HOST:
Welcome to AMERICAN MOSAIC – a program in VOA Special Englishabout music and American life. And we answer your questions.
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This is Doug Johnson.
On our show today, we answer a question about education forAmericans who cannot see. And we play some songs that won Grammyawards earlier this week.
But first, a report about a new museum in New York City.
Louis Armstrong Museum
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HOST:
That is singer and trumpet playerLouis Armstrong performing his famous song, “Hello Dolly”. LouisArmstrong is considered one of the greatest jazz musicians who everlived. His voice, trumpet- playing skills and creativity continue toinfluence jazz artists today.
Louis Armstrong died in nineteen-seventy-one. Innineteen-seventy-seven, his home was declared a national historicplace. Recently, it opened as a museum. Shep O’Neal tells us aboutit.
ANNCR:
The Louis Armstrong House andArchives is in Queens, an area of New York City. Louis Armstrongshared the house with his fourth wife, Lucille, fromnineteen-forty-three until his death almost thirty years later. Thehouse was not changed after Lucille Armstrong died innineteen-eighty-three.
Years later, the city of New York, the National Endowment for theHumanities and the Save America’s Treasures program spent more thanone-million dollars on the house. They made it look exactly as itdid when Louis Armstrong lived there.
Louis Armstrong could have lived anywhere he wanted. Yet he chosea simple home in a common area of Queens. Visitors appear every dayto see where the famous jazz musician lived.
For most of his life, Louis Armstrong was performing aboutthree-hundred days of the year. But when he was home, he spent mostof his time in a room where he produced most of his work. Today, theroom looks as if Louis Armstrong might still be there. He oftenrecorded people talking, music and the sounds of daily life. Morethan six-hundred-fifty of his recordings were discovered in hishome. Here is an example of one of these recordings. Louis istalking with his wife, Lucille.
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Louis Armstrong collected many things from his travels and fromthe people he met. He wrote many letters to friends and fans. And hewrote about everyday things that took place in his life. Thousandsof pages of his personal writings, pictures, trumpets and otherthings can be found at the Louis Armstrong Archives at QueensCollege in New York. For more information about Louis Armstrong, hisarchives and his house, you can go to the museum’s computer website. The address is w-w-w dot s-a-t-c-h-m-o dot n-e-t.
Education for the Blind
HOST:
Our listener question this week comes from Pakistan. Habib Nawazwants to know about education for blind students in the UnitedStates.
The American Federation for theBlind says there are about ten-million blind or visually disabledpeople in the United States. A federal law approved innineteen-seventy-five guarantees blind students a free publiceducation. It requires that all states provide a free publiceducation in the best environment to children who suffer mental orphysical problems.
To help blind students learn, schools are also required toprovide special books published in Braille. This is a system ofprinting and writing for the blind. Words are formed using raisedareas of paper which blind people feel with their fingers. Schoolsalso provide other services and equipment to help blind or visuallyimpaired people learn.
Many children with sight problems attend their local publicschools with other children. They are taught the same subjects asother students their age. But they also receive special life skillstraining. This could include learning how to move and worksuccessfully within the community. It could also mean specialtraining on equipment to make life easier. Some schools even havespecial vision instructors. These are trained professionals who workdirectly with blind students.
Blind or visually impaired students can also attend separateschools for people with disabilities. Often, students at theseschools have other physical or mental problems. Many of thesespecial services schools are paid for by the states. Others areprivate. Blind or visually impaired students have the right toattend either. It is the responsibility of the school to providethem with a full education.
Many colleges and universities throughout the United States alsohave programs and special services for blind and visually impairedstudents. These are not free, however. At the university level, allstudents must pay for their education.
Grammy Winners
HOST:
The National Academy of RecordingArts and Sciences presented its yearly Grammy Awards last Sunday,February eighth. It has been doing this every year for forty-sixyears. Phoebe Zimmermann tells us about the Grammies and plays someof the songs that won this year.
ANNCR:
The National Academy of Recording Arts and Sciences was organizedby recording artists, songwriters and technicians. They wanted torecognize excellent musical recordings and those who create them.The award the Academy gives is called a Grammy.
The award is a small statue. It is shaped like the early recordplayer called a gramophone. The word “Grammy” is a short way ofsaying gramophone. Members of the Academy vote to choose the bestrecordings of the year. More than one-hundred awards were given thisyear.
One of these is Song of the Year. It goes to the writer of thebest song. The winners were Luther Vandross and Richard Marx forwriting the song, “Dance With My Father.” It is performed by LutherVandross.
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Another Grammy Award was for Record of the Year. The winners werethe artists and producers of the song “Clocks.” It is performed bythe group Coldplay.
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The Grammy Award for Album of the Year went to the rap groupOutKast for its album “Speakerboxxx/The Love Below.” We leave youwith a song from that album, “The Way You Move.”
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HOST:
This is Doug Johnson. I hope you enjoyed AMERICAN MOSAIC. Join usagain next week for VOA’s radio magazine in Special English.
Our program was written by Cynthia Kirk, Jill Moss and NancySteinbach. Our producer is Paul Thompson, and our engineer is AndreaKominars.