Microsoft Word 221006 6min english artistic brain docx

6 Minute English
 
©British Broadcasting Corporation 2022 
bbclearningenglish.com 
Page 3 of 5 
Mike, arts teacher 
I had this other student… he was really at the zero, like, he could not draw – at all. 
So, I gave him some tips, and in a month, he was really good – he was like really 
surprised, blown away, he never expected it. So, there are some things that are 
trainable, it’s like a bike. In my case, I learned how to do those things without 
anyone telling me, you know like, if you are drawing the face, the human face, the 
distance between your eyes is the same as one of your eyes. 
Neil 
Mike gives tips to his students – helpful pieces of advice about how to do 
something, in this case, to paint. After getting Mike’s tips, one of his students 
really improved and started painting much better. Mike was blown away – an 
informal way to say very impressed or surprised. 
Sam 
Like learning to ride a bike, Mike thinks that painting is trainable – a word from 
American English meaning that it can be taught or trained. For him, this is proof 
that artists’ brains are not so different after all. 
Neil 
So, there we have it – two different options, but no final answer to our question. 
Still, some scientists think there may be third possibility: everyone’s brain works 
by focussing on some areas and ignoring others, making a kind of jigsaw puzzle 
with missing pieces. Maybe all of us – you, me, Mozart and Jimi Hendrix - are just 
filling in the missing pieces our own way. 
Sam 
Speaking of Mozart, Neil, it’s time to reveal the answer to your question. 
Neil 
Right. I asked how old child prodigy Mozart was when he first composed music. 
Sam 
I said he was five years old… so, was I right? 
Neil 
Your answer was correct! Mozart was five when first wrote music, and by the age 
of six he had performed in front of the Emperor of Austria – twice! Now there’s an 
artistic brain!