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The defects most commonly found in untrained voices are breathiness, throatiness, and nasality. The following exercises, if practised persistently, will remedy these defects:
Breathiness.
This is caused by allowing breath to escape unvocalized. The remedy lies in applying to the vocal cords just the quantity of breath required to produce a given tone. It should be noted that clear and robust sounds depend upon breathing gently.
- Inhale deeply. Exhale on singing ah. Apply the air very gently to the vocal cords, hold back the unused breath and aim to increase the purity of tone.
- Count one to ten in a loud whisper, inhaling after each number. Repeat with half breath and half voice. Repeat with pure tone. Project into the distance.
- Practise the following in pure, clear-cut voice: hup, he, ha, haw, hah, ho, hoo.
Throatiness.
This defect arises from smallness of throat or rigidity. First, relax the throat muscles and practise exercises for depressing the root of the tongue, raising the soft palate and lowering the larynx. Practise the various tongue exercises, keeping the lips perfectly still.
- Sing oo-oh-ah in well-projected voice.
- Sing le, la, law, lah, lo, loo.
Nasality.
When the vocal current is allowed to escape through the nostrils, a nasal tone is produced. To avoid this, the soft palate must be well raised and the tone projected directly towards the lips.
- With soft palate raised sing ah and oh in pure projected tone.
- With the thumb and first finger gently close the nostrils and pronounce several times with the utmost nasality: "0 'precious hours."
Keep the nostrils closed and try to repeat with a pure tone.
- Repeat with nostrils open.
The following table of mispronounced words should be used as a reference as to which words you need to pay particular attention to.
Frequently Mispronounced Words
abdomen |
adieu |
alternate |
associate |
abject |
adult |
amenable |
athlete |
accept |
advertisement |
aniline |
attorney |
acclimate |
again |
apparatus |
auxiliary |
acumen |
aggrandizement |
apparent |
awry |
adamantine |
ailment |
aquiline |
|
address |
aUied |
area |
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adept |
allopathist |
asphalt |
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bade |
betroth |
blackguard |
brigand |
banquet |
bicycle |
blouse |
bronchitis |
bayonet |
bijou |
bounteous |
burlesque |
because |
biography |
bouquet |
|
been |
bitumen |
bravado |
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|
|
calisthenics |
chasm |
combatant |
contents |
calm |
chasten |
commandant |
contrary |
candelabrum |
chastisement |
comment |
contumely |
canine |
clangor |
communist |
conversant |
carmine |
clematis |
compeer |
coterie |
cayenne |
clique |
composite |
courtesy |
cello |
coadjutor |
condolence |
|
cerement |
cognomen |
consummate |
|
chalybeate |
column |
contemplate |
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|
|
daguerreotype |
depot |
direct |
dolorous |
|
data |
depths |
disciplinary |
domain |
|
decade |
designate |
discourse |
due |
|
decadence |
desperado |
disputant |
duke |
|
defalcate |
despicable |
divan |
duty |
|
deficit |
desuetude |
docile |
|
|
demoniacal |
detail |
dog |
|
|
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|
|
|
egregious |
envelope |
examine |
exploit |
|
elongate |
epoch |
excess |
exponent |
|
encore |
equitable |
exemplary |
exquisite |
|
enervate |
escapade |
exigencies |
extant |
|
enquiry |
every |
exist |
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|
|
facade |
feline |
fiasco |
forensic |
|
facet |
feminine |
fidelity |
fragmentary |
|
factory |
ferocity |
finance |
frontier |
|
faucet |
fertile |
financier |
|
|
fecund |
fetish |
flageolet |
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gape |
gigantic |
granary |
grovel |
|
generic |
God |
gratis |
gymnasium |
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genial |
gondola |
grievous |
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genuine |
government |
grimace |
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harass |
hideous |
hostage |
hygiene |
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hearth |
homage |
hover |
hypocrisy |
|
height |
homeopathic |
humble |
|
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heinous |
horizon |
humor |
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illustrate |
incentive |
inexplicable |
interpolate |
|
imbecile |
incomparable |
inquiries |
intrinsic |
|
impious |
indefatigable |
integral |
iodine |
|
implacable |
indisputably |
interested |
irrefragable |
|
importune |
indissoluble |
interesting |
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| jocose
kept |
jocund
kiln |
juvenile
kinetics |
|
|
Jocose
kept |
Jocund
kiln |
Juvenile
kinetics |
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lamentable larynx laugh learned |
legend lenient lettuce lineament |
listen lithography livelong
lozenge |
lugubrious lyceum |
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magazine manufactory maritime matinee |
mediocre mineralogy mischievous misconstrue |
mobile
molecule municipal museum |
mustache |
|
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nascent national
nature |
nauseate necessarily nephew |
nepotism neuralgia
new |
niche
nicotine nomenclature |
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oasis
oaths
obesity
object objurgatory |
obligatory
occult
o'er
office
often |
oleomargarine orchid
ordeal
ordnance
ornate |
orotund orthoepy
oust |
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palmistry patriotism patron patronize peremptory piano |
piquant
placard plagiarism pomegranate predecessor preface |
premature prestige pretense primarily progress proscenium |
protestation puissance pyramidal |
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quadrupedal |
quiescent |
quinsy |
qui vive |
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|
|
radish
rapine receptivity recess
recluse |
reconnaissance recreant refutable
regime remonstrate |
reptile
requiem research resource
respite |
rhythm
robust
romance
route |
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|
|
salutatory sapient
satiety schedule secretary
senile |
serpentine simultaneous sinecure
sirup
sojourn solitaire |
sonorous sophistry soporific sovereign splenetic spontaneity |
squalor
succinct
suggest suite supererogatory superfluous |
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tenet
tepid testimony topography |
toward
transact tremendous tribunal |
tribune
trilobite truculent
truth |
tyrannic |
|
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|
|
umbrella uninteresting |
untoward urbanity |
usage |
usurp |
|
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vagary
vaseline vaudeville vehement |
veracity verbatim verbose
versatile |
version
via
vicar
victory |
virulent
visor |
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which whistle |
with wound |
wrath |
wreak |
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xylophone |
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youth |
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zenith |
zodiacal |
zoology |
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If you'd like to learn more by watching others speak publicly, search our Calendar of Events to find different speakers presenting on various topics at different locations. If you'd like to try your hand at public speaking, and need a venue, then try searching the Internet using the phrase "public speaking in Tucson ." The results of the search will give you current places that are seeking speakers.
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