Language is Music 0ver 100 Fun Easy Tips to Learn Foreign Languages Pdf

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· 87 ratings · 9 reviews

Start your review of Language Is Music: 64 Fun & Easy Tips to Learn Foreign Languages Fast: Over 100 Fun & Easy Tips to Learn Foreign Languages

Not much new info. Stick to comprehensible input, immersion and do daily exercises. Also record yourself to hear about your own "music"! Not much new info. Stick to comprehensible input, immersion and do daily exercises. Also record yourself to hear about your own "music"! ...more

I came to this book with some expectations. I found out about it via a show where the author was interviewed. I don't recall what show it was on; I saw the clip on Youtube. Before I purchased the book, I read some reviews and took what I could from the bad and good. In the end three dollars (ebook) didn't seem like a waste if I got anything out of it.

This book is very short and an easy read. I bought it today (Nov. 25, 2013) and finished it within a few hours. It's meant to be a quick tip guide

This book is very short and an easy read. I bought it today (Nov. 25, 2013) and finished it within a few hours. It's meant to be a quick tip guide and serves its purpose. Overall, I think it was a good set of tips and resources, but are some things I'd like to mention.

So, here is the good:

The summary of the book is immerse yourself in the language, but it's the how-to part that makes it helpful if you're not sure how or where to get those resources. I was already doing some of the things mentioned in the book, but there was plenty I hadn't thought of. It's sort of like a big check list of immersion tools.

And here are some things to keep in mind:

The tips come from personal experience and the author doesn't depend on research for her tips and conclusions. It's kind of a memoir mixed with advice.

Zaraysky claims that she has no special talent and that being bilingual has no real affect on her language abilities. She seems to peg most of her ability on her hearing. The problem is, research shows polyglots are smarter than monoglots. Specifically, they have found that people who speak more than one language have an easier time thinking logically. This is probably because having more than one arrangement to think and communicate with can help polyglots get to a logical conclusion faster.

Polyglots also have to keep languages separate. Which kind of explains why people develop different personas for each language. It makes sense if you think of language as an essential structure for a culture. You're playing out a part of a culture by speaking it; you're giving yourself a part by speaking it. I think this is kind of important to keep in mind, because we don't want to hang onto the persona who speaks and writes in English when we're trying to create a lasting compartment for another language and an identity that extends into another culture.

Zaraysky mentions that she tends to have impeccable pronunciation. This might be because of keen hearing, but it is also due to facial/vocal muscles. You need both the ability to hear yourself and develop those muscles to make the correct sounds. There's plenty of exercises in the book that help do that, though the relationship between these two essential tools isn't made clear. I also don't remember there being mention of having a recorder to hear your pronunciation when speaking, but that is important, especially if you have trouble hearing your own pronunciation in comparison to the correct pronunciation.

There isn't any sympathy for monoglots in this book. Zaraysky acts annoyed at monoglots' amazement at how many languages she speaks. I understand that her experiences feel isolating, but I don't know that it was a good way to start. It makes it clear she doesn't relate to the majority of the audience for this book. I would be interested in the perspective of a person who went from monoglot to polyglot, because their experience would probably be a little more like mine.

It seems to me that monoglots have to expect that we're learning two things when learning a second language. On a neurological level we might be learning how to learn a language.

One last little thing:

It is mentioned in the book that you can use learning CDs/MP3s in the car. Be wary and very careful if you're driving and trying to focus on something else.

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Aug 15, 2012 Andrea rated it liked it

[This review was originally published on Andi's Book Reviews.]

Language is Music: Over 70 Fun & Easy Tips to Learn Foreign Languages by Susanna Zaraysky is a beneficial compliment to any language learning program. In it, Zaraysky provides tips that she used to assist her through the years while she learned to speak English, Russian, French, Spanish, Italian, Portuguese, and Serbo-Croatian.

She relates the learning of language to that of learning music. You have to tune your ear to hear the melodie

[This review was originally published on Andi's Book Reviews.]

She relates the learning of language to that of learning music. You have to tune your ear to hear the melodies of different languages in order to recreate them. Pay attention to the tempo, tone and emphasis within each syllable, just like you would to the notes in a song. Practice the language daily, just as you would practice playing an instrument daily. The new language is your instrument.

Immersion is the best way to learn a new language. Zaraysky recommends listening to music, watching TV, and viewing films in your target language. Listen to phrases again and again. Practice repeating them until you can mimic the intonation and pronunciation. Make vocabulary lists of new words. Practice translating. Create flashcards. Listen, watch, write.

When you start getting comfortable in the new language, try to converse with others in that language. Ideally, you would look for someone who is a native speaker in the target language, but any exchange is beneficial. Perhaps you could help someone learn English as you learn his language. Practice in person or online. Zaraysky provides numerous online resources and tips for local resources, throughout her book.

Make yourself perform daily tasks, such as balancing the checkbook, by using the target language. The more you make it a part of you and your routine, the more likely you are to remember it.

Language is Music is not going to guarantee that you memorize grammatical structures and vocabulary quickly for an upcoming test or exam. It's not a quick shortcut to make you the star of the class. It's designed for people who are seriously looking for a way to become more proficient in their foreign language studies.

Keep in mind that languages come easily to Zaraysky. Some people are gifted in that regard. Nevertheless, she has had to work hard to develop fluency and has found these techniques to work a better than the rote memorization found in traditional foreign language classes. Applying her techniques as a supplement to what you are already doing will allow you to use different parts of your brain and achieve greater success in your foreign language endeavors.

I received a complimentary copy of this book in exchange for my honest review.

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Feb 16, 2016 Chris rated it really liked it

As someone who has spent an entire lifetime dedicated to learning music, this was easier for me to understand than other language learning books out there, however, it is still written in a way that most people who don't know the music specific terms can understand.
It is a short and relatively easy read, as a lot of the tips seem intuitive, but for whatever reason, I did no think to do. I would recommend this book to other people with a musical mind and background, but the friend who gave me the As someone who has spent an entire lifetime dedicated to learning music, this was easier for me to understand than other language learning books out there, however, it is still written in a way that most people who don't know the music specific terms can understand.
It is a short and relatively easy read, as a lot of the tips seem intuitive, but for whatever reason, I did no think to do. I would recommend this book to other people with a musical mind and background, but the friend who gave me the book did not understand it because of his lack of musical background. Plus he's tone deaf and has not had any formal music instruction in his life, so he found some of the tips and tricks to be more cumbersome than helpful. ...more

on page 43, will finish later, I assume.

Oct 24, 2013 Julia rated it liked it

It was ok, but rather short and for me personally there wasn't much new information. Also, some of the Internet info is probable outdated. It was ok, but rather short and for me personally there wasn't much new information. Also, some of the Internet info is probable outdated. ...more

Apr 13, 2012 Darcey rated it liked it

Full of tips for language-learning with a focus on listening.