Voice Synergy News
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Is it important to speak Queen’s English any more?
Queen’s English. BBC English. Non-regional specific English. What on earth is that? During the second World War (1939-1945), with men fighting overseas, women from across the UK took on new jobs outside the home, working in factories, on the land and in hospitals. These women worked together, they came from all sorts of backgrounds and…
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Repetition. Repetition. Repetition (some of the ingredients of ‘How to Make a Good Sales Speech’)
The long established, three golden rules of advertising: “Repetition, repetition, repetition” can work well when you are preparing to make a sales presentation too. Long ago, during marketing communication lectures at university, it was drawn to my attention that the potential buyer of your goods or services needs to receive your advertising message at least…
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How to speak more clearly
This month the spotlight is on articulation. Or, how to speak more clearly. Why should you bother with articulation or even be thinking about it? Articulation happens when we change, or shape, the basic sounds we make into sounds that can be understood. Our articulators are our tongue, lips, teeth and soft palate. A baby…
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Speech of Fire and Ice
“When you speak a language, it has to be authentic.” So says David Peterson, creator of Dothraki and Valyrian languages for HBO’s Game of Thrones. Those whose native tongue is Dothraki or Valyrian speak with an authenticity that gives an air of command and authority. The strong 18 consonant sounds superbly blended with the six…
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Why is the Italian accent so special?
Rossini, Puccini, Bellini… the great opera composers knew a thing or two about the Italian accent and how wonderfully the vowel sounds resonate at length around the opera halls. The sound of a long ‘ah’, ‘ee’ or ‘oo’ contributes so much to the atmosphere created by the singer and expresses the emotions of fear, despair…
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Voice recognition technology
Love it or loathe it? Voice recognition technology is all around us at every moment of the day. We can ask our smartphone what the weather will be tomorrow, dictate notes, or vocally activate a bank account transaction. But is voice recognition technology as good as it claims to be? A lighter take on the…
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Ditch the dull monotone! Wake up your voice!
The Greek word for “one tone” is monotonia, which is the root for both monotone and the closely-related word monotonous, which means “dull and tedious.” A continuous sound, especially someone’s voice, that doesn’t rise and fall in pitch, is a monotone. Know someone in your office that sounds that way? Could it be you? Wouldn’t…
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Warm up your articulators and celebrate Shakespeare’s birthday!
Did you know that it was Shakespeare’s birthday on 23 April? The Bard, as he is known, was responsible for introducing hundreds of new words into the English language back in the 1600s, many of which we still use today. Manager, Ladybird, Inaudible, Swagger and Laughable are among those first penned by Shakespeare. Less common…
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Speech Habits – get the best from your voice
What do you want from your voice? To inspire others..? To lead your team…? To convey your ideas with enthusiasm and clarity…? How can you achieve that and what is stopping you? Over time we all develop poor habits and the way we routinely use our voice is no exception. Unchallenged, we will go on…
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Mumbling? Or has the cat just got your tongue?
The new big budget drama from the BBC, ‘SS Great Britain’, has been slammed for poor sound quality – in particular actors’ mumbling. More than 1.5million of the 7m viewers switched off before the end of the first episode. Like the BBC’s ‘Jamaica Inn’, viewers struggled to interpret what characters were saying and, frustrated at failing…