VIVA LA VI DA. VOWELS /iː/ /ɪ/ /ʊ/ /uː/ /e/ /ɜː/ /ɔː/ /æ/ /ʌ/ /ɑː/ /ɒ/

This post has been designed principally for Spanish speakers, but it can also be useful for other nationalities by skipping the first activity and doing the rest.

 There are 46 sounds in the English sound system, 22 of which are vowel sounds. Compare this with Spanish, which has 5 vowel sounds, none of which are equivalent to any vowel sound in English. English vowels are difficult to identify and produce in most latin based languages.

• First of all, note where the vowel chart is placed in the mouth cavity (Fig B) and then observe where each vowel is produced (Fig A) . Click on the chart on the right to hear and repeat the following vowel sounds /iː/ /ɪ/ /ʊ/ /uː/ /e/ /ɜː/ /ɔː/ /æ/ /ʌ/ /ɑː/ /ɒ/ as many times as you need to.

The British band Cold Play will help to introduce some of the most confusing vowels /iː/ /ɪ/ /ʊ/ /uː/ /e/ /ɜː/ /ɔː/ /æ/ /ʌ/ /ɑː/ /ɒ/ with their song Viva la vida.

• Listen to the song and do the matching exercise by dragging the words taken from the song on the right to the corresponding vowel sound they contain, on the left. Only one answer can be correct.

• For more practice with vowel sounds.

IF YOU WERE A SAILBOAT. CONDITIONAL SONG. Vowels and diphthongs

The song If you were a sailboat composed and interpreted by the  Georgian-British singer, songwriter and musician  Katie Melua, will help us this time to sail through vowels /ɪ/  /ɪː/  /ʌ/  /ɑː/  /ɒ/  /ɔ:/  /ʊ/  /uː/, diphthongs  /aɪ/  /eɪ/  /aʊ/ and conditional sentences.

This post has been inspired by the work of the English teacher  José Álvaro Álvaro, who participated in the course  Phonetics Through Songs and the programme PhoTransEdit, used for the transcriptions in the matching activity.

 

There are two activities. Elementary and intermediate students should only do the first one, the gap-fill activity.  Upper-intermediate and advanced students can do both activities:

• A gap-fill activity designed for elementary and intermediate students. Listen to the song and fill in the gaps using the "Clue" button, where the missing word is transcribed.  

• A matching activity directed at upper-intermediate and advanced students. Once you've listened to the song and completed the gap-fill activity, try to remember the lyrics and  match the transcribed main clauses on the left with the conditional clauses on the right.

• Listen now to the official version of he same song and an alternative version with different lyrics. Can you spot the differences?
• For practice on conditional sentences, click here. 

DECEMBER /ɪ/ /iː/ /ʌ/ /əʊ/

Inspiring month for a rainy song, December by Norah Jones. The front vowels /ɪ/ /iː/and central vowel and diphthong /ʌ/ /əʊ/ mix harmonically in this almost syllabic song sung with nearly every syllable distinctly pronounced.

• Listen to the song and complete the gap fill activity using the words in the box and the clues given in the ? buttons.

• Here's a version with lyrics and a live version. Can you spot any differences between the lyrics of the two versions?

THINK OF ME /θɪŋkˈəvˌmi:/

• A long awaited post for those who asked for a song rich in the contrasting front-close vowels /i:/ and /ɪ/ and the diphthong /aɪ/. Andrew LLoyd Webber's Think of me can serve as an example.

• Listen to the song and complete the gap fill activity using the clues given in the '?' buttons.

• Here's an amateur version and a version with lyrics.
• For more practice with minimal pairs /i:/ and /ɪ/.

AM I TOO BLUE? /ʌ/ /æ/ /ɑ:/

Lucinda Williams is an American rock, folk, and country music singer and songwriter. A three-time Grammy Award winner, she was named "America's best songwriter" by TIME magazine in 2002.

Her song Am I too blue is hopefully going to help us hear the difference between the vowel sounds /ʌ/ /æ/ /ɑ:/

1. Listen to this song and fill in the blanks. Once you've finished, try to classify the words under the right column according to the vowel sound they contain.

Am I too blue

Lucinda Williams

Am I too blue for you? Am I too blue?

When I cry like the sky Like the sky (1)_________­­­­­­____ Am I too blue?

Is the night too (2)______________? Is the wind too (3)______________?

Is it at your (4)_______________? Have you had (5)______________?

Do you miss my (6)_____________? Do you wanna stay?
Do you have so (7)____________ Still left to say?

[Refrain]

When you're in the (8)______________ , Do you call my name?

Is there still a (9)_______________? Does it feel the same?

The sun beats down, It burns your skin

When you run into my (10)______________ again.

2. Once you've finished, write the words under the right column, /ʌ/, /æ/ or /ɑ:/, according to the vowel sound they contain. /ʌ/ /æ/ /ɑ:/

Answer key:
1. sometime /ˈsʌmtaim/ 2. black /blæk/ 3. rough /rʌf/ 4. back /bæk/ 5. enough /ɪˈnʌf/ 6. touch /tʌtʃ/ 7. much /mʌtʃ/ 8. dark /dɑ:k/ 9. spark /spɑ:k/ 10. arms /ɑ:ms/

Am I Too Blue Lyrics