The sounds: phonetics

1.2 Spelling vs. pronunciation: the representation of speech sounds

- Due to a letter, or a sequence thereof, differing in actual pronunciation if found in different words
and not corresponding one-to-one with sounds in the first place, it is clear that we need a way to
symbolize sounds. These systems that try to bind a symbol to every individual, relevant sound,
already exist. The most common of these standardized transcription systems is the International
Phonetic Alphabet (IPA). The British-English (RP=Received pronunciation) and the American version
of this can be found in the book (6-7). <sock>; [sɒk]

1.3 Producing sounds

1.3.1 The nature of speech sounds

-Only in a minority of languages is sound produced with inhalation, in English as well as most others,
it occurs with exhalation.

-Our ability to produce different sounds stems from our ability to obstruct the air passing through in
many varied ways, therefore changing its amount of vibrations and frequency.

1.3.2 The vocal tract

-For each of the unique sounds that we can produce, the airstream is modified in a unique way by
the organs depicted in the graphic depiction of the so-called vocal tract and its individual articulators
(parts of the vocal apparatus involved in speech production)

-active articulators include all articulators that can move, e.g. tongue, lips and the lower jaw
-passive articulators include all that cannot move, e.g. the upper teeth, the hard palate etc.
1.4 How sounds differ from each other, the classification of speech sounds

1.4.1 The classification of consonants

-Place of articulation: the closest constriction in the vocal tract

Bilabial (involving both lips); Alveolar (obstruction at the alveolar ridge); Labio-dentals (lower lips
and upper teeth); Dental (tongue immediately behind upper front teeth); Interdental (protruding
between upper and lower front teeth); palate alveolar (between the hard palate and the alveolar
ridge); Palatal (tongue towards the hard palate); Velar (obstruction at the velum); Glottal (air-stream
obstructed at the glottis);

-Manner of articulation: Production methods of consonants

Stop/Plosives (a complete stop of the airflow followed by a release) [p, b, t, d, k, g]; Fricatives (the
passage through which air can escape is very narrow, creating audible friction) [f, v, h, s, z, θ, ð, ʃ, ʒ];
Affricates (A stoppage of the air-flow followed by a prolonged release with only a narrow opening
and therefore audible friction) [tʃ, dʒ]; Approximants (articulators approach each other, but do not
cause a strong constriction in the vocal tract) further subdivided into liquids [l, ɹ] and glides/semi-
vowels [w, j]; Nasals (Air escaping through the noise due to the velum opening up and letting it) [m,
n, ŋ].

- Voiceless: The vocal cords are open and thus do not vibrate upon uttering the according sound [p, t,
k, tʃ, f, θ, s, ʃ, h]

- Voiced: The elastic vocal cords are closed, and thus the air forcing itself through them creates a
vibration as they rapidly open and close.

1.4.2 The classification of vowels

- Since the tongue is the only variable involved in the production of vowel-sounds it is the criteria
that needs to be used to distinguish between them. Introducing vowel frontness and vowel height
(in relation to the quadrangle in the graphic, which itself stands in relation to the tongue.)
- Why are i: (beat) and ɪ(bit) in the same bracket? How can we distinguish them? One way is in the
length of the two sounds. E.g. i: (long) is a long high front vowel, indicated as such by the colon after
the vowel symbol, while ɪ (short) is a short high front vowel. Coincidentally longer vowels require a
stronger muscular activity to produce, which is why they are sometimes referred to as ‘tense’ or
whereas shorter ones are ‘lax’.

- Another variable is the position of the lips. E.g. The lips are spread for [i:] but pursed for [u:]. We
divide vowels which are produced this way into rounded [u:, ʊ, ɔ:] and unrounded is everything else.

- The particular vowel sounds in which there is a change in auditory quality within a single syllable are
called diphthongs [eɪ, aɪ, ɔɪ, əʊ, aʊ, ɪə, eə, ʊə]. For diphthongs we specify both the starting and the
end point of the articulation in the vowel space quadrat. E.g. aʊ is characterized by a movement from
low central to high back position.