major_kerina | My Notes from Sounds of English

24 Consonants and 17 vowels. "Th" is unique to English. Combining sounds. 'S' and 'P'...can become "speak". 'Z' and 'B'...doesn't combine in English. 'P' - with aspiration, 'pin' - not with 'spin - less aspiration.

'S', 'T', 'B' - aggressive sounds.

Ssssss...shhhh...modifying airstreams for sound. Time for the parameters for describing sounds.

1st Parameter - State of the Glottis. Just the three main ones. Voiced/Voiceless/Whisper for this.

Voiceless - Open vocal folds. No vibrating folds. "Ssss" [S] sound - voiceless = no vibration when made.
Voiced - Closed vocal folds. How can that be if they're closed? Sub-glottal pressure presses them open. Constant flapping of the vocal folds. Vibrating folds. 'Z' - 'zzzzzz' - voiced = you can feel a vibration.
Whisper - Not a major one. Partly closed vocal folds. Speaking without any voice sounds.

Some examples - Which are voiced and voiceless?
/b/
/m/
/f/
/l/
/t/
/r/
Make your guesses. Answers at the end.
S - voiceless, V- voiced. Consonant pairs like that. All vowels voiced.

Find the voiceless counterparts of these voiced consonants
/b/
/d/
/g/
/v/
/z/

Now, the 2nd parameter is the place of articulation - where produced in the oral cavity. Where maximal constriction occurs. Articulators touch (in 'b' - lips come together to occlude) or they approximate (in 's' - the tongue is directly below the alveolar ridge but does not touch it) each other. All the different sounds are produced

Here's a picture connected with the lecture - Right here.

Upper and lower articulators. Lower aka - Mobile articulators (move towards the upper articulators) = lower lip, lower teeth, and tongue. Upper aka Stationary articulators.
1st (place of articulation) - glottis (space between the vocal folds = voiced and voiceless)
2nd - pharyngeal wall - rear wall.
3rd - uvula (connected to soft palate)
4th - palate aka hard palate
5th - alveolar ridge (bony area above your teeth)
6th - alveo-palatal region
7th - upper teeth
8th - upper lip

Points of articulation
Glottal - (glottis) one sound - /h/
Velar - (touching the velum) - three in English - /k/ /g/
Palatal (made at the palate with the center of the tongue) - one - /y/ = symbolized with j
Alveopalatal (behind the ridge) - /ch/ c-wedge (church), j-wedge (judge).
Alveolar (at the ridge with the tip of the tongue) - 7 total - some of - /t/ /d/
Labiodental (lower lip, upper front teeth) - 2 - /f/ /v/
Interdental (between the front with the tip of the tongue) - 2 - /th/ (voiceless) (thin) and /th/ (voiced) (then)
Bilabial (upper lip with the lower lip) - 3 - /p/ /b/ /m/

What about vowels? None of the articulators come close together. Unobstructed. Vowels are instead discussed by the tongue positioning in the mouth.

Practice! - find the points of articulation for...
/s/
/f/
/b/
/k/
/t/
/h/

Thirdly, manner of articulation figures. Modified airstreams. Example - S and T (voiceless and alveolar) how different? Manner of articulation.

According to manner of articulation -
6 groups of consonant (first three are obstruents - two articulators touch or come close).

First type - Stops (occlusion and sudden release) - /p/ /t/ /k/ (voiceless) /b/ /d/ /g/ (voiced). A stop is produced by the pressure of the blocked alveolar ridge being suddenly released (can't be lengthened just t-t-t-t).

2nd type - Fricatives (a narrow passage is created by articulators and air is forced through it) - /s/ is one example (sssssssssss *blows* - he actually brought up snakes @_@ ).

3rd type - Affricates (occlusion - begin like stops and end like fricatives, gradual but turbulent release) - 2 - /ch/ and /j/ (c-wedge and j-wedge). Timing of release.

Now, the sonorants (4 of them) - all about airflow (little turbulence).
1st type of sonorant - Nasals - (made with occlusion in the oral cavity) - velic closure is released (air escapes through the nose) - they are - /m/ (bilabial - feel it flow out your nose), /n/ (alveolar), /eng/ (velar nasal - more details later).
2nd - Liquids - two articulators approach but without turbulent airflow (not too close) - like the sound /r/ (retroflex - arched tongue to the alveolar ridge - oral space floating tongue). Lateral Liquid - has occlusion but still has space, the tongue is partly lowered - /l/ (the tongue drops to allow air out). One side of your tongue will be lowered...press your tongue to make the sound and find out! ^^
3rd - Glides - in the production, the two articulators are quite distant (semi-vowels or semi-consonants). Associated with a vowel. Glides glides with or off a vowel. English has two - /y/ (on - you. off - boy) and /w/ (on - we. off -bow)

Practice now! - Determine the manner of articulation.
/s/
/t/
/v/
/m/
/l/
/d/

And vowels - vocalic sonorants - least obstruction. Described by the height of the tongue and advancement of the tongue.

And that's it for now (the last page was a blacked out).

Answers

Voiced and Voiceless
b -v
m -v
f - vl
l - v
t - vl
r - v

Counterparts
b - p
d - t
g - k
v - f
z - s

Articulation
S - alveolar
F - labiodental
B - bilabial
K - velar
T - alveolar
H - glottal

Manner
S - fricative
T - stop
V - fricative
M - bilabial nasal
L - lateral liquid
D - voiced stop