So you decided to take some time off, | believe?
‘Yes, | felt some of the support | needed wasn't necessarily there within
the profession. It’s an extremely cut-throat business, so | guess it’s
understandable. So yes, | turned my back on that world for two months
= gave no performances. | changed my agent, | found two new teachers
in China, and | made sure I got back to practising with other pianists as
opposed to by myself.
At the time when you were performing a lot on TV, the media seemed to be
using you to glamorise classical music.Karen:
Interviewer:
Karen:
Interviewer:
Karen:
Test 1 Key
Yes the marketing people tried to project me as a popular classical babe ...
you know trying to make classical music more youthful and appealing. And
while [ rejected all the glamour side of that, the purely musical aspect of it did
still appeal to me. | love the idea of building a bridge between two worlds.
ve played Bach at a televised rock concert in Russia! As long as | can play a
piece of music that I think is good, I'm up for playing it anywhere.
So what do you feel about pop music?
| don’t really have strong opinions about it — ! just think it's a pity that in some
countries there's this commercial culture attached to it that is drummed into
kids’ brains every day, and that this makes them see classical music as elitist
and remote when subsequently they get to be teenagers. But to a five-year-
old child, say, music is music. It just sounds how it should. They don't have
any preconceptions about it.
| understand you've done a lot of work with young school children.
Yes, classical music can really help children to become happy, creative
people. But when | go into schools | don’t just say nice encouraging things
to the children ... the musicians ... when they don’t deserve it. | went into
one school regularly to help out with music lessons. And after a while | really
started to emphasise to them the value of hard work. As a result the school
now has nine of its students playing with the National Youth Orchestra.
[pause]
Now you'll hear Part Four again.
tone
[The recording is repeated.]
[pause]
That's the end of Part Four.
There will now be a pause of five minutes for you to copy your answers
onto the separate answer sheet. Be sure to follow the numbering of all
the questions. I'll remind you when there is one minute left so that you're
sure to finish in time.
[Teacher, pause the recording here for five minutes. Remind students when
they have one minute left.]
That's the end of the test. Please stop now. Your supervisor will now collect
all the question papers and answer sheets.
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