Consonants in Diction for Samford University, Fall 2011.

1. CONSONANTS
UPDATED!

2. CONSONANTS
DEFINED
A sound that stops or interferes with the flow of breath.
Well sung consonants are precise, quick, energetic, and
provide definition of the vocal line

3. CLASSIFICATION OF
CONSONANTS
1. Voicing: Are they voiced or unvoiced?
2. Place of Articulation
3. Manner of articulation
{Think of consonants as having three names –
first, middle, last}

4. VOICED OR NOT?
Either voiced or unvoiced – if it has pitch or not
[feel your throat to know the difference]
z vs. s
b vs. p
d vs. t

5. PLACE OF
ARTICULATION
Labial or Bi-labial: LIPS
Labio-dental: top teeth touching bottom lip (v)
Dental: teeth – Italian D or Italian T
Alveolar: gum ridge
Palatal: Hard palate
Velar: soft palate
Glottis: Space between vocal folds

6. MANNER OF
ARTICULATION
Manner of articulation – what happens to the structures that
are involved.
PLOSIVES
FRICATIVES
NASALS
LATERALS
GLIDES
AFFRICATIVES
See text book on page 130

7. PLOSIVES
The airflow is prevented from passing through the mouth or
nose and is suddenly released
Pairs of consonants that are only differentiated by their
voicing:
[p] and [b]
[t] and [d]
[k] and [g]

8. PLOSIVES
[p] and [b]
WHERE?????
[t] and [d]
WHERE?????
[k] and [g]
WHERE?????

9. PLOSIVES
[p] and [b]
BI-LABIAL
[t] and [d]
ALVEOLAR
[k] and [g]
VELAR

10. LOOK AT PAGE 133 IN
BOOK

11. [b]
Sound in context: back, about, web
Spellings: best
1. But who may abide the day of his coming
2. We are climbing Jacob’s ladder
3. Brett burned Brian’s buttered breakfast biscuits

12. [p]
Sound in context: push, depend, stop
Spellings: pest
1. The everlasting Father, the Prince of Peace
2. Oh the deep, deep love of Jesus
3. Perky Patty picks pretty pink posies

13. [d]
Sound in context: deaf, widow, sad
Spellings: done
1. And the ears of the deaf unstopped
2. O Sacred Head, now wounded
3. Doleful David disavows dapper Dan’s disclaimer

14. [t]
Sound in context: took, seated, bright
Spellings: ton, kissed
1. O thou that tellest good tidings to Zion
2. Comfort, comfort ye my people
3. Tiny tots attain terribly tattered mittens

15. [g]
Sound in context: give, begun, big
Spellings: ghost, got
1. Glory to God in the highest
2. God of grace and God of glory
3. Good girls get great gag gifts

16. [k]
Sound in context: cost, become, walk
Spellings: cot, chorus, sick, keep, unique
1. Speak ye comfortably to Jerusalem, and cry unto her
2. Come, all Christians, be committeed
3. Ken’s calm cow comforted Kathie’s kicking, crying calves
Common problem: substitution of unvoiced [k] for voiced
[g]. “Vigor” should now sound like “vicar”

17. FRICATIVES (WALL, 161)
A fricative consonant is one in which the air flow is partially
interrupted as it passes through the vocal tract, thus producing
a noisy sound. Because they can be sustained, they are called
continuants. There are four pairs of cognates plus [h].
[v] vs. [f]
[ð] vs [ɵ]
[z] vs [s]
[ʒ] vs [ʃ]
[h]

18. REMEMBERING THE
MIDDLE NAME
[v] vs. [f] voiced or unvoiced labio-dental fricative
[ð] vs [ɵ] voiced or unvoiced dental fricative
[z] vs [s] voiced or unvoiced alveolar ridge fricative
[ʒ] vs [ʃ] voiced or unvoiced palatal fricative

19. [h]
Voiced or Unvoiced?
Place of articulation:
Manner of articulation

20. [h]
Voiced or Unvoiced?
Place of articulation: ɡlottis
Manner of articulation: fricative
Common problems: over aspiration; pushing too much air
through the glottis, resulting in breathiness.

21. NASALS
Three nasal consonants:
[m]
[n]
[ŋ]

22. [m]
Voiced or Unvoiced?
Place of articulation:
Manner of articulation

23. [m]
Voiced or Unvoiced?
Place of articulation: Bilabial
Manner of articulation: Nasal
Common Problems: Insufficient nasal resonance. The [m]
sound should be well hummed up through the nose in speech
and singing. Also – inadequate duration. (causes muffledness)

24. [n]
Voiced or Unvoiced?
Place of articulation:
Manner of articulation

25. [n]
Voiced or Unvoiced?
Place of articulation: alveolar
Manner of articulation: nasal
Common problems: insufficient nasal resonance;
inadequate duration

26. [ŋ]
It has a name: [ɛŋ]
Voiced or Unvoiced?
Place of articulation:
Manner of articulation

27. [ŋ]
Voiced or Unvoiced?
Place of articulation: back of tonɡue and soft palate (VELAR)
Manner of articulation: Nasal
Common problems: insufficient nasal resonance;
inadequate duration; substitution of [n] for [ŋ]

28. Words with [ŋ]
(see Wall, p. 157)
Hanging [hæŋ ɪŋ]
Singing [sɪŋ ɪŋ]
Long [lɔŋ]
Finger [fɪŋ ɡər]
Single [sɪŋ ɡəl]
Bank [bæŋk]
Drunk [drʌŋk]

29. AFFRICATIVES: COMBINATION
CONSONANTS
Defined: Consonants that combine the articulation of two
consonant sounds into a single speech unit.
“A composite speech sound consisting of a stop and a
fricative articulated at the same point (as “ch” in chair and “j”
in joy)

30. AFFRICATIVES
In English, there are four combination consonants or two
pairs of cognates:
[tʃ]
[dʒ]
[ts]
[dz]

31. AFFRICATIVES
[tʃ]
Chill, nature, much, ancient, choice, question
1. For unto us a child is born
2. When the church of Jesus
3. But they still got an itch for heavenly graces

32. AFFRICATIVES
[dʒ]
Context: jaw, region, age
Spellings: budge, soldier, gentle, joy
1. Behold a virgin shall conceive.
2. Jesus loves me
3. I shall imagine life.

33. AFFRICATIVES
[ts]
Context: ______, _______, sits
Spellings: eats, waltz, lets
1. The lord of hosts.
2. Christian hearts in love united.
3. My papa’s waltz.

34. AFFRICATIVES
[dz]
Context: _______, ______, weds
Spellings: sends, God’s, solitudes
There were shepherds abiding in the field.

35. SPELLINGS FOR ‘QU’
AND ‘X’
Qu
Two possible sounds in English:
[k] quiche, conquer, baroque
[kw] quite, require

36. SPELLINGS FOR ‘QU’
AND ‘X’
x
In initial position, like “xylophone”
[z]
In medial position, like the word “excuse”
[ks]

37. IN EXCELSIS DEO
How do you say it?

38. IN EXCELSIS DEO
Correct:
[in ɛkʃɛlsis dɛɔ]

39. PRACTICE!
Chose
Jam
China
Bridge
Match
Breech

40. PRACTICE!
Chose [tʃ]
Jam [dʒ]
China [tʃ]
Bridge [dʒ]
Match [tʃ]
Breech [tʃ]

41. PRACTICE!
Share
Chair
Beige
Hedge
Ship
Chip
Match
Breech

42. PRACTICE!
Share [ʃ]
Chair [tʃ]
Beige [ʒ]
Hedge [dʒ]
Ship [ʃ]
Chip [tʃ]
Match [tʃ]
Breech [tʃ]

43. TRANSCRIBE
In the scented bud of the morning – O
When the windy grass went rippling far,
I saw my dear one walking slow
In the field where the daisies are.

44. [ɪn ðə sɛntəd bʌd əv ðə mɔ3nɪŋ oʊ
hwɛn ðə wɪndɪ ɡræs wɛnt rɪplɪŋ fa3
ɑɪ sɔ mɑɪ dɪ3 wʌn wɔkɪŋ sloʊ
ɪn ðə fild hwɛ3 ðə dɛɪzɪz ɑ3]

45. We did not lauɡh and we did not speak
As we wandered happily to and fro;
I kissed mydear on either cheek,
In the bud of the morning – O.