Accent Sample Thread

Wintereis   Wed Jul 02, 2008 11:11 pm GMT
First, sorry for so many typing errors in my first post. Wednesday is much clearer in your second sample; however, I would try something a little more difficult. I think your pronunciation is advanced enough for you to go with a tongue twister for practice.

I found this page rather quickly: http://www.mrsmcgowan.com/projects/allitalphabet/index.html


For w's it has, "Walter wants winter weather". I would just practice it when you can. Your wednesday was on mark.

Really, I could never have guessed which nationality you were. And I have never met a person from the Orient who spoke English so well as you.
Sho   Thu Jul 03, 2008 1:36 pm GMT
Brian,
<<A little further west. ;) >>

Hmm, since you seem to have a very General American-like accent...
Probably somewhere in the Midwest?

JS,
Okay, so you're not from Asia. Well it's true that one can't really have "a typical Asian accent" whatsoever, since there are so many different languages.
However even though there are quite a few language groups / families in Asia, some accents are quite similar (particularly to an ear of a Westerner, I suppose).
So where are you from and what's your first language? Your accent is very interesting.

ID and Ed, I can't listen to your speech samples at the moment but I'll listen to them when I get home, and get back to you later:)
Thanks for your contribution!

Wintereis,
Thanks again for another piece of wonderful advice:)
Do you round your lips really close when you say the /w/? I realized I don't do so much rounding of the lips as I say English w's, and maybe it's a giveaway to sounding 'foreign'.
I might as well record myself speaking with a British accent and see how it works:)
T   Sun Jul 06, 2008 3:54 am GMT
Just curious - can anyone tell where this accent is from?

http://www.driveway.com/n1j0l3r0s5

(reading a snippet from wikipedia on trains)
star   Mon Jul 07, 2008 4:03 pm GMT
>> Just curious - can anyone tell where this accent is from?

http://www.driveway.com/n1j0l3r0s5

(reading a snippet from wikipedia on trains) <<

Sounds sort of Germanic. Danish perhaps?
star   Mon Jul 07, 2008 6:03 pm GMT
The most noticeable odd features I heard were the way you said "series"--you made it sound like see-reez rather than sih-reez. I would use the vowel sound that is in the word "bit" rather than "beat" in the first syllable. Sounds quite exotic with the "beat" vowel. Also you pronounced "two" almost like "tchue" or something, and your vowel in "maglev" sounded quite strange, almost like the "a" in "apple" rather than the "au" in "audience". But other than that, and your unusual intonation and pitch contours, your English is quite understandable. I can also tell that you learned American English. With a few changes you can significantly reduce your accent, and with a few years of practice you may even be able to sound like an American.
Guest   Mon Jul 07, 2008 6:45 pm GMT
<<Also it'd be great if you could comment on my accent:)
>>

Sho,

you sounded at first like a US upper Midwesterner, but then I caught what sounds like a Canadian accent to me. Am i right?
Guest   Mon Jul 07, 2008 8:27 pm GMT
Yeah, Sho's probably from the Midwest, but maybe has lived in Japan or Korea for a few years or something. He must have picked up some sort of Asian influences in his speech.
T   Tue Jul 08, 2008 12:30 am GMT
Star - good effort, but different language family ;)

Thanks for the pointers. Good catch on 'series'. As far as 'two' is concerned, I sometimes struggle with the abundant aspiration of stressed 't' in American English. On the topic of 'maglev', all my sources indicate that 'a' as in 'apple' is actually correct for GA.

The pitch and intonation contours have actually been the hardest for me to get right. Any suggestions on good ways to learn?
Sho   Tue Jul 08, 2008 1:41 pm GMT
The two Guests above,

Actually, I've spent almost my entire life in Japan. Daily contact with North Americans has lead me sound quite American (or maybe Canadian), but I've only been to the US once and that was only a 5-day stay, so that shouldn't count.

What is it that made me sound Midwestern, Canadian or Japanese? Is it my intonation, pronunciation or maybe my rhythm?

Thanks:)
UkAc-Orion   Wed Jul 09, 2008 3:36 pm GMT
Hello fellas, here is short audio clip of me reading some text about global spread of American slang. I would much appreciate your input. I will tell you where I'm from later. Think it's more fun that way.

D/L audio sample

http://boomp3.com/listen/bywf2uyf5_x/bigomamola
UkAc-Orion   Wed Jul 09, 2008 4:01 pm GMT
Sry, it obviously isn't about slang spread, rather randy mamola's column about motogp. lol, recorded two clips so got a bit confused.
Guest   Wed Jul 09, 2008 4:07 pm GMT
>> Hello fellas, here is short audio clip of me reading some text about global spread of American slang. I would much appreciate your input. I will tell you where I'm from later. Think it's more fun that way.

D/L audio sample
<<

Either the South or Japan. You pronounce your "I" sounds like "ah". Maybe Tennesse or Georgia.
UkAc-Orion   Wed Jul 09, 2008 7:28 pm GMT
I'm not quite sure what do GA and Japan have in common. Neway, thx for your input. It's interesting...
Daren   Tue Aug 05, 2008 5:27 am GMT
to JS
Hi JS, be honest, I do think you have a little bit Asian accent, cause I am from Asia.

For example, when you were saying "also", the "s" was pronunced with your tongue a litter bit further in your mouth. And that is what Chinese normally do.

For the "train", the "ai" was not formed fully, this is also a Chinese sound.

thanks for your sharing
rock   Tue Aug 05, 2008 1:11 pm GMT