GANGA'S VOICE WORK PAGE

Hi Ganga, and welcome to your own personal 'voice hacking' page, where over the coming weeks/months, you and I are going to be exchanging ideas and working on the task of adopting a more neutral and international sounding accent whilst speaking English. 

I have no doubts about your ability and know you are dedicated, so it shouldn't prove too gruelling if you maintain a consistent practice.

As we move forward through this process, the exercises, info, worksheets and recordings will accumulate. 

At times you may find yourself making breakthroughs, and other times might seem like you're going backwards. It can get frustrating, but this is natural. Frustrations are good as they mean you are challenging your body to adopt new habits, so don't be discouraged and maintain true to form.

Below is an intro video, a relevant YouTube tutorial, your three previous recordings and under that you'll find your first set of considerations as well as a diagram named 'Places of Articulation'

THEN

NOW

First area of work!

TH vs TH

For your accent Ganga, these next few sounds are giveaways that you are a non native speaker and by mastering them you will make a tremendous leap closer to your goal. The vowel sounds are very close (and not forgotten) but we'll look at a couple of these sounds before visiting the vowels as they may get affected by your consonant creation. First up is the voiced and unvoiced 'TH' sounds or as they are written phonetically θ and ð.
I've explained (in the video above) the pronunciations around these.
​Get practicing and we can meet next week to go over them so I can make any quick adjustments and

Then   
They    
Though    
Than    
Lather    
Worthier    
Bother
Soothe
​Clothes​​

Think
Thought
Thin
Thread
Path
Arthur
Mathematician
North
​Thousand
​

Also, if you wish, you can use these next two lines to consider and practice as an exercise the air placement and two types of TH sounds. 
THOO THOH THAW THAH THAY THEE THOW THI (AS IN THINK)
​THOO THOH THAW THAH THAY THEE THOW THI (AS IN THAT)

T's and D's

So we can start to define the TH sounds from the T and D sounds. We should also now look at the tongue placement for the T and D. Check again the diagram above. Where you have been practicing the TH sounds and using your tongue in between your teeth (somewhere between 2 and 3) I'm going to now ask you to pull it back just a little so as you pronounce the TH sound it is starting instead from behind the top teeth (3) . This should be a little easier especially after all the work to takes to create this sound in between the teeth as you have been doing already. Continue will the same exercises not to forget the THOO THOH ones etc, but keep the tongues starting position resting behind the top teeth.

Below are some words and exercises with the T and D sounds in a similar format to the TH ones. The tongue tip placement for this is slightly back on the gum ridge (Alvelolar) for both T and D and they are the same sound only one is voiced (D) and the other (T) Unvoiced.

I'll explain further in the video below.

​Then   - Den
They    - Day
Though    - Dough
Than    - Dan
Lather    - Lader
Worthier    - Wordier
Bother - Bodder
Soothe - Sood
​Clothes​​ - Clodes

Think - Tink
Thought - Taught
Thin - Tin
Thread - Tread
Path - Part (take the R away like in English)
Arthur - Artur
Mathematician - Matematician
North - Naught
​Thousand - Tousand

THOO THOH THAW THAH THAY THEE THOW THI (AS IN THINK) - ​ TOO TOH TAW TAH TAY TEE TOW TI 
​THOO THOH THAW THAH THAY THEE THOW THI (AS IN THAT) - DOO DOH DAW DAH DAY DEE DOW DI 

You are correctly pronouncing the TH, T and D sounds however we will need to begin looking at the vowel sounds and correcting the tongue position for each as well as the length of each one. 

Consider again the same exercise as before but with the vowel sound from the work in brackets (which should sound the same)
​
THOO (BLUE)  - THOH (KNOW) - THAW (LAW) - THAH (HEART) - THAY  (LATE) - THEE (MEET) -  THOW (NOW) - THI (SIGH) - (ALL TH AS IN THINK)
TOO TOH TAW TAH TAY TEE TOW TI 
​THOO (BLUE)  - THOH (KNOW) - THAW (LAW) - THAH (HEART) - THAY (LATE) - THEE (MEET) - THOW (NOW) - THI (SIGH) - (ALL TH AS IN THAT) 
DOO DOH DAW DAH DAY DEE DOW DI 

"Through good tone all not part must serve and then shape fit speech"

NURSE = nɜːs (Like - err)
ɜː Being the sound to practice
Typical Spellings: ur, or, ir, er, ear

usurp, hurt, lurk, church, turf, purse
curb, curd, urge, curve, furze,
turn, curl, spur, occurred,
burnt, burst, murder, further,
shirt, irk, birch, birth, bird, dirge
firm, girl, fir, stirred, first, circus, virtue,...; myrrh, myrtle, Byrne;
twerp, assert, jerk, perch, serf, berth, terse,
verb, erg, emerge, nerve,
term, stern, deter, err,' preferred
certain, person, immersion, emergency, kernel
Earp, earth, dearth, hearse, rehearse, search heard, earn, yearn, earl, pearl,
rehearsal, early, earnest;
wort, work, worth, worse, word, worm, whorl, worst, Worthing, worthy, whortleberry; scourge, adjourn, courteous, journal, journalist, 
journey;
attorney, colonel, liqueur, masseur, connoisseur.
a) usurp, hurt, church, turf, purse, curb, curd, urge, curve, furze,
turn, curl, spur, occurred, burnt, burst, murder, further;
myrrh, myrtle, Byrne;
b) shirt, irk, birch, birth, bird, dirge, firm, girl, fir, stirred, first, circus, virtue;
c) twerp, assert, jerk, perch, serf, berth, terse, verb, emerge, nerve, term, stern, deter,
err, preferred, certain, person, immersion,
emergency, kernel;
earth, dearth, hearse, search, heard,
earn, yearn, earl, pearl, rehearsal, early,
earnest;
d) wort, work, worth, worse, word, worm,
whorl, worst, worthy;
scourge, adjourn, courteous, journal,
journalist, journey;
attorney, colonel.

Practice these sentences below as often as you can and pay attention to the correct vowel sounds for each. It will help with connecting the dots between, what you can already do and differentiating the funds which might be a little trickier. I added the phonemes next to each (since you know them):)

LONG VOWELS
ɑ: - The army master asked the fathers pardon.
ɔ: - The tortoise called the tall mortal awful.
ɜ: - Her skirt was pert which flirted with her shirt.
u: - You flew too soon from shoe to moon.
i: - She sealed the meat in three pieces feeding the steaming fleas.

SHORT VOWELS
ə - Isabel don't contradict the londoner, understand?
ɪ - It's beginning to filter into the split killing the filling.
ɒ - Lotty and Dotty got hot on the pott Olive and Spot did not.
e - Get steadily ready to tread through the lead eventually entering the bed
ʌ - Have you money for the butter and honey?
æ - Gather that hat and that mat and flatter Andrea Samantha Panders.
ʊ - Look, put that book back in the nook you hooded crook.

​DIPTHONGS (TWO VOWELS SOUNDS TOGETHER)
ɪə - 'Hear, hear,' cheers the peer, sheer fear from the beer in his ear.
eə - The fair pair shared caring and wearing the scarce mare's chair.
ʊə - The dour gourd during security endured the curious moor.
eɪ - The ape made the lady waste the eigth veil weighing a great steak.
aɪ - Either try to dye the bright cider or bite the high light fighting mightily.
ɔɪ - The boy's voice and oils the coiled point in the void.
əʊ - So the old folks at home toasted the soapy and moulting toads.
aʊ - How about shouting down the town house allowing a mouse to flounder.

LONG VOWELS

Print out the text for 'Tarantella' and either highlight or underline the correct places for all the long vowels.

I suggest going through and speaking the text in the Standard English accent we have been working on (as best you can) and then paying attention to both where you hear them and where you think they should be.

Remember, just do this for the long vowels.
​
​I'll ask you to send me a photo of the highlighted sheet and even a recording that correlates to the findings you have made. From there we can discuss and adjust accordingly. 

Tarantella
by Hiliare Belloc
​
Do you remember an Inn,
Miranda?
Do you remember an Inn?
And the tedding and the spreading
Of the straw for a bedding,
And the fleas that tease in the High Pyrenees,
And the wine that tasted of the tar?
And the cheers and the jeers of the young muleteers
(Under the vine of the dark verandah)?
Do you remember an Inn, Miranda,
Do you remember an Inn?
And the cheers and the jeers of the young muleteers
Who hadn’t got a penny,
And who weren’t paying any,
And the hammer at the doors and the din?
And the Hip! Hop! Hap!
Of the clap
Of the hands to the twirl and the swirl
Of the girl gone chancing,
Glancing,
Dancing,
Backing and advancing,
Snapping of the clapper to the spin
Out and in–
And the Ting, Tong, Tang of the guitar!
Do you remember an Inn,
Miranda?
Do you remember an Inn?
Never more,
Miranda,
Never more.
Only the high peaks hoar:
And Aragon a torrent at the door.
No sound
In the walls of the halls where falls
The tread
Of the feet of the dead to the ground,
No sound:
But the boom
Of the far waterfall like doom.

THE SCHWA 'ə'

The schwa is the most common sound in the Standard British Accent and appears everywhere. It's so simple to create and really helps to reduce accents by understanding its place within words. It simplifies so many of them. Below I've begun highlighting where the schwa sound appears in the poem.

Do you remember an Inn,
Miranda?
Do you remember an Inn?
And the tedding and the spreading
Of the straw for a bedding,
And the fleas that tease in the High Pyrenees, And the wine that tasted of the tar?
And the cheers and the jeers of the young muleteers (Under the vine of the dark verandah)?

Efforts

It seems like now would be a good time (whilst we are still expanding on the text and specific sounds) to consider the exact characteristics of the accent. By which I mean the attack, tonality and energy that it has, and which differs from the one you have spoken with previously. 
The characteristics of this accent are Direct, Sustained and Light! - The term is 'GLIDING'

Linking words

Go through the poem and discover all the text that you feel might link when spoken. Remember that the r is only really pronounced at the beginning of words and as a linking r between two words. I will add more detail into this over the week so check back in when you can!

Do you remember-an-Inn,
Miranda?
Do you remember-an-Inn?
An-the-tedding an-the-spreading
Of the-straw for-a-bedding,

DIPTHONGS

As you have already worked through the Text on both long vowels and some short. I'm requesting two things to consider now. One is the Diphthongs...
​
DIPTHONGS (TWO VOWELS SOUNDS TOGETHER)
ɪə - 'Hear, hear,' cheers the peer, sheer fear from the beer in his ear.
eə - The fair pair shared caring and wearing the scarce mare's chair.
ʊə - The dour gourd during security endured the curious moor.
eɪ - The ape made the lady waste the eigth veil weighing a great steak.
aɪ - Either try to dye the bright cider or bite the high light fighting mightily.
ɔɪ - The boy's voice and oils the coiled point in the void.
əʊ - So the old folks at home toasted the soapy and moulting toads.
aʊ - How about shouting down the town house allowing a mouse to flounder.

Go through the text one more time now and recolour or underline (preferably on a document so I can further edit afterwards :) all the relevant places where diphthongs appear. Having a clear picture of where two vowels (and sometimes three) glide together is the final vowel work to do on this. Once you have a clear understanding of the differentiation between short - long and diphthong vowel sounds you will begin to recognise them more accurately and often in your everyday speech. 

MORE LEXICAL SETS

In the sets of words below are two different diphthongs. I've added in the phonetic symbols beside them to remind you that every word in that set has the same Diphthong sound. Practice these and please also record each one for me in good time before Thursday. 

GOAT - əʊ
Typical Spellings: (a) o, oC, oa; (b) ow, ol

(a) soap, boat, oak, roach, loaf, oath,
road, loathe, coal, roam, loan, boast, coax,...; note, rope, joke, both, gross,
robe, code, rogue, grove, clothe, rose,
hole, home, tone,
so, no, toe, foe, don't, host,
noble, ocean, explosion, holy,. . .
brooch, beau, gauche, mauve
(b) bowl, own, tow, know, grow, owe, Owen,...; soul, poultry, mould/mold, shoulder,...;
colt, holster, old, bold, soldier,...;
roll, scroll, control,...;
sew, dough, though, although.

18. MOUTH - aʊ
Typical Spellings: ouC, ow
​
out, pouch, south, house,
loud, gouge, mouth v., rouse,
noun, foul, thou,
count, round, pronounce, oust,
flour, sour, trousers, mountain, council, boundary,...; crowd, browse, owl, down, cow, allow,
dowry, flower, coward, towel, powder,...;
bough, plough/plow, doughty,...;
MacLeod.

American & British IPA Transcriptions of Tarantella

Do you remember an Inn, Miranda?
/duː juː rɪˈmembər ʌn ɪn mɪˈrændʌ/

Do you remember an Inn?
/duː juː rɪˈmembər ʌn ɪn/

And the tedding and the spreading
/ænd ðə ˈtedɪŋ ænd ðə ˈspredɪŋ/

Of the straw for a bedding,
/əv ðə strɔː fər ə ˈbedɪŋ/

And the fleas that tease in the High Pyrenees, 
/ænd ðə fliːz ðæt tiːz ɪn ðə haɪ ˈpɪrəˌniːz/

And the wine that tasted of the tar?
/ænd ðə waɪn ðæt ˈteɪstɪd əv ðə tɑːr/

And the cheers and the jeers of the young muleteers 
/ænd ðə tʃiːrz ænd ðə dʒiːrz əv ðə jʌŋ ˌmjuːləˈtiːrz/

(Under the vine of the dark verandah)?
/ˈʌndər ðə vaɪn əv ðə dɑːrk vəˈrændʌ/

Do you remember an Inn, Miranda,
/duː juː rɪˈmembər ʌn ɪn mɪˈrændʌ/

Do you remember an Inn?
/duː juː rɪˈmembər ʌn ɪn/

And the cheers and the jeers of the young muleteers 
/ænd ðə tʃiːrz ænd ðə dʒiːrz əv ðə jʌŋ ˌmjuːləˈtiːrz/

Who hadn’t got a penny,
/huː ˈhadnt gɑːt ə ˈpeniː/

And who weren’t paying any,
/ænd huː wɜːrnt ˈpeɪɪŋ ˈeniː/

And the hammer at the doors and the din?
/ænd ðə ˈhæmʌr ʌt ðə dɔːrz ænd ðə dɪn/

And the Hip!
/ænd ðə hɪp/

Hop!
/hɑːp/

Hap!
/hæp/

Of the clap
/əv ðə klæp/

Of the hands to the twirl and the swirl
/əv ðə hændz tə ðə twɜːrl ænd ðə swɜːrl/

Of the girl gone chancing,
/əv ðə gɜːrl gɔːn ˈtʃænsɪŋ/

Glancing,
/ˈglænsɪŋ/

Dancing,
/ˈdænsɪŋ/

Backing and advancing,
/ˈbækɪŋ ænd ædˈvænsɪŋ/

Snapping of the clapper to the spin
/ˈsnæpɪŋ əv ðə ˈklæpʌr tə ðə spɪn/

Out and in–
/aʊt ænd ɪn/

And the Ting, Tong, Tang of the guitar!
/ænd ðə tɪŋ (Tong) tæŋ əv ðə gɪˈtɑːr/

Do you remember an Inn, Miranda?
/duː juː rɪˈmembər ʌn ɪn mɪˈrændʌ/

Do you remember an Inn?
/duː juː rɪˈmembər ʌn ɪn/

Never more, Miranda,
/ˈnevər mɔːr mɪˈrændʌ/

Never more.
/ˈnevər mɔːr/

Only the high peaks hoar:
/ˈoʊnliː ðə haɪ piːks hɔːr/

And Aragon a torrent at the door.
/ænd ˌɑːɑːɑːˈgɔːn ə ˈtɔːrənt ʌt ðə dɔːr/

No sound
/noʊ saʊnd/

In the walls of the halls where falls
/ɪn ðə wɔːlz əv ðə hɔːlz hwer fɔːlz/

The tread
/ðə tred/

Of the feet of the dead to the ground,
/əv ðə fiːt əv ðə ded tə ðə graʊnd/

No sound:
/noʊ saʊnd/

But the boom
/bʌt ðə buːm/

Of the far waterfall like doom.
/əv ðə fɑːr ˈwɔːtərˌfɔːl laɪk duːm/

Do you remember an Inn, Miranda?
/duː jʊ rɪˈmembər ən ɪn mɪrandə/

Do you remember an Inn?
/duː jʊ rɪˈmembər ən ɪn/

And the tedding and the spreading
/ænd ðə ˈtedɪŋ ænd ðə ˈspredɪŋ/

Of the straw for a bedding,
/ɒv ðə strɔː fər ə ˈbedɪŋ/

And the fleas that tease in the High Pyrenees, 
/ænd ðə fliːz ðæt tiːz ɪn ðə haɪ pɪrəniːz/

And the wine that tasted of the tar?
/ænd ðə waɪn ðæt ˈteɪstɪd ɒv ðə tɑː/

And the cheers and the jeers of the young muleteers 
/ænd ðə tʃɪəz ænd ðə dʒɪəz ɒv ðə jʌŋ ˌmjuːlɪˈtɪəz/

(Under the vine of the dark verandah)?
/ˈʌndə ðə vaɪn ɒv ðə dɑːk vəˈrændə/

Do you remember an Inn, Miranda,
/duː jʊ rɪˈmembər ən ɪn mɪrandə/

Do you remember an Inn?
/duː jʊ rɪˈmembər ən ɪn/

And the cheers and the jeers of the young muleteers 
/ænd ðə tʃɪəz ænd ðə dʒɪəz ɒv ðə jʌŋ ˌmjuːlɪˈtɪəz/

Who hadn’t got a penny,
/huː ˈhædnt gɒt ə ˈpenɪ/

And who weren’t paying any,
/ænd huː wɜːnt ˈpeɪɪŋ ˈenɪ/

And the hammer at the doors and the din?
/ænd ðə ˈhæmər æt ðə dɔːz ænd ðə dɪn/

And the Hip!
/ænd ðə hɪp/

Hop!
/hɒp/

Hap!
/hæp/

Of the clap
/ɒv ðə klæp/
Of the hands to the twirl and the swirl
/ɒv ðə hændz tə ðə twɜːl ænd ðə swɜːl/

Of the girl gone chancing,
/ɒv ðə gɜːl gɒn ˈtʃɑːnsɪŋ/

Glancing,
/ˈglɑːnsɪŋ/

Dancing,
/ˈdɑːnsɪŋ/

Backing and advancing,
/ˈbækɪŋ ænd ədˈvɑːnsɪŋ/

Snapping of the clapper to the spin
/ˈsnæpɪŋ ɒv ðə ˈklæpə tə ðə spɪn/

Out and in–
/aʊt ænd ɪn/

And the Ting, Tong, Tang of the guitar!
/ænd ðə tɪŋ (Tong) tæŋ ɒv ðə gɪˈtɑː/

Do you remember an Inn, Miranda?
/duː jʊ rɪˈmembər ən ɪn mɪrandə/

Do you remember an Inn?
/duː jʊ rɪˈmembər ən ɪn/

Never more, Miranda,
/ˈnevə mɔː mɪrandə/

Never more.
/ˈnevə mɔː/

Only the high peaks hoar:
/ˈəʊnlɪ ðə haɪ piːks hɔː/

And Aragon a torrent at the door.
/ænd (Aragon) ə ˈtɒrənt æt ðə dɔː/

No sound
/nəʊ saʊnd/

In the walls of the halls where falls
/ɪn ðə wɔːlz ɒv ðə hɔːlz weə fɔːlz/

The tread
/ðə tred/

Of the feet of the dead to the ground,
/ɒv ðə fiːt ɒv ðə ded tə ðə graʊnd/

No sound:
/nəʊ saʊnd/

But the boom
/bʌt ðə buːm/
​
Of the far waterfall like doom.
/ɒv ðə fɑː ˈwɔːtəfɔːl laɪk duːm/

Dexterity

What a to-do to die today, at a minute or two to two;
A thing distinctly hard to say, yet harder still to do.
For they'll beat a tattoo, at twenty to two
With a rat-tat-tat- tat-tat-tat- tat-tat-tattoo
And a dragon will come when he hears the drum,
At a minute or two to two today, at a minute or two to two.

Question inflections

These are some key areas we need to start considering in your everyday speech, starting with questions.
They can sometimes be stressed in a different manner according to your own interpretation/accent and this can cause confusion.

Please record these for me to listen to.

1. Yes no questions -
- Did you tell her?
- Are you angry?
- Would you like a tea?
- Were you on time?

2. Tag questions - 
- You haven't seen this film, have you? ... 
- She's a doctor, isn't she? ... 
- They could hear me, couldn't they? ... 
- I'm never on time, am I?

3. Alternative questions -
- Do you want coffee or tea?
- Are you coming or going?
- Do you prefer red or blue?
​- Is it easy or difficult?

Exercise for T's and D's

Try these as part of your daily work. See how accurate you can get them. Remember T, is unvoiced while D is. However they are created in exactly the same way with your tongue tip tapping on the roof of your mouth.

Tə TəTəTəTəTəTəTəTə Ta: - Də Də Də Də Də Də Də Də Də Da:  x 10

Lexical sets on LOT and CLOTH with the /ɒ/ sound

Below are some words which I'd like you to practice and that all contain the ɒ sound. There are two sets. In the second there is opportunity for variation, but for the purpose of this exercise, try to maintain all with the ɒ.

LOT

stop, pot, sock, notch, Goth,
rob, odd, cog, dodge,
Tom, con, doll,
solve, romp, font, copse, box,
profit, possible, proverb, bother, rosin, honest, ponder, ...;
swan, quality, yacht, wasp, watch, squabble, waffle,... ;
knowledge, acknowledge.

CLOTH

(a) off, cough, trough, broth, froth, cross, across, loss, floss, toss,
fosse, doss,
soft, croft, lost, oft, cost, frost, lost, often, soften, lofty,
Australia, Austria, Austen, Austin, gone;

(b) moth, boss, gloss, joss, moss, Ross,
long, strong, wrong, gong, song, thong, tongs, throng, accost, coffee, coffer, coffin, offer, office, officer, glossy, foster, Boston, Gloucester, sausage
wash;
​
(c) origin, Oregon, oratory, orator, orange, authority, borrow, categorical, correlate, coroner, coral,
florid, Florida, florist, florin, historic(al ),
horrid, horrible, majority, horrify, horror, metaphoric(al), morrow,
Morris, moral, Norwich,1 porridge, rhetorical, sorrel, moribund,... ;
sorrow, tomorrow, sorry,
Laurence/Lawrence, laurel, laureate,2
quarrel, quarry, warrant, warren, warrior, Warwick.1
1 as English place-names or surnames RP /"nÅrIdZ/, /"wÅrIk/.
2 RP also with /O.../.

Thursday 17th June -  Start Here...

Whilst, there was tremendous consistency reading the lexical sets for the /ɒ/, we still need to correct your pronunciation of this vowel to distinguish it from sounding too close to /ʌ/ or /ə/. It's a very short but rounded sound and we shall aim to make this distinction later today (17.06.21). Below is a little sentence to practice with. 

'DOT GOT HOT WHILE SITTING ON THE POT. OLIVE AND SPOT, DID NOT'

Question inflections

Some of the question intonations begin to sound peculiar, confusing and perhaps even rude to a native English speaker. Below I have marked on the left the rise and fall or how you pronounced the questions and on the right are my takes. I feel the ones that are most confusing are the tag questions so we can go through them today also. 

"Through good tone all not part must serve and then shape fit speech"
-​American vs British-

Through good tone all not part must serve and then shape fit speech
/θruː gʊd toʊn ɔːl nɑːt pɑːrt mʌst sɜːrv ænd ðen ʃeɪp fɪt spiːtʃ/

Through good tone all not part must serve and then shape fit speech
​/θruː gʊd təʊn ɔːl nɒt pɑːt mʌst sɜːv ənd ðen ʃeɪp fɪt spiːtʃ/

Practice exercises

pa pa pa pa pa pa pa pa pa paa
ba ba ba ba ba ba ba ba ba baa
ta ta ta ta ta ta ta ta ta taa
da da da da da da da da da daa
ka ka ka ka ka ka ka ka ka kaa
ga ga ga ga ga ga ga ga ga gaa

V vs W

V - WE
VEST - WEST
VET - WET
​VEIL - WHALE

RECORDINGS

ZOOM COACHING 24 JUNE 2021

Betty Botter bought some butter
But she said the butter’s bitter,
“If I put it in my batter
It will make my batter bitter,
But a bit of better butter
Will make my batter better.” So she bought some better butter
Better than the bitter butter,
And she put it in her batter
And her batter was not bitter,
So ’twas better Betty Botter
Bought a bit of better butter

And now for some Shakespeare...

When approaching the sonnet below Ganga. Try first to speak it, even though you may not completely understand all the words. But I'd like you to get a sense of how the words direct you and how the shapes of each vowel move you to articulate them. Keep your placement forward, stay light and relaxed in your approach and remember to take your time. We can connect the meaning later but for now consider it an exercises for correct pronunciation and articulation of the text.

Like as the waves make towards the pebbl'd shore,

So do our minutes hasten to their end;

Each changing place with that which goes before,

In sequent toil all forwards do contend.

Nativity, once in the main of light,

Crawls to maturity, wherewith being crown'd,

Crooked eclipses 'gainst his glory fight,

And Time that gave doth now his gift confound.

Time doth transfix the flourish set on youth

And delves the parallels in beauty's brow,

Feeds on the rarities of nature's truth,

And nothing stands but for his scythe to mow:

And yet to times in hope my verse shall stand,

Praising thy worth, despite his cruel hand.

Sonnet 60

Hi Ganga. As you practice this sonnet, keep the rhythm as we discussed in the 'Iambic pentameter' which goes - de dum de dum de dum de dum de dum.
I've added one modern translation to help make more sense of it but also try to remember that the phonetics are for the proper pronunciation of each word alone and not necessarily the way it's written to fit into the rhythm. Start with the proper pronunciation and take note of the phonetics but then be willing to make changes when and where the rhythm dictates. Play with it, but also maintain the accent as true as you can.

Phonetics

Like as the waves make towards the pebbled shore,
/laɪk æz ðə weɪvz meɪk təˈwɔːdz ðə ˈpebld ʃɔː/

So do our minutes hasten to their end;
/səʊ duː ˈaʊə ˈmɪnɪts ˈheɪsn tə ðeər end/

Each changing place with that which goes before,
/iːtʃ ˈtʃeɪndʒɪŋ pleɪs wɪð ðæt wɪtʃ gəʊz bɪˈfɔː/

In sequent toil all forwards do contend.
/ɪn ˈsiːkwənt tɔɪl ɔːl ˈfɔːwədz duː kənˈtend/

Nativity, once in the main of light,
/nəˈtɪvɪtɪ wʌns ɪn ðə meɪn ɒv laɪt/

Crawls to maturity, wherewith being crown'd,
/krɔːlz tə məˈtjʊərɪtɪ weəˈwɪθ ˈbiːɪŋ kraʊnd/

Crooked eclipses gainst his glory fight,
/krʊkt ɪˈklɪpsɪz geɪnst hɪz ˈglɔːrɪ faɪt/

And Time that gave doth now his gift confound.
/ænd taɪm ðæt geɪv dʌθ naʊ hɪz gɪft kənˈfaʊnd/

Time doth transfix the flourish set on youth
/taɪm dʌθ trænsˈfɪks ðə ˈflʌrɪʃ set ɒn juːθ/

And delves the parallels in beauty's brow,
​/ænd delvz ðə ˈpærəlelz ɪn ˈbjuːtɪz braʊ/

Feeds on the rarities of nature's truth,
/fiːdz ɒn ðə ˈreərɪtɪz ɒv ˈneɪtʃəz truːθ/

And nothing stands but for his scythe to mow:
/ænd ˈnʌθɪŋ stændz bʌt fə hɪz saɪð tə maʊ/

And yet to times in hope my verse shall stand,
/ænd jet tə taɪmz ɪn həʊp maɪ vɜːs ʃæl stænd/

Praising thy worth, despite his cruel hand.
/ˈpreɪzɪŋ ðaɪ wɜːθ dɪsˈpaɪt hɪz krʊəl hænd/

Modern translation

As the waves move toward the pebbled shore, so do the minutes we have to live hasten toward their end, each moment changing place with the one before, striving to move forward with successive efforts.

Everything that has been born, though it once swam in that broad ocean of light that exists before birth, crawls its way up the shores of maturity, where it faces cruel obstacles to its glory.

Time, which gives everything, now destroys its own gift. Time pierces the beauty of youth, drawing wrinkles in beauty’s forehead. Time devours the choicest specimens of nature; nothing exists that it won’t mow down with its scythe.
​
​And yet my verses will last into the future, praising your worth despite Time’s cruel hand.

Summery 'check list' to keep in mind

Sit or stand upright and allow length to come into your neck. Relax your jaw, imagine you have a small plum in your mouth that creates a little space in the mid to back area. Keep the air moving forward as you speak and aim to bounce words off your 'gum ridge' before they leave your mouth. Also ever so slightly consider using your lips to shape some of the rounder sounding vowels. Stay light and delicate with the words as they need less energy than you might think. Drop 'r' endings in favour of the schwa 'ə'. Let the  front of your tongue do the work and don't let the back of it start to get in the way. Most importantly Ganga... t a k e  y o u r  t i m e:)

THIS WEEKS SOUNDS TO WORK ON - eɪ - iː - ɔɪ

11. FACE - eɪ 
Typical Spellings: (a) aCe; (b) aiC, ay, ey, eiC, aig; (c) ea (a)

tape, late, cake, safe, case,
babe, fade, vague, age, wave, bathe, craze,
name, mane, vale,
change, waste, 
taper, bacon, nature, station, lady, raven, invasion, April, 
bass (in music), gauge, gaol/jail, crêpe, fete, bouquet ;
(b) wait, faith, plaice, aitch, raid, nail, main, faint,  day, play, way, grey/gray, 
rein, veil, beige, feint, 
they, whey, obey, 
weigh, weight, eight, straight, reign, campaign, deign, 
(c) great, steak, break, yea.

17. CHOICE - ɔɪ
Typical Spellings: oy, oiC

(a) boy, toy, joy, annoy, oyster...; noise, voice, choice, rejoice, void, moist.

(b) coin, join, oil, boil, soil, spoil, toil, poison, ointment.
buoy, employ.
​
(c) groin, hoist, joist.

10. FLEECE - iː
Typical Spellings: (a) e, ee, eCe (b) ea, oeC (c) i (a) creep, meet, seek, beech, reef, teeth,
​
seed, sleeve, seethe, cheese,
seem, green, feel,
see, tree, agree,
needle, feeder, sweeten,
grebe, these, Peter, even,
shriek, brief, piece, believe, field,
ceiling, Keith, Sheila,
be, me, 
key, people;

(b) reap, meat, speak, teach, leaf, beneath, peace, leash, bead, league, leave, breathe, please,
team, mean, deal,
sea, tea,
feast, reason, weasel, easy, Easter, metre, equal, decent, legal, penal, complete, scene,
deceive, receive, seize,
Caesar, an(a)emic, Aesop,...; phoenix, subpoena, f (o)etus, quay;
​
(c) police, unique, machine, prestige, elite, mosquito, casino, visa, trio, ski, chic, ...;

THE LINKLATER SCALE

Hi Ganga. Below is the Kristen Linklater Scale which we briefly discussed on Thursday. There are more areas on the scale than we went through. But as I'm sure you will understand, each word can be imaginatively associated with the corresponding parts of the body. Have a play with it and see how it influences your approach to discovering resonance in your body.

Autobiography in Five Short Chapters, by Portia Nelson  
A poem about changing habits

Chapter I
I walk down the street.
There is a deep hole in the sidewalk.
I fall in.
I am lost… I am hopeless.
It isn’t my fault.
It takes forever to find a way out.
Chapter II
I walk down the same street.
There is a deep hole in the sidewalk.
I pretend I don’t see it.
I fall in again.
I can’t believe I am in this same place.
But it isn’t my fault.
It still takes a long time to get out.
Chapter III
I walk down the same street.
There is a deep hole in the sidewalk.
I see it there.
I still fall in… it’s a habit… but,
my eyes are open.
I know where I am.
It is my fault.
I get out immediately.
Chapter IV
I walk down the same street.
There is a deep hole in the sidewalk.
I walk around it.
Chapter V
I walk down another street.

Articulation exercises - For the tongue

Leave the lazy lion alone
If you delay longer, were likely to be late
The dull light from the candle burned slowly in the lamp Lay on your pillow and swallow the pill
Don’t touch those taps till I return
The butler stopped to eat a toffee
I got wet while I was out
Take a tube to Tewkesbury
Let’s eat a lot of tomatoes today
He wrote his diary until dinner was ready
He didn’t want to admit that the leader was right It’s terribly difficult to annunciate a lot of t’s
The door down the corridor slammed to
Shall we shut the shop?
The shepherd had been shot in the shoulder Quick, catch and kick the ball
The choir came carolling at Christmas
He parked his car close to the cliff
He grabbed the grapes greedily from grandad’s garden

Articulation exercises - For the Lips

​Pass the pens and pencils please
Packing pickles poses problems
Apparently the representative was appealing for support
The apples appear to be dropping haphazardly
The stupid spider disappeared into the upturned barrel
The perspiring pianist performed perfectly 
Betty baked a better batch of buns
Bobby burst the big blue balloon
Why will you worry?
Wendy watched the weasel walking
Where are the watches we wanted?
Wild winds and wet weather
Walter watched while we were walking
You are a fool to do it
You lose too many shoes
We choose the removing men
The beautiful blue balloon 
Do go through and look at Sue

---

OUR LATEST MEETING 11.11.2021

GANGA'S DAILY POST YOGA VOICE WORK!

Check and read through daily before practice.
​Remember to be curious rather than too critical :)

• Sit or stand upright and allow length to come into your neck. 
• Relax your jaw, imagine you have a small plum in your mouth that creates a little space in the mid to back area. 
• Keep the air moving forward as you speak and aim to bounce words off your 'gum ridge' before they leave your mouth. 
• Consider using your lips more to shape some of the rounder sounding vowels. 
• Stay light and delicate with the words as they need less energy than you might think. 
• Drop 'r' endings in favour of the schwa 'ə'. 
• Let the front of your tongue do the work and don't let the back of it start to get in the way. 
• Remember T, is unvoiced while D is voiced. However,  they are created in exactly the same way with your tongue tip tapping on the roof of your mouth. 
• The characteristics of this accent are Direct, Sustained and Light! - The term is ‘GLIDING' 
• Most importantly Ganga... t a k e   y o u r   t i m e ! ! 

15 MINUTE DAILY WORK VIDEO (AND CHECKLIST)

1. Read the notes above  before yoga (and maybe just before bed also)
2. After yoga, sit, or kneel, and hum. Starting low; imagine the vibrations move into your legs and pelvis.
3. Now move the hum up and with it the imagination of where sound might follow, bring it as high as you can (without effort)
4. Yawn whilst keeping your little finger in your mouth so as not to open it too wide - do this until starts to ache a little.
5. Tongue trills up and down the scale
6. Lip trill up and down the scale
7. Do both lip and tongue trill together up and down the scale.
8. Connect the idea of vibrations of sound with the Linklater scale (below)
9. Practice the three sentences below as well as you can with the accent.
10. If you have time, record yourself and check back. But don't be too critical... be curious!

-THREE SENTENCES TO MASTER-
​You can do it!

All the vowel phonemes are in this sentence.
'Through good tone all not part must serve and then shape fit speech'

/ɒ/ This is a key sound for you to pay attention to.
'DOT GOT HOT WHILE SITTING ON THE POT. OLIVE AND SPOT, DID NOT’

Just one more for fun.
'Rodger and Mary were out getting leeks,
when a dog came and bit one with extra sharp teeth'