The American accent has been a target of ridicule for countless of years now. No truer is this then, when it comes to our cousins across the pond in jolly good England. While we consider the Brits’ English as pomp and arrogant as ever – the fact is that their lingua is the original English. It is our homegrown accents that are not considered true English by most in the UK.
To help understand American accents on both sides of the Mason-Dixon Line – a courageous Brit has created a series of videos about “how to do American accents.” These videos are courtesy of Video Jug, and are designed to explore the many accents that America is synonymous with.
Perhaps the most intriguing aspect was the focus on General American language. This is when a particular letter or sound is strongly pronounced in a series of words or sentences. For example: “Are there more birds?” – In this sentence, the letter “R” is isolated as the focal point of each word in the sentence.
The videos by Gareth Jameson – a professional voice coach – are also designed to help non-Americans master the American style of English. By practicing the different accents, you can stretch your voice and exercise your speech techniques across the board. Jameson is associated with London Voice Lessons, and has helped several actors and actresses with accent training.
The videos also discuss the “flat sounds” associated with American English. For example: there are no significant sound changes between the words “medal” and “metal” in America. While metal should focus on the letter T, its pronunciation sounds more like medal. This means the emphasis is on the letter D, even though that letter is not part of the word.
Many Americans who have viewed these videos are in agreement that this is how they actually sound. The American English accent, however, is widely sought the world over –especially when it comes to telemarketing and other fields of communication. With these videos continuing to soar in global popularity, even the Aussies chimed in on their perception of the American accent.
For more information on these amusing yet informative videos, please visit:
Image screen grabbed from Youtube.
