Hi there and welcome back to engVid. Today's lesson is to make sure that you are understood,
because you could learn all the vocabulary in the world, but if you're not being understood
by speaking clearly, then there's very little point. So today's lesson is to teach you a
few exercises to ensure that your speech is as crisp and clear as possible.
Now, I've got a number of exercises which I've written up on the board which are to
help strengthen the muscles in your face and your mouth to help your speech become clear.
Now, the words, and sentences, and phrases written up here are not meant to make sense.
Okay? So this is not a language lesson. If you're not sure of what a word means, then
I suggest look it up in a dictionary, but it may be a word that is not currently used
in English, contemporary English. And the other thing I wanted to point out is that
it's not just going to be by watching this video that you become clear. I will show you
a number of exercises, but if you really want to take it to a next level, you will have
to go off and see a voice teacher who will then be able to say to you: "You need to focus
on your s sounds", or: "You need to focus on your d sounds", but then you have these
exercises to help you. I hope that's clear.
Okay, so I will go through this once slowly, and then I'll do it at full speed. The aim
with these articulation exercises is to go nice and slowly so that you're getting each
sound correctly, and then to start doing it as fast as you can, because that really works
the muscles. Okay?
So, in the top left of your screen you'll see this is an exercises for... An exercise
for s sounds, p sounds, c sounds, and to some extent, b and d as well. Ready? Let's go.
"To sit in solemn silence in a dull, dark, dock. In a pestilential prison with a life-long
lock. Awaiting the sensation of a short, sharp, shock. From a cheap and chippy chopper on
a big, black block." Okay. I'll now do this at full speed. "To sit in solemn silence in
a dull, dark, dock. In a pestilential prison with a life-long lock. Awaiting the sensation
of a short, sharp, shock. From a cheap and chippy chopper on a big, black block." Okay?
And on to our t and d sounds. So, t and d is used with the tongue going up towards what
is called the alveolar ridge in your mouth. So you should feel your tongue going up to
get this sound correctly. Again, slowly and then at full speed. "In tooting two tutors
astute tried to toot a duke on a flute. But duets so gruelling and only in duelling when
tutors astute toot the flute." That should say "toot", let's put another t there. Again.
"In tooting two tutors astute tried to toot a duke on a flute. But duets so gruelling
and only in duelling when tutors astute toot the flute." Weird.
Okay, and on to m, h, and i. "She stood on the balcony..." Okay? So try to get that "l"
there, the "l" rising up to the roof of your mouth. "Inexplicably mimicking", so the m
sound: "mmm", lips together. Mmm. "Mimicking him hiccupping", so a nice open mouth of "h",
"h", for the h sound. "Hiccupping and amicably welcome... Welcoming him home." It's quite
hard to get the "ing" there. "Welcoming him home. She stood on the balcony inexplimy-..."
Got it wrong. Start again. "She stood on the balcony inexplicably mimicking him hiccupping
and amicably welcoming him home." Okay? So you really got to move your mouth to get that...
Those sounds correctly.
I've put f, v, and "th" together because you must make sure that there is a difference
between your "th" sounds and your f and your v. This is something I learnt after a long...
Lots of long, hard practice at drama school, but it... You know, your "th", your tongue
has to go up to the top of your mouth, and sort of tick, tick the teeth. "Ff", okay?
The f and v sound is more made by... You got your lip there, and air coming out. "Five
flippant Frenchmen fly from France for fashions. Five flippant Frenchmen fly from France for
fashions".
"V", bit more of a buzz with the v. "Vincent vowed vengeance very vehemently. Vincent vowed
vengeance very vehemently. Vincent vowed vengeance very vehemently".
"Th". "This thin, that thatch, these themes, those thorns, the thug they thank. This thin,
that thatch, these themes, those thorns, the thug they thank." Let's have some more.
Okay, so on to d, k, and l. And another note on this, as you're going along, try and really
get a range in your pitch and intonation. So it's not just the sounds, but you're seeing:
How high can you go on your register, how low can you go? And you're playing around
with the sounds. Actually, while we're on that note, this is an exercise for exactly...
For exactly that. "I scream, you scream, we all scream for ice cream." Okay? We're trying
to get a nice rise and, you know, flow and ebb in your pronunciation. If you're watching
this, having watched my video for Polish speakers, then this is exactly for you. Obviously not
all, but some. Okay? Let's go again. "I scream, you scream, we all scream for ice cream."
Try it and sound silly, okay? And, so, we're playing around with sound in these exercises.
It's not something you should think about when you're actually talking to someone, but
you do the work with your... In your sort of speech practice and then hopefully when
you're actually speaking to people it will... You'll come across as being more expressive.
Right.
Ds. "Do drop in at the Dewdrop Inn. Do drop in at the Dewdrop Inn." Okay? And remember
to get the "at" there. "At". Let's go on to k. "Kiss her quick, kiss her quicker, kiss
her quickest." Okay? How fast can you say that? "Kiss her quick, kiss her quicker, kiss
her quickest." L: "Larry sent the latter a letter later." La, la, la. Tongue's really
got to move, there, in your mouth. "Larry sent the latter a letter later."
And on to j, "je", so to make that sound your tongue is vibrating at the top of your mouth:
"j, j, j, je". "Jean just jostled James gently. Jean just jostled James gently." On to q and
r. So this is just repeating quickly, quickly, quickly, quickly, quickly, quickly, quickly,
quickly, quickly, quickly, quickly, quickly, quickly, quickly, quickly, quickly.
Rah. "Reading and writing are richly rewarding", and so is watching engVid. "Reading and writing
are richly rewarding." This is from a play called The Pirates of Penzance. Yes? Not of
the Caribbean, of Penzance. On a map of Britain, it's down there right in the corner, Penzance,
it's like... It's near where Land's End is, it's the last stop on the trail line... Train
line down to Cornwall. It was written by Gilbert and Sullivan. This is not the whole text.
There is a slightly elongated version of it, but this is what I could fit on the board
so we'll give it a go. What we have here is it's like an amalgamation of all the different
sounds that you should be able to pronounce clearly. Okay? It doesn't really mean much.
"I am the very pattern of a modern Major-General. I've information vegetable, animal and mineral,
I know the Kings of England and I quote the fights historical, I understand equations,
both simple and quadratical. I'm very good at integral and differential calculus. I know
the scientific names of beings and animaculous. In short, in matters vegetable, animal, and
mineral, I am the very model of a modern Major-General." Okay? Let's go one more time. "I am the very
pattern of a modern Major-General. I've information vegetable, animal and mineral, I know the
Kings of England and I quote the fights historical, I understand equations, both simple and quadratical.
I'm very good at integral and differential calculus. I know the scientific names of beings
and animaculous. In short"... Just a point, something I want to say here: When you're
breathing try not to go: "Uh, uh, uh" from here, so try to keep bringing it in so you're
breathing from down here. "In short, in matters vegetable, animal, and mineral, I am the very
model of a modern Major-General."
Okay, I want you to go off and have some fun with these, maybe take some screenshots so
you've got pictures of these on your phone, and then when you're... When you've brushed
your teeth in the morning, have a quick go at them. "Right, yeah, Benjamin said learn
these, let's do them." See ya next time. Quickly, quickly, quickly, quickly, quickly, quickly,
quickly, quickly, quickly, quickly, quickly, quickly, quickly, quickly, quickly.