Our catch phrase is on its way.

Dear Fellow Earthlings,

A very important gesture that contributes to proper pacing is what we, in Jingles terminology, refer to as “the silent diaphragm”. (Among traditional linguistic scholars, the term used is “the open transition”.) For Japanese learners of English, “the silent diaphragm” can be compared to the traffic barriers known as “ETC” (short for “Electronic Toll Collection”) gates found on Japanese expressways. At “ETC” gates, if drivers flash their cars, the gates swing open instantaneously, allowing a single vehicle to pass through. Without a card, a driver must stop and pay a toll either by credit card or with coins before the gate barring the vehicle kee is driving raises, allowing car and driver to proceed.

The slient diaphragm allows a speaker to speak fluently – but without combining sounds that should not be combined.

For example, when working with Worksheet 49-2, clients will pronounce the word “disservice” as DIs suR Vus when saying it slowly and carefully, but as Dis _uR Vus (with _ representing the extremely subtle flexing of the diaphragm that is necessary for the “open transition”/”silent diaphragm” of English) when saying it at normal speed.

Of the 396 Jingles offered as fundamental training gestures, 47 of them have silent diaphragm gestures important enough to be considered by Jingles clients:

B C D E F G H I J R V CC d127 d164 d169 d171 d172 d176 d178 d180 d183 d190 d197 d201 d204 d206 d211 d215 d220 d224 d225 d290 d293 d307 d309 d315 d320 d322 d324 d325 d330 d334 d338 d345 d348 d353 d355.

In the limited space afforded by this blog, let me cite the “silent diaphragm” that appears in the normal speed rendition of JINGLE B, in the segment “AND NEEDS”. At slow, careful speed, there is no silent diaphragm: “JINGLE B: CURT’S HEART HURTS AND NEEDS NURSING, FOR… …EARTH.” This is because the final “D” of “AND”, with ingressive breathing and a retroflexed tongue, is clearly discernible from the “N” of “NEEDS”, which features egressive breathing, uses a a non-retroflexed tongue, and is accmpanied by nasalization.

At normal speed however, since the “D” of “AND” is either significantly reduced in strength or dropped entirely, the “N” of “AND” is now positioned right next to the initial “N” of “NEEDS” – and would tend to meld with it if not for the presence of the “silent diaphragm”: aeN(d) _ NiyDZ.

Steve Walker, Earthsaver and Jingles Creator

© 2013 Steve Walker, The Jingles-The Japan Foundation for English Pronunciation, Summit Enterprises.