0101 – Two More Reasons Our Mouth Clicks And Pops Mouth-shape pops and clicks We are of course all made slightly differently, and there’s a million varieties in the shape, size and position of all our ‘bits to help us broadcast’ – it’s why we all sound a bit different from each other. So some people will inevitably suffer more from ‘mouth noises’ than others. That may be a click in the jaw (as we just saw), or pops caused by bubbles in your mouth as saliva is caught between, for example, your ch...
Apr 10, 2021•3 min•Season 1Ep. 101
0100 – Clicks From Your Jaw Tension clicks So far, we have talked about the mouth and throat, but there may also be clicks from tension caused in your jaw. Inevitably, physical and psychological relaxation techniques work well to dissipate this tension, but if you often hear your jaw popping or clicking, it can be a sign of TMJ (temporomandibular joint) disorder. This is to do with the your ‘jaw joints’ and can lead to pain or stiffness in your jaw, face, neck, shoulders, or frequent headaches. ...
Apr 09, 2021•2 min•Season 1Ep. 100
0099 – The ‘Glottal Choke’ Mouth Noise Nervous glottal choke This is nervous tension at the back of the throat which stops you speaking naturally and you can simply stop mid-way through a word, often on a glottal ‘k-sound’, and it’s almost like a small choke. It’s something I have experienced a few times when presenting on stage, and as I say, have put it down to tension. A sip of water can trigger the ‘swallow reflex’ and ‘reset the throat’, otherwise, a hard swallow. As this kind of situation ...
Apr 08, 2021•3 min•Season 1Ep. 99
0098 – Sidebar on Saliva: What Actually Is It? The mouth has saliva – 99 percent water and a variety of electrolytes, including sodium, potassium, calcium, magnesium, bicarbonate, and phosphates. We make about three pints of it a day. [1] Saliva helps you taste, makes it easier to chew and swallow and washes away food particles. Its enzymes aids digestion and helps prevent tooth decay by neutralizing acids. [1] https://www.thejpd.org/article/S0022-3913(01)54032-9/fulltext#:~:text=Saliva%20is%20c...
Apr 07, 2021•2 min•Season 1Ep. 98
0097 – ‘Wet Mouth’ Sounds: Causes and Solutions ‘Too much hydration’ related mouth smacks – caused by over-salivating It’s odd that our old ‘foe’ tension can cause too little or too much saliva to be produced. As well as helping to lubricate our tongue for its speaking role, we also produce saliva to help chew and swallow food. So, if you eat soon before you speak on air, your saliva glands still might be overly stimulated. Similarly, if you’re on-air and anticipating eating soon after the show ...
Apr 06, 2021•3 min•Season 1Ep. 97
0096 – Why You Should Take ‘Dry Mouth’ Super Seriously A dry mouth may actually be caused by xerostomia, when the glands in your mouth simply don't make enough saliva. This could be because of: Medications Aging Cancer therapy Legal and illegal drugs And – diabetes and stroke and of course snoring and breathing with your mouth open! Signs to spot: Dryness or stickiness in your mouth Thick and stringy saliva Bad breath Difficulty chewing, speaking and swallowing Sore throat and hoarseness Grooved...
Apr 05, 2021•3 min•Season 1Ep. 96
0095 – Stopping Hydration-Related Mouth Clicks In The Studio During the recording: · Don’t guzzle lots of water · Wash the water around the mouth before swallowing it · Eat green apple slices or sip fresh pineapple juice · Trick yourself into producing more saliva · Wear headphones And after a recording: · Considering running your audio through a processing program Through these under-5-minute episodes, you can build your confidence and competence with advice on breathing and reading, inflection...
Apr 04, 2021•4 min•Season 1Ep. 95
0094 – How To Stop Hydration-Related Mouth Clicks From Happening Reducing hydration-related mouth clicks and smacks Leave the scary mouth noises to the monsters you may be animating, by doing as many of these as you can before you go into a live or recording studio: · Being well hydrated – as ‘horse’ goes with ‘cart’, ‘air’ goes with ‘water’! Yes, H20: the articulator lubricator! · Brushing your teeth - think of it like cleaning your instrument, to freshen up and get rid of the sticky stuff · Wa...
Apr 03, 2021•3 min•Season 1Ep. 94
0093 – Hydration-related Mouth Clicks 1. Hydration-related mouth clicks We’ve all been in a situation in a studio, where we’ve needed some water for vocal lubrication. Indeed, it’s literally called ‘drying up’, when your mouth is as dry as the Sahara, your cheeks are like sandpaper and you’ve a tongue like a Ryvita crispbread. Pops, clicks and smacks are the usually the result of poor hydration and lubrication, and the effect of thick and sticky saliva on the tongue and teeth as you speak. The m...
Apr 02, 2021•3 min•Season 1Ep. 93
0092 – The Seven Kinds Of Extra Weird Mouth Noises MOUTH NOISES These are the pops, clicks and smacks that can be heard as someone speaks. They may be amplified by a microphone and audio processing [1] to such a degree it can sound as though you’ve been eating Rice Krispies, or gargling with space dust. [2] The seven kinds of extraneous oral noises: 1. ‘Too little hydration’ related mouth smacks - at a basic level such noises are the slight smack as someone opens their mouth to speak 2. ‘Too muc...
Apr 01, 2021•3 min•Season 1Ep. 92
0091 – Relaxing Your Mouth For your articulators to work properly you must have a relaxed mouth to allow your tongue and soft palate to move freely. Try saying some of the words above through clenched-teeth! Now go to pronounce the word “ go ” (!) and feel how the back of your tongue and soft palate move? An issue that I have noticed when people come to me wanting better articulation or resonance, is that that placement may be semi-permanent during much of their speech. This cuts of the flow of ...
Mar 31, 2021•2 min•Season 1Ep. 91
0090 - Relaxing Your Tongue Of course, there’s more to your tongue than meets the eye – literally. It is longer and has a deeper root than you may imagine and indirectly connects (via the hyoid bone) to your larynx. Therefore a ‘tense tongue’ will affect your voice. So, it’s another reminder to de-stress to sound your best: relax all the tension from your shoulders and neck. And try and monitor the situation and let your tongue lie on the floor of your mouth when not being used. Through these un...
Mar 30, 2021•1 min•Season 1Ep. 90
Bilabial sounds are made with both lips W ood M an B a b y S p y From BBC presentation trainer Peter Stewart (@TweeterStewart), GET A BETTER BROADCAST, PODCAST AND VIDEO VOICE is a short, daily guide to help you become a stronger voice communicator on radio and TV, podcasts, video, voiceovers and webinars. It's the audio version of the book Peter's writing of the same name, both focusing exclusively on your vocal image on audio and video channels with two main aims: · To get you a better voice f...
Mar 30, 2021•3 min•Season 1Ep. 89
Labiodentals are consonants articulated with the lower lip and the upper teeth. E V ery F all From BBC presentation trainer Peter Stewart (@TweeterStewart), GET A BETTER BROADCAST, PODCAST AND VIDEO VOICE is a short, daily guide to help you become a stronger voice communicator on radio and TV, podcasts, video, voiceovers and webinars. It's the audio version of the book Peter's writing of the same name, both focusing exclusively on your vocal image on audio and video channels with two main aims: ...
Mar 28, 2021•1 min•Season 1Ep. 88
Interdental consonants are produced by placing the tip of the tongue between the upper and lower front teeth Brea th e Th ought From BBC presentation trainer Peter Stewart (@TweeterStewart), GET A BETTER BROADCAST, PODCAST AND VIDEO VOICE is a short, daily guide to help you become a stronger voice communicator on radio and TV, podcasts, video, voiceovers and webinars. It's the audio version of the book Peter's writing of the same name, both focusing exclusively on your vocal image on audio and v...
Mar 28, 2021•2 min•Season 1Ep. 87
Alveolar consonants are made with the tip of tongue T op D a d S ad Z ebra Bu tt er N ope L ight From BBC presentation trainer Peter Stewart (@TweeterStewart), GET A BETTER BROADCAST, PODCAST AND VIDEO VOICE is a short, daily guide to help you become a stronger voice communicator on radio and TV, podcasts, video, voiceovers and webinars. It's the audio version of the book Peter's writing of the same name, both focusing exclusively on your vocal image on audio and video channels with two main aim...
Mar 27, 2021•3 min•Season 1Ep. 86
Post-alveolar sounds are articulated with the tongue near or touching the back of the throat. R ead Sh ould A s ia From BBC presentation trainer Peter Stewart (@TweeterStewart), GET A BETTER BROADCAST, PODCAST AND VIDEO VOICE is a short, daily guide to help you become a stronger voice communicator on radio and TV, podcasts, video, voiceovers and webinars. It's the audio version of the book Peter's writing of the same name, both focusing exclusively on your vocal image on audio and video channels...
Mar 26, 2021•1 min•Season 1Ep. 85
Palatal is the name given to sounds that come when the body of the tongue is raised against the hard palate (the middle part of the roof of the mouth). Y es From BBC presentation trainer Peter Stewart (@TweeterStewart), GET A BETTER BROADCAST, PODCAST AND VIDEO VOICE is a short, daily guide to help you become a stronger voice communicator on radio and TV, podcasts, video, voiceovers and webinars. It's the audio version of the book Peter's writing of the same name, both focusing exclusively on yo...
Mar 25, 2021•2 min•Season 1Ep. 84
Velar sounds are created with the back part of the tongue (the dorsum) against the soft palate, the back part of the roof of the mouth (known also as the velum). C at G o Si ng From BBC presentation trainer Peter Stewart (@TweeterStewart), GET A BETTER BROADCAST, PODCAST AND VIDEO VOICE is a short, daily guide to help you become a stronger voice communicator on radio and TV, podcasts, video, voiceovers and webinars. It's the audio version of the book Peter's writing of the same name, both focusi...
Mar 24, 2021•1 min•Season 1Ep. 83
I am fascinated by this area of phonetics!, so let’s take a look how different English-language word-sounds are formed and by what (sometimes very small) change in what articulators: Glottal sounds are made by obstructing the airflow in the vocal tract, the glottis. U h- o h From BBC presentation trainer Peter Stewart (@TweeterStewart), GET A BETTER BROADCAST, PODCAST AND VIDEO VOICE is a short, daily guide to help you become a stronger voice communicator on radio and TV, podcasts, video, voiceo...
Mar 23, 2021•2 min•Season 1Ep. 82
Not every language makes use of all the potential articulators. You may know people personally or maybe a celebrity whose first language is not English and who perhaps has difficulty pronouncing the letter ‘L’. As an English speaker you will no doubt have trouble with some of the more back-of-throat sounds that our French, Spanish and German friends pronounce like natives (!). Even within a language there will be places where natives pronounce words differently (think of the dialects of a New Yo...
Mar 22, 2021•3 min•Season 1Ep. 81
So, different sounds of speech are formed in different ways as the articulators do verbal gymnastics inside your mouth. Now say the phrase “My to-do list: quickly send that dog a letter”. And now say it really s-l-o-w-l-y, and concentrate on all the work that is going on in your mouth as you say this series of vowels and sounds. The lips purse, the tongue curls like a wave, tucks in behind the teeth and then arches at the back of the mouth, and air is syphoned through the mouth to create an ‘s’ ...
Mar 21, 2021•3 min•Season 1Ep. 80
The muscle with the longest name of any in the human body is right here connecting with the lips. It’s the levator labii superiosis alaeque nasai and its main job is to open the nostrils and move the upper lip into a ‘snarl-like’ expression, and so it’s sometimes called 'The Elvis Muscle’. From BBC presentation trainer Peter Stewart (@TweeterStewart), GET A BETTER BROADCAST, PODCAST AND VIDEO VOICE is a short, daily guide to help you become a stronger voice communicator on radio and TV, podcasts...
Mar 20, 2021•1 min•Season 1Ep. 79
Say the word “crisp”. Easily huh? But it’s actually made up five letters, and five distinct sounds, which are each formed in a distinct way. So, now say “crisp” really slowly and deliberately, sounding out each individual part, and realise how various articulators move to create them. From BBC presentation trainer Peter Stewart (@TweeterStewart), GET A BETTER BROADCAST, PODCAST AND VIDEO VOICE is a short, daily guide to help you become a stronger voice communicator on radio and TV, podcasts, vid...
Mar 19, 2021•3 min•Season 1Ep. 78
The tongue is not one muscle but eight. They run in all three directions: from front to back, from the sides to the middle and from top to bottom. Parrots’ thick tongues help them imitate human language (they mimic whatever is in their surroundings so they can show off their skills to a potential mate). Their other speech organs are very basic but they can make similar sounds to us by moving the tip of their tongue to certain points of articulation in their mouth in a similar way that we do. Fro...
Mar 18, 2021•1 min•Season 1Ep. 77
Although the teeth, lips and tongue work hard in synchronicity to convert sound in to words, the part played by the tongue is generally unsung. The mouth’s multi-function muscle is an Inspector Gadget of the human body: · Saliva production · Sucking · Eating and drinking · Tasting · Swallowing · Touching · Defending Oh yes and… speaking! From BBC presentation trainer Peter Stewart (@TweeterStewart), GET A BETTER BROADCAST, PODCAST AND VIDEO VOICE is a short, daily guide to help you become a stro...
Mar 17, 2021•4 min•Season 1Ep. 76
The final articulator is right under your nose! The lips – mainly channel sound in its final moments before being heard by the world, whether it’s the soft breeze of a ‘fooo’, ‘wooo’, the caress of an ‘mmmm’, the buzz of a ‘vvveee’ … or holding a ‘p’ back for a split-second before it explodes. From BBC presentation trainer Peter Stewart (@TweeterStewart), GET A BETTER BROADCAST, PODCAST AND VIDEO VOICE is a short, daily guide to help you become a stronger voice communicator on radio and TV, podc...
Mar 16, 2021•2 min•Season 1Ep. 75
Altering the shape and position of the tongue allows us to create sounds which we form in to words. We will see later in this chapter how the tongue twists and curls, arches and relaxes, and teases the teeth – tucking behind them and slipping between them – to create pronunciation. Even the basic exercise of saying the name of the AA Milne donkey character ‘Eeyore’, you will feel what your tongue does in just two syllables: it arches and relaxes at the back of the throat. From BBC presentation t...
Mar 15, 2021•2 min•Season 1Ep. 74
The strongest muscle in the human body based on its weight, are the jaw muscles (‘masseters’). They can close the teeth with a force as great as 55 pounds (25 kilograms) on the incisors or 200 pounds (90.7 kilograms) on the molars. So relax the jaw when you can, let it drop to a slightly-open rest position (you can keep your mouth closed so you don’t look gormless!) and reduce the tension there and in the whole neck area. (Depending on how you measure ‘size’ and ‘strength’, other strong muscles ...
Mar 14, 2021•3 min•Season 1Ep. 73
You can of course, alter the shape of your oral cavity and its furniture (tongue and lips), and every alteration will change the kind of sound that you make. In fact, even a slight, temporary cosmetic change (such as dental work) will alter how you the sound. From BBC presentation trainer Peter Stewart (@TweeterStewart), GET A BETTER BROADCAST, PODCAST AND VIDEO VOICE is a short, daily guide to help you become a stronger voice communicator on radio and TV, podcasts, video, voiceovers and webinar...
Mar 13, 2021•4 min•Season 1Ep. 72
