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Welcome to this reference and resource.
As a voice, speech and spoken word practitioner, I have long desired to share practical information that helps people achieve clarity in the way they sound when English is their second or third language.
As you work through this material, please remember that your accent is a central component of your identity. It gives people an audio snapshot of your background, origins and life context; they have a sense of knowing something about you that is unique, unusual and very much part of you. Therefore, aim to achieve overall sharpness and clarity rather than specific, pure sound changes. This will help your speech sound authentic, natural and will be easy for you to manage.
As you work through this material I recommend that, for best results, aim first for clarity, second for a rich, full voice and third for accuracy in the sound. This approach preserves your identity while ensuring that you can be clearly heard and your message interpreted in the way you intend it to be.
If you have any questions, get in touch with me via email:sandra@voice-word.com.au Alternatively, you can call +613 8610 0193 and leave a message with your contact number. I am also available on skype - invite me to connect with you.
The information that I'm sharing with you is generic and thus close in sound and execution to what was known as standard or received English in the 1960's. I am only using that system, because we have to start somewhere. This strategy in no way positions that particular way of speaking English as the benchmark for current times. Rather, it is a starting point for you to identify each sound and groups of sounds. From this point you're able to explore how the sound has been adapted in the English-speaking environment where you currently live and work.
And remember, if you come across a sound you're unsure of, one that is used in your region or geographic area, please get in touch. I'd be happy to explore its usage with you.
Let's begin with general information about the sounds in the English language.
Vowel Sounds in English can be short, long and blended into new families of sounds. It is often said that vowels provide the music of the language. It is through the vowel sounds that we hear the uniqueness of each language, including English. Vowels are often represented by the letters a e i o and u. But they are not exclusively attached to these letters. When combined with other letters, including consonants, this is an indication that the quality of the sound has changed.
Consonants are sounds that are captured in the remaining letters of the written alphabet. These sounds are said to give the language its meaning. If the consonants in everyday words are clear, you are likely to be understood by people around you even if you believe your spoken English requires more work! Consonants are often described as giving language its backbone.
Here is an example:
Vowels and consonants are blended together in spoken words much as they are formed into words, phrases and finally sentences in written contexts. Your challenge is that the spelling in English does not always reflect how the word should be said.
In spoken contexts in English we also use stress to indicate how a word should be pronounced. You'll find that half-stress, full stress and no stress exist in English. Any good dictionary will include these stress marks in their pronunication guide so that you know just where the weight of the voice falls in the pronunciation.
Shortly, I will build a link to a pdf so that you can download more about stress and listen to an audio capture of some common words that demonstrate half, full and no stress in them.
On additional pages of this blog you'll find phonetic symbols most commonly used in the Collins or Oxford dictionary references plus links to the sounds that they represent.
Feel free to contact me via sandra@voice-word.com.au or leave a message on +613 8610 0193 to request specific help.
As a voice, speech and spoken word practitioner, I have long desired to share practical information that helps people achieve clarity in the way they sound when English is their second or third language.
As you work through this material, please remember that your accent is a central component of your identity. It gives people an audio snapshot of your background, origins and life context; they have a sense of knowing something about you that is unique, unusual and very much part of you. Therefore, aim to achieve overall sharpness and clarity rather than specific, pure sound changes. This will help your speech sound authentic, natural and will be easy for you to manage.
As you work through this material I recommend that, for best results, aim first for clarity, second for a rich, full voice and third for accuracy in the sound. This approach preserves your identity while ensuring that you can be clearly heard and your message interpreted in the way you intend it to be.
If you have any questions, get in touch with me via email:sandra@voice-word.com.au Alternatively, you can call +613 8610 0193 and leave a message with your contact number. I am also available on skype - invite me to connect with you.
The information that I'm sharing with you is generic and thus close in sound and execution to what was known as standard or received English in the 1960's. I am only using that system, because we have to start somewhere. This strategy in no way positions that particular way of speaking English as the benchmark for current times. Rather, it is a starting point for you to identify each sound and groups of sounds. From this point you're able to explore how the sound has been adapted in the English-speaking environment where you currently live and work.
And remember, if you come across a sound you're unsure of, one that is used in your region or geographic area, please get in touch. I'd be happy to explore its usage with you.
Let's begin with general information about the sounds in the English language.
Vowel Sounds in English can be short, long and blended into new families of sounds. It is often said that vowels provide the music of the language. It is through the vowel sounds that we hear the uniqueness of each language, including English. Vowels are often represented by the letters a e i o and u. But they are not exclusively attached to these letters. When combined with other letters, including consonants, this is an indication that the quality of the sound has changed.
Consonants are sounds that are captured in the remaining letters of the written alphabet. These sounds are said to give the language its meaning. If the consonants in everyday words are clear, you are likely to be understood by people around you even if you believe your spoken English requires more work! Consonants are often described as giving language its backbone.
Here is an example:
- Take the nursery rhyme 'Baa baa black sheep, have you any wool?'
- Separate the vowels from the consonants so you get aa aa a ee a ou a=y oo...
- Separate the consonants from the vowels so you get b b blk shp hv y n wl
Vowels and consonants are blended together in spoken words much as they are formed into words, phrases and finally sentences in written contexts. Your challenge is that the spelling in English does not always reflect how the word should be said.
In spoken contexts in English we also use stress to indicate how a word should be pronounced. You'll find that half-stress, full stress and no stress exist in English. Any good dictionary will include these stress marks in their pronunication guide so that you know just where the weight of the voice falls in the pronunciation.
Shortly, I will build a link to a pdf so that you can download more about stress and listen to an audio capture of some common words that demonstrate half, full and no stress in them.
On additional pages of this blog you'll find phonetic symbols most commonly used in the Collins or Oxford dictionary references plus links to the sounds that they represent.
Feel free to contact me via sandra@voice-word.com.au or leave a message on +613 8610 0193 to request specific help.
