Una promoción

Ulysses1904 · 29th October 2009, 04:37 AM

Acabo de completar una promoción para una actividad a mi trabajo. Por favor de dejar comentario, trato de perder mi accento de gringo.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cLj2FBBafA8

Ulysses1904 · 29th October 2009, 01:21 PM

Ulysses1904 · 26th November 2009, 04:31 AM

Jeez, I get nothing but freakin spammers on my posts here. Someone shore up my lagging confidence and post a real comment - good, bad or indifferent.

Londoner_at_heart · 26th November 2009, 08:35 AM

Hi ulyses,

i think you did a great job and were very careful to pronounce everything properly. You do have an accent but not strong enough to be a problem. Don't worry too much about it, we all have accents! It's charming and a proof that you bothered to learn somebody else's language as an adult - we all know how hard that is

one tip a teacher gave me once to improve pronounciation: read out loud, every day for 5-10 minutes, focusing on the sounds you find more difficult. Don't worry about understanding. This exercise is about loosening your Spanish speaking muscles - literally. Think about opera singers, thy have sore muscles when they start singing in another language, you just use you face and mouth in a different way to produce different sounds.

So practice, but also embrace your accent proudly!

Well done

Pippa · 26th November 2009, 09:06 AM

I agree with Londoner_at_heart. All of us have accents, but the more you practice, the more you get the feel of the language. I would only remark on three things:

1.- Asterix is French!

2.- If your name is Matt, do not translate it, it is not difficult to say in the other language. Sometimes we may change them a bit to make it easier in the other language, but it is no necessary in your case.

3.- The only word where I feel a strong accent is "gustaría", you need to pronounce the syllables a bit more

Ulysses1904 · 26th November 2009, 04:57 PM

Thank you to both of you for your replies. I'm lucky to work at a large company with many native Spanish speakers, from Puerto Rico, the Dominican Republic, Panamá, El Salvador, Spain and Mexico. I try to speak with at least one of them every day, to improve my accent and to improve my listening skills. That's the most difficult for me, understanding spoken Spanish as there are so many more variables involved than just reading words on a page. But I'm getting better, immersion and practice are the key.

I have the hardest time with Dominican Spanish. I'm working to get accustomed to their accent but it can be difficult for me as some of the Dominicanas I work with tend to drop word endings, like "lune, marte, miércole, jueve, vierne". Or "ayé" instead of "ayer". I asked one of my friends what time she arrived that day and she replied "aladó". Took me a few moments to realize she was saying "a las dos".

I included Asterix in the clip because although the cartoon may be French we had Asterix books translated into Spanish in our beginning Spanish classes back in 7th grade. I could only understand maybe one word out of every sentence but it encouraged me to look up all the other words in the Spanish dictionary. It took me forever to finish a single page but it was a good exercise.

Thanks again for your replies.

29th October 2009, 04:37 AM	#1
Ulysses1904 Forero Join Date: Feb 2009 Location: Displaced New Yorker in Connecticut Posts: 23	Una promoción Acabo de completar una promoción para una actividad a mi trabajo. Por favor de dejar comentario, trato de perder mi accento de gringo. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cLj2FBBafA8

Thread Tools
Show Printable Version Email this Page
Display Modes
Linear Mode Switch to Hybrid Mode Switch to Threaded Mode


NFS Blog Forum Learn Spanish Podcasts Book About Contact

29th October 2009, 01:21 PM	#2
Ulysses1904 Forero Join Date: Feb 2009 Location: Displaced New Yorker in Connecticut Posts: 23

26th November 2009, 04:31 AM	#3
Ulysses1904 Forero Join Date: Feb 2009 Location: Displaced New Yorker in Connecticut Posts: 23	Jeez, I get nothing but freakin spammers on my posts here. Someone shore up my lagging confidence and post a real comment - good, bad or indifferent.

26th November 2009, 08:35 AM	#4
Londoner_at_heart Madrileña mediterránea Join Date: Nov 2009 Location: Madrid Posts: 131	Hi ulyses, i think you did a great job and were very careful to pronounce everything properly. You do have an accent but not strong enough to be a problem. Don't worry too much about it, we all have accents! It's charming and a proof that you bothered to learn somebody else's language as an adult - we all know how hard that is one tip a teacher gave me once to improve pronounciation: read out loud, every day for 5-10 minutes, focusing on the sounds you find more difficult. Don't worry about understanding. This exercise is about loosening your Spanish speaking muscles - literally. Think about opera singers, thy have sore muscles when they start singing in another language, you just use you face and mouth in a different way to produce different sounds. So practice, but also embrace your accent proudly! Well done

26th November 2009, 09:06 AM	#5
Pippa GigaForero Join Date: Nov 2008 Location: San Lorenzo del Escorial Posts: 1,336	I agree with Londoner_at_heart. All of us have accents, but the more you practice, the more you get the feel of the language. I would only remark on three things: 1.- Asterix is French! 2.- If your name is Matt, do not translate it, it is not difficult to say in the other language. Sometimes we may change them a bit to make it easier in the other language, but it is no necessary in your case. 3.- The only word where I feel a strong accent is "gustaría", you need to pronounce the syllables a bit more

26th November 2009, 04:57 PM	#6
Ulysses1904 Forero Join Date: Feb 2009 Location: Displaced New Yorker in Connecticut Posts: 23	Thank you to both of you for your replies. I'm lucky to work at a large company with many native Spanish speakers, from Puerto Rico, the Dominican Republic, Panamá, El Salvador, Spain and Mexico. I try to speak with at least one of them every day, to improve my accent and to improve my listening skills. That's the most difficult for me, understanding spoken Spanish as there are so many more variables involved than just reading words on a page. But I'm getting better, immersion and practice are the key. I have the hardest time with Dominican Spanish. I'm working to get accustomed to their accent but it can be difficult for me as some of the Dominicanas I work with tend to drop word endings, like "lune, marte, miércole, jueve, vierne". Or "ayé" instead of "ayer". I asked one of my friends what time she arrived that day and she replied "aladó". Took me a few moments to realize she was saying "a las dos". I included Asterix in the clip because although the cartoon may be French we had Asterix books translated into Spanish in our beginning Spanish classes back in 7th grade. I could only understand maybe one word out of every sentence but it encouraged me to look up all the other words in the Spanish dictionary. It took me forever to finish a single page but it was a good exercise. Thanks again for your replies.