1. Lecture A4
How we produce Speech

2. Speech organs We’ve talked some about how we make sounds.
This area of phonetics is called articulatory phonetics?
Articulation = ?
The speech apparatus we discussed earlier is a detailed look at the speech organs.

3. Speech mechanism
The speech mechanism is a broader look at how we make sounds.
There are three parts to the speech mechanism:
Articulatory system (HEAD)
Phonatory system (THROAT)
Respiratory system (CHEST)

4. Respiratory system
We breathe air in… and we breathe air out of our lungs.
Speech is a type of controlled breathing.

5. Speaking and breathing In
Some languages do this (French, for example) to make certain sounds.
BUT All languages make sounds breathing out.

6. Phonatory system This system describes how we use our voice.
When we try to improve pronunciation, knowing when a sound is voiced or unvoiced is important.
Voiced = vibration in the throat
Unvoiced (or voiceless) = no vibration in the throat

7. Phonatory system
Throat vibration is what creates intonation and tone.

8. Try This:

9. Other sounds Glottal stop A sound that is not a sound…
Make from the speech organ called glottis
The glottis controls air and food passing through your throat
A very important organ… air in the stomach… not good… food in lungs…
Controlling the glottis for making sounds is called the glottal stop.

10. Uh-Oh Say Uh-Oh to your partner.
Pay attention to what’s happening in your phonatory system.
Then try saying the informal sounds for yes and no (in English)
Uh-huh (yes)
Uh-uh (no)

11. Words that begin with vowels
Sometimes we use the glottal stop when words begin with a vowel.
Ear
What makes the glottal stop so important?
Usually this sound (or absence of sound) is not labeled in pronunciation books or dictionaries… it is learned through practice and observation of natural speaking.

12. That “natural” sound
The glottal stop is common across all English varieties and used somewhat differently.
The important thing to remember is that it is used—and learners can learn to listen for the glottal stop.
Say: button, curtain (middle of words) glottal stop as an allophone for /tt/
Say: What was that? (end of words)
Using the glottal stop correctly makes speaking faster, easier and sound more natural.

13. ?
Use a /?/ mark without the /. / to label glottal stops.

14. Creak, Breathy Creak is a series of many glottal stops
Breathy adds extra air flow around speech sounds
Creaky voice, glottal stops and breathy voice add unique character to a person’s idiolect.

15. Practice!
Try saying this sentence using the different voicing patterns:

16. These are extremes…
But controlling your voice and being able to hear how others control their voices is essential to learn and improve pronunciation.

17. Articulatory system
Throat
Mouth
Nose

18. Velar & Velic Closure

19. Both velar and velic closed…

20. Try this:

21. Lips, Teeth and tongue

22. Most pronunciation errors
The most common errors I observe with learners’ pronunciation is incorrect use of the lips, teeth and tongue.
As mentioned earlier English is different than many languages in how its’ speakers use the lips, teeth and tongue.

23. Rounded, neutral and spread
Vowels and consonants have different placements.

24. Money making Monday morning makes a merry mind.
Try this:
Money making Monday morning makes a merry mind.
Record and watch.
8HuQjQ

25. In sum…
The more your face, mouth, tongue open up, the clearer your speech.
This is true for all speakers of English, native and non-native speakers alike!
Use of the articulatory system is more detailed than what we’ve discussed today, but these are some of the basics. More on this during our pronunciation practice.

26. Try this:
Professional accent training (for actors and other professionals):
It looks funny…even crazy…but it’s true.
"Speak the speech I pray you as I pronounced it to you, trippingly on the tongue". 

27. More on the ‘lips’
In phonology we talk about lips as ‘labial’ (from Latin). Two lips = bilabial
In phonology we talk about teeth sometimes as ‘dental’.
When lips and teeth are combined to make sounds, we say ‘labio-dental’.

28. Try it:

29. Don’t forget the…

30. Gums In phonology we called this ‘alveolar’ or ‘alveolar ridge’
In other words, putting your tongue against your gums creates a particular set of sounds.
In English, many consonants are made this way.

31. Hard Palate What is it? The roof of your mouth.
That space between the gums and roof of the mouth?  post-alveolar
Say: measure, choke, joke

32. Tongue
Of all the speech organs… using this one is the most complicated.

33. These are the basics…
Use this information as a checklist for your own pronunciation.
Mouth
Lip movement (rounded, neutral, spread)
Gums
Velum and hard palate
Tongue