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Accentuate the Beat TM master

Paddy Kennedy
Paddy Kennedy

This document discusses how mastering the stress, rhythm, and intonation patterns of spoken English can help non-native English speakers reduce their foreign accents and be more easily understood. It provides examples of how English is spoken in sound units rather than individual words, and how the rhythms and cadences of English are influenced by genres like jazz music. The author coaches a client from Brazil who was embarrassed by her strong accent; through focusing on the musical qualities of speech, she gains confidence and improves her ability to communicate in English.

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22 WHERE LEADERS ARE MADE
23TOASTMASTER NOVEMBER 2012 I was afraid to fail in job interviews, and to sound ridiculous over the phone or even at an informal gathering with friends. Katia Meirelles yourself understood in English is imperative for those who want to express their thoughts to an English- speaking audience. But doing this poses a problem for the international, or English as a Foreign Language (EFL), speaker of English, since speaking skills are the most difficult of all language skills to master. Speak- ing skills are also the least studied and practiced in most international- language school curricula. Spoken international business Eng- lish remains a great stumbling block for professionals who are EFL speak- ers. Foreign accent interference is the number one challenge restricting the open exchange of world-class solu- tions to worldwide problems. Some of the worlds great ideas are not be- ing fully or clearly articulated simply because many EFL speakers feel inad- equate, intimidated or inconsequential speaking up at meetings because of their foreign accents. Yet this doesnt have to be the case. By learning, understanding and using the basic vocal features known as intonation, rhythm and stress, Learn the jazzy cadences of English to reduce your accent. By Paddy Kennedy I love the English language. Its a magnificent communication toolone that has successfully spread its lexicon around the globe for more than 500 years. Throughout the world, English words are commonly heard and seen: hamburger, TV, blue jeans, OK, airport, stop, golf, tennis, no problem, and more. These English-isms, and hundreds more like them, have successfully infiltrated the vocabularies of many worlds languages. Indeed, English has been the lingua franca of the worlds of business, entertainment and international affairs since the dawn of the British Empire. (Today, the form of English used most is Standard North American English.) The Economist reports that, today, two-thirds of all scientific papers are published in English. Nearly half of all business deals in Europe are conducted in English. More than two-thirds of the worlds daily emails are written in English. English is the official language of Toastmasters International. Since communication skills, par- ticularly oral communication skills, are essential to success in business, making Accentuate the Beat EFL speakers can successfully convey meaning and be clearly heard and understood in the process. An Accent Is Not a Problem Many international speakers of Eng- lish, such as the globally popular ac- tors Jackie Chan and Penelope Cruz, have strong accents, yet they are both well understood by native speakers of English. They both make lucrative livings in spite of their accents. Why? We love their accents. In fact, we love accents of all kindsso long as the speaker is speaking in accordance with the sounds of English, or what we call the pitch and rhythms of English. As long as the sounds are harmonious to our English-speaking ear, native speakers can easily under- stand foreign accents. Chan and Cruz speak in harmo- ny with the rhythms, intonation and cadence patterns of North American English. They have mastered where to place stress within a sentence and how to easily manage the beats and rhythms of the language. As someone who coaches business professionals on accent reduction, I know that the problem for most EFL speakers is not in the fact that they have accents; rather, its simply that they have not yet trained their ear to hear the basic sound patterns of Englishi.e.,
24 WHERE LEADERS ARE MADE felt so embarrassed, she told me recently. I was afraid to fail in job interviews, and to sound ridiculous over the phone or even at an infor- mal gathering with friends. But as we worked together, Katia learned to pay attention to the musi- cal quality of words and sentences, and how to relax and exercise the tongue and the muscles of the mouth. My speaking has really improved, says Katia, who now works for Ita炭 Private Bank International, which does business throughout the world. I became confident that I could be understood in any situation, because English became much easier for me to understand. melodies of English, they can sing along with the vast repertoire of its enormous songbook. A case in point is Katia Meirelles, whom I coached for more than a year while she was living and work- ing in New York City. When Katia moved to New York from Brazil, people made fun of her because of her strong accent. She says some would even mimic her. I always the rise and fall of the voice, the uses of stress and de-stress, and the pitch variations used in every oral expression. Subsequently, they are not yet speaking in harmony with the intonation and cadence patterns of the language. Most often, the problem lies in the fact that they are applying the sound patterns of their mother tongue to their spoken English. Once EFL speakers hear and grasp the You must train your ear to hear the way in which native speakers speak. JAZZ UP YOUR ENGLISH Lingua franca: a language that is adopted as a common language between speakers whose native languages are different. English has been the lin- gua franca of international commerce since the 16th century. The form of English used most today is Standard North American English (SNAE). SNAE pronuncia- tion and accent patterns are akin to the sound patterns of American jazz. Believe it or not, hearing, learning and using the jazzy stress, rhythm and into- nation patterns of SNAE are not difficult skills to learn and use. Heres how to do it: Develop a great ear. Listen to how things are said. Imitate what you hear. Record English-speaking podcasts and radio and TV programs as often as you can. Play them back, while repeatedly stopping them to give yourself time to imitate exactly what you have just heard in exactly the same way it was said. Exaggerate to start. Make your sounds big. Make your North American accent sound over the top. Then, after a few practices, use a normal voice to say the sounds. Youll be shocked at how much youve improved. Dont be shy. Allow yourself the freedom to play with the sounds. Experiment. Have fun. Try to sound just like the native speakers you hear around you. Remember: Practice makes perfect! Speaking in Sound Units Typically, learners of EFL are taught structure, lexicon, the functions of grammar and the parts of speech. They are taught in classrooms with textbooks open. They are taught English word by word, function by function, with a strong emphasis on word order, vocabulary and grammar. Although EFL students are taught pronunciation, rarely are they taught accent reduction. When learning to actually speak English, its best to temporarily put aside everything already learned from textbooks. Why? Because in the class- room we learn new languages word by word, but outside the classroom we do not speak word by word. Rather, we speak in very melodic sound units, especially in English. You must train your ear to hear the
25TOASTMASTER NOVEMBER 2012 I never said he stole the money. (meaning: he didnt steal the money; he may have stolen the jewels, however.) This seven-word sentence can have seven different meanings just by changing where the stress is placed within the sentence. Stress, tone of voice, rhythm and pausesthese are the musical elements of speaking English well. Speak to be Heard Even if your English grammar is Cambridge University-perfect, and you can correctly pronounce all of the individual vowel and consonant sounds of English, foreign accent interference will continue to block the expression of your ideas, concepts and solutions until you master the stress, rhythm and intonation patterns of spoken English. The good news: Once you train your ear, youre well on your way. Begin to listen to how things are being said. Explore. Be curious. Get out of the box. The only way to beat foreign accent interference is to practice, practice and practice speaking like a native speaker. Youll be amazed at how great you sound. T though your mother tongue is still evident, you will be easily heard and understood because you are in sync with the resonances of the language. Its Not What You Say but How You Say It This old adage has been around for a long time, and it speaks clearly to learning and practicing accent reduction. North American English is heavily stress- or beat-driven. Its articulation and stress patterns are strongly influenced by the speakers emotions and intended meaning. Take, for example, the following seven-word sentence: I never said he stole the money. Where we put the stress within the sentence depends Paddy Kennedy is a former area and division governor from District 53. She is founder and principal of Kennedy Communication Studio in Victoria, British Columbia, Canada, where she coaches business professionals on international business- communication strategy, accent reduction and intercultural etiquette. Contact Paddy at paddy@communicatesuccess.com. way in which native speakers speak. Learn to hear the words within the melody of the sound units, rather than as individual words as they would ap- pear written on the page. For example, American mystery novelist Ann Cook explains in her book American Accent Training that we dont say Bob is on the phone. We say Bobizon thephonetwo separate sound units. How are you? sounds like Howareyou? one sound unit. Good evening, fellow Toastmasters sounds like Goodevening fellowtoastmasters two sound units. North Americans shorten and contract words, gliding them together harmoniously into melodies. We love accents of all kindsso long as the speaker is speaking in accordance with the sounds of English. The sound units of Standard North American English are steeped in the rhythm patterns of the indig- enous music of the United States American jazz. As you train your ear, you begin to hear the many sounds of North American English that are so often contracted and staccato, like Charlie Parkers saxophone playing: Should have becomes shouldve, going to becomes gonna,they will becomes theyll. Other sounds glide together as smoothly and as sensually as the sounds of Chet Bakers trumpet: Smooth as silk sounds like smoooooth asilk. As you begin to speak how you hear, youll realize that your accent is not the problem. Youll begin to focus on the sounds of what is being said. Once you begin to speak in harmony with these sounds, even upon the emotion we want to convey while making this statement: I never said he stole the money. (meaning: I didnt say it;someone else said it!) I never said he stole the money. (meaning: I never said it; I did not!) I never said he stole the money. (meaning: I never said he stole it; I may have insinuated it.) I never said he stole the money. (meaning: I didnt mean him; I meant someone else.) I never said he stole the money. (meaning: I didnt say he stole it; I said he borrowed it!) I never said he stole the money. (meaning: not the special money; he stole some other money.)

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Accentuate the Beat TM master

  • 1. 22 WHERE LEADERS ARE MADE
  • 2. 23TOASTMASTER NOVEMBER 2012 I was afraid to fail in job interviews, and to sound ridiculous over the phone or even at an informal gathering with friends. Katia Meirelles yourself understood in English is imperative for those who want to express their thoughts to an English- speaking audience. But doing this poses a problem for the international, or English as a Foreign Language (EFL), speaker of English, since speaking skills are the most difficult of all language skills to master. Speak- ing skills are also the least studied and practiced in most international- language school curricula. Spoken international business Eng- lish remains a great stumbling block for professionals who are EFL speak- ers. Foreign accent interference is the number one challenge restricting the open exchange of world-class solu- tions to worldwide problems. Some of the worlds great ideas are not be- ing fully or clearly articulated simply because many EFL speakers feel inad- equate, intimidated or inconsequential speaking up at meetings because of their foreign accents. Yet this doesnt have to be the case. By learning, understanding and using the basic vocal features known as intonation, rhythm and stress, Learn the jazzy cadences of English to reduce your accent. By Paddy Kennedy I love the English language. Its a magnificent communication toolone that has successfully spread its lexicon around the globe for more than 500 years. Throughout the world, English words are commonly heard and seen: hamburger, TV, blue jeans, OK, airport, stop, golf, tennis, no problem, and more. These English-isms, and hundreds more like them, have successfully infiltrated the vocabularies of many worlds languages. Indeed, English has been the lingua franca of the worlds of business, entertainment and international affairs since the dawn of the British Empire. (Today, the form of English used most is Standard North American English.) The Economist reports that, today, two-thirds of all scientific papers are published in English. Nearly half of all business deals in Europe are conducted in English. More than two-thirds of the worlds daily emails are written in English. English is the official language of Toastmasters International. Since communication skills, par- ticularly oral communication skills, are essential to success in business, making Accentuate the Beat EFL speakers can successfully convey meaning and be clearly heard and understood in the process. An Accent Is Not a Problem Many international speakers of Eng- lish, such as the globally popular ac- tors Jackie Chan and Penelope Cruz, have strong accents, yet they are both well understood by native speakers of English. They both make lucrative livings in spite of their accents. Why? We love their accents. In fact, we love accents of all kindsso long as the speaker is speaking in accordance with the sounds of English, or what we call the pitch and rhythms of English. As long as the sounds are harmonious to our English-speaking ear, native speakers can easily under- stand foreign accents. Chan and Cruz speak in harmo- ny with the rhythms, intonation and cadence patterns of North American English. They have mastered where to place stress within a sentence and how to easily manage the beats and rhythms of the language. As someone who coaches business professionals on accent reduction, I know that the problem for most EFL speakers is not in the fact that they have accents; rather, its simply that they have not yet trained their ear to hear the basic sound patterns of Englishi.e.,
  • 3. 24 WHERE LEADERS ARE MADE felt so embarrassed, she told me recently. I was afraid to fail in job interviews, and to sound ridiculous over the phone or even at an infor- mal gathering with friends. But as we worked together, Katia learned to pay attention to the musi- cal quality of words and sentences, and how to relax and exercise the tongue and the muscles of the mouth. My speaking has really improved, says Katia, who now works for Ita炭 Private Bank International, which does business throughout the world. I became confident that I could be understood in any situation, because English became much easier for me to understand. melodies of English, they can sing along with the vast repertoire of its enormous songbook. A case in point is Katia Meirelles, whom I coached for more than a year while she was living and work- ing in New York City. When Katia moved to New York from Brazil, people made fun of her because of her strong accent. She says some would even mimic her. I always the rise and fall of the voice, the uses of stress and de-stress, and the pitch variations used in every oral expression. Subsequently, they are not yet speaking in harmony with the intonation and cadence patterns of the language. Most often, the problem lies in the fact that they are applying the sound patterns of their mother tongue to their spoken English. Once EFL speakers hear and grasp the You must train your ear to hear the way in which native speakers speak. JAZZ UP YOUR ENGLISH Lingua franca: a language that is adopted as a common language between speakers whose native languages are different. English has been the lin- gua franca of international commerce since the 16th century. The form of English used most today is Standard North American English (SNAE). SNAE pronuncia- tion and accent patterns are akin to the sound patterns of American jazz. Believe it or not, hearing, learning and using the jazzy stress, rhythm and into- nation patterns of SNAE are not difficult skills to learn and use. Heres how to do it: Develop a great ear. Listen to how things are said. Imitate what you hear. Record English-speaking podcasts and radio and TV programs as often as you can. Play them back, while repeatedly stopping them to give yourself time to imitate exactly what you have just heard in exactly the same way it was said. Exaggerate to start. Make your sounds big. Make your North American accent sound over the top. Then, after a few practices, use a normal voice to say the sounds. Youll be shocked at how much youve improved. Dont be shy. Allow yourself the freedom to play with the sounds. Experiment. Have fun. Try to sound just like the native speakers you hear around you. Remember: Practice makes perfect! Speaking in Sound Units Typically, learners of EFL are taught structure, lexicon, the functions of grammar and the parts of speech. They are taught in classrooms with textbooks open. They are taught English word by word, function by function, with a strong emphasis on word order, vocabulary and grammar. Although EFL students are taught pronunciation, rarely are they taught accent reduction. When learning to actually speak English, its best to temporarily put aside everything already learned from textbooks. Why? Because in the class- room we learn new languages word by word, but outside the classroom we do not speak word by word. Rather, we speak in very melodic sound units, especially in English. You must train your ear to hear the
  • 4. 25TOASTMASTER NOVEMBER 2012 I never said he stole the money. (meaning: he didnt steal the money; he may have stolen the jewels, however.) This seven-word sentence can have seven different meanings just by changing where the stress is placed within the sentence. Stress, tone of voice, rhythm and pausesthese are the musical elements of speaking English well. Speak to be Heard Even if your English grammar is Cambridge University-perfect, and you can correctly pronounce all of the individual vowel and consonant sounds of English, foreign accent interference will continue to block the expression of your ideas, concepts and solutions until you master the stress, rhythm and intonation patterns of spoken English. The good news: Once you train your ear, youre well on your way. Begin to listen to how things are being said. Explore. Be curious. Get out of the box. The only way to beat foreign accent interference is to practice, practice and practice speaking like a native speaker. Youll be amazed at how great you sound. T though your mother tongue is still evident, you will be easily heard and understood because you are in sync with the resonances of the language. Its Not What You Say but How You Say It This old adage has been around for a long time, and it speaks clearly to learning and practicing accent reduction. North American English is heavily stress- or beat-driven. Its articulation and stress patterns are strongly influenced by the speakers emotions and intended meaning. Take, for example, the following seven-word sentence: I never said he stole the money. Where we put the stress within the sentence depends Paddy Kennedy is a former area and division governor from District 53. She is founder and principal of Kennedy Communication Studio in Victoria, British Columbia, Canada, where she coaches business professionals on international business- communication strategy, accent reduction and intercultural etiquette. Contact Paddy at paddy@communicatesuccess.com. way in which native speakers speak. Learn to hear the words within the melody of the sound units, rather than as individual words as they would ap- pear written on the page. For example, American mystery novelist Ann Cook explains in her book American Accent Training that we dont say Bob is on the phone. We say Bobizon thephonetwo separate sound units. How are you? sounds like Howareyou? one sound unit. Good evening, fellow Toastmasters sounds like Goodevening fellowtoastmasters two sound units. North Americans shorten and contract words, gliding them together harmoniously into melodies. We love accents of all kindsso long as the speaker is speaking in accordance with the sounds of English. The sound units of Standard North American English are steeped in the rhythm patterns of the indig- enous music of the United States American jazz. As you train your ear, you begin to hear the many sounds of North American English that are so often contracted and staccato, like Charlie Parkers saxophone playing: Should have becomes shouldve, going to becomes gonna,they will becomes theyll. Other sounds glide together as smoothly and as sensually as the sounds of Chet Bakers trumpet: Smooth as silk sounds like smoooooth asilk. As you begin to speak how you hear, youll realize that your accent is not the problem. Youll begin to focus on the sounds of what is being said. Once you begin to speak in harmony with these sounds, even upon the emotion we want to convey while making this statement: I never said he stole the money. (meaning: I didnt say it;someone else said it!) I never said he stole the money. (meaning: I never said it; I did not!) I never said he stole the money. (meaning: I never said he stole it; I may have insinuated it.) I never said he stole the money. (meaning: I didnt mean him; I meant someone else.) I never said he stole the money. (meaning: I didnt say he stole it; I said he borrowed it!) I never said he stole the money. (meaning: not the special money; he stole some other money.)