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Wealthy Nations Consider Canceling Debt of Poor Ones
Written by - Jerilyn Watson
11 June 2005
 

I’m Steve Ember with IN THE NEWS in VOA Special English.  Hopes grew all week for a plan to cancel the debt of some of the world's poorest countries. 

On Friday, Britain's finance minister said he expected the Group of Eight nations to reach an agreement.  Gordon Brown said the debt cancellation plan would be the largest ever.  But Mister Brown also said much remains to be discussed.

The treasury chief commented as Group of Eight finance ministers gathered in London for two days of talks.  G-Eight leaders will meet July sixth through the eighth in Scotland.  Two major issues to discuss are Africa and climate change.

British officials said the plan would cancel the debt of eighteen countries at first.  Officials say the plan could help close to forty countries in all. 

The Group of Eight countries are Britain, Canada, France, Germany, Italy, Japan, the United States and Russia.  They have disagreed about how best to deal with the huge debts owed by poor countries.  Some G-Eight members have proposed not to cancel debts, but to suspend repayments.  Another issue is how to pay for debt cancellation.

British Prime Minister Tony Blair met with President Bush in Washington this week.  They said Britain and the United States were close to agreement on a proposal for the G-Eight.  Mister Bush said it would cancel one hundred percent of the debt of "highly indebted developing countries that are on the path to reform."  He said additional resources provided would protect the financial security of the World Bank and the African Development Bank.

George Bush, Tony Blair at White House news conference Tuesday

Mister Bush said American aid to Africa south of the Sahara is three times higher than it was four years ago.  He said America now provides nearly one-fourth of all aid to that area, and wants to do more in the future.

The President announced more than six hundred seventy million dollars in aid for Africa.  The extra assistance is to help feed an estimated fourteen million people at risk of starving in Ethiopia and Eritrea.  Somalia and Djibouti are also expected to receive extra aid.

But Mister Bush said no developed nation wants to give money to dishonest governments that do not take an interest in their people.  Nor is there interest, he says, in supporting governments that do not have open economies and open markets.  Mister Bush said aid helps.  But, in his words, "many African nations have come to discover that through trade, they can develop a more hopeful society."

Tony Blair wants wealthy countries to increase aid to Africa by one hundred percent over the next five years.  Britain is president of the Group of Eight this year.  The prime minister has made fighting disease and poverty in Africa major goals. 

IN THE NEWS in VOA Special English was written by Jerilyn Watson.  I’m Steve Ember. 

George Gershwin: More of the Life and Music of One of America's Great Songwriters
Written by - Shelley Gollust
11 June 2005
 

(MUSIC)

VOICE ONE:

I’m Barbara Klein.

VOICE TWO:

And I’m Steve Ember with People in America in VOA Special English.  Today we continue our report about the life and music of one of America's greatest composers, George Gershwin.

(MUSIC)

VOICE ONE:

As we reported last week, George Gershwin published his first song when he was just eighteen years old. During the next twenty years, until his death, he wrote more than five hundred more songs. He also wrote an opera, and music for piano and orchestra.

Many of George Gershwin's songs were first written for musical plays performed in theaters in New York City. These comedies, with plenty of songs, were a popular form of entertainment in the nineteen twenties and nineteen thirties. 

One of Gershwin's musical plays, "Girl Crazy," introduced a young singer named Ethel Merman. She became one of the most celebrated performers in America. In the play, Ethel Merman sang a song George Gershwin wrote just for her. It was called "I Got Rhythm. "

(MUSIC)

VOICE TWO:

Many songs that George Gershwin wrote for musical plays and movies have remained as popular as ever. Over the years, they have been sung and played in every possible way -- from jazz to country.

One example is the song, "Someone to Watch Over Me."  It was written for the nineteen twenty-six musical "Oh, Kay!"  Here is a modern version of the song, sung by Willie Nelson.

(MUSIC)

VOICE ONE:

In the nineteen twenties, there was a debate in the United States about jazz music. Could jazz, some people asked, be considered serious music?

In nineteen twenty-four, jazz musician and orchestra leader Paul Whiteman decided to organize a special concert to show that jazz was serious music. George Gershwin agreed to compose something for the concert before he realized how little time he had to do it. The concert was just a few weeks away. Gershwin got busy. And, in that short time, he composed a piece for piano and orchestra. He called it "Rhapsody in Blue."

VOICE TWO:

Gershwin himself played the piano part of "Rhapsody in Blue" at the concert. The audience included some of the greatest classical musicians of the time. When they heard his music, they were electrified. It seemed to capture, for the first time, the true voice of modern American culture.  Today, we can still hear Gershwin playing "Rhapsody in Blue." An old mechanical piano recording has been reproduced exactly on this recording.

(MUSIC)

VOICE ONE:

"Rhapsody in Blue" made George Gershwin famous all over the world. Several hundred thousand copies of the printed music sold immediately. Gershwin was satisfied that he had shown that jazz music could be both serious and popular.

Gershwin also wrote an opera, "Porgy and Bess. " It was based on a book by DuBose Heyward.  It is a tragic love story about black Americans along the coast of South Carolina.

"Porgy And Bess" opened in Boston, Massachusetts, in nineteen thirty-five. Audiences loved it. But most critics did not know what to think of it.  It was not like any other opera or musical play they had ever seen.

Gershwin was not affected by the critics' opinions. He believed some of his greatest music had gone into the opera. He said he had created a new musical form -- an opera based on popular culture. Here is the song "Summertime" from a later production of “Porgy and Bess” in nineteen fifty-two.  Leontyne Price, who played Bess, sings the song.

(MUSIC)

VOICE TWO:

Another well-known Gershwin piece is "An American in Paris. " It is a long tone poem for orchestra. Its first public performance was by the New York Philharmonic Orchestra in nineteen twenty-eight. Here is a modern recording from “An American in Paris.”

(MUSIC)

VOICE ONE:

Once again, opinion was mixed. Most people loved "An American in Paris," as they loved all of Gershwin's music. Some critics liked it, too. They called it happy and full of life. Others hated it. They called it silly and long-winded. Still, it remains one of his most popular works.

VOICE TWO:

George Gershwin died in nineteen thirty-seven, just days after doctors learned he had brain cancer. He was only thirty-nine years old. Newspapers all over the world reported his death on their front pages. Everyone mourned the loss of the man and all the music he might have written. George Gershwin is still considered one of America's greatest composers. His works still are performed by many singers and groups. They are probably performed more often than any other serious American composer.

VOICE ONE:

Austrian composer Arnold Schoenberg was one of the people who praised George Gershwin.  Schoenberg said Gershwin was a man who lived in music and expressed everything through music, because music was his native language.

(MUSIC)

VOICE TWO:

This program was written by Shelley Gollust.  It was produced by Lawan Davis.  I’m Steve Ember.

VOICE ONE:

And I’m Barbara Klein.  Join us again next week for People in America in VOA Special English.

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