[lojban-beginners] Re: mp3 files: can you help?

["Matt Arnold" <matt.mattarn@gmail.com>]

On 6/3/07, m.kornig@sondal.net <m.kornig@sondal.net> wrote:
> (2) I'm surprised (and a bit puzzled) by the variety of
>     accents.

Why? Almost all learners understand the pronunciation instructions
differently, because Lojban has not had sufficient opportunities to be
heard audibly to establish a mutually-reinforcing culture of auditory
role-modeling. More importantly, so long as the phonemes are
sufficiently different from one another that they won't be confused
for other phonemes, accents are unimportant.

>     (2a) The length of the vowels are very different.
>          Compare for instance Hans' "mu" (short) on the
>          one hand and Matt's "mu" (long) on the other.
>          Hans' "pa" is relatively short, too.
>
>          Are the lengths of the five principal vowels
>          in numbers meant to be different? Personally,
>          I speak all vowels relatively long. But I'm
>          only a starter and that may be wrong...

In Lojban, vowel lengths are not meant to be one way or meant to be
another. These are unintentional differences of dramatic performance,
with no significance.

I've asked a friend if his boy and girl would be willing to record
these words. Keep in mind that since there do not exist any
prepubescent students of Lojban, you are going to have to be content
with what you get.

>     (2b) Some of the speakers seem to pronounce diphthongs.
>          In particular the female voice's "re", "vo" and
>          "mu" sound a bit like diphthongs. Is this
>          acceptable/reasonable for listening examples from
>          which others would learn pronunciation?

Rachel's exposure to Lojban has come entirely from testing and
drilling me while I'm driving in the car for the last three years. She
doesn't study Lojban herself, and pronounces it with a strong American
English accent.

>     (2c) I'm very surprised by the sound of the vowel "e":
>          Three different speakers, three different "e"s.
>          Personally, I pronounce this vowel more like Matt.
>
>          Which pronunciation is "correct"?

Both.

> Does it really matter?

No.

> Would it be reasonable to have both Hans'
>          and Matt's "e" next to each other as "valid"
>          accents?

Yes.

-Eppcott