turquoise in LPD, EPD and ODP

	GB	GA
LPD3	ˈtɜːkwɔɪz,  ˈtɜːkwɑːz	ˈtɝːkwɔɪz, ˈtɝːkɔɪz
EPD18	ˈtɜːkwɑːz, ˈtɜːkwɔɪz	ˈtɝːkwɔɪz, ˈtɝːkɔɪz
ODP	ˈtəːkwɔɪz, ˈtəːkwɑːz	ˈtərk(w)ɔɪz

Stephen Fry's turquoise

I've copied out the pron of 'turquoise' for closer examination.

after the after-lunch chat

Jack Windsor Lewis (= JWL) in his blog 417 compares my (= Kraut) intuitive transcription of the chat between Fry and Hockney with his, which is based on the original radio transmission.

To enable my followers to compare these transcriptions with the original sound track, I’m putting it online (in the hope the BBC won’t mind). Please remember that my transcription does not try to represent the sound tracks.

Kraut	ɪts wʌndəfl tə θɪŋk əv hʌndədz əv θaʊznz əv piːpl aʊt ðɛː | ən ɪf wi bəʊθ sed ðə wɜːd | aɪ dən nəʊ | tɜːkwɔɪz | wɒts ɪn piːplz maɪndz |
JWL	ɪts `wᴧndəfl | tə θɪŋk əv `hᴧndədz əv θaʊznz ə piːpl `aʊt ˏðɛː | ən ɪf ˈwiː ˈbəʊθ | ˈseɪ ðə ˈwɜːd | ˈəm | ˈaɪ ˈdɜːnt ˈnəʊ | `tɜːkwaɪz | ˈwɒt ˈɪz | ɪn piːplz ˎmaɪnd.

Kraut	jes | a miːn | ɪts ə lɪtl bɪt dɪfrənt frəm wɒts raɪzɪŋ ʌp ɪn ðeə hed | a miːn wɪr ɔːl ɒn ɑːr əʊn | ɑːn wi |
JWL	ˎjӕs | ɑː ˈmiːn | ˈɪts | ɪts ə lɪdl bɪt `dɪfrənt. sᴧmθɪŋz ˈ(b)raɪzɪŋ | ᴧp ɪn ðə `hed. ɛː ˈmiːn | wɪr ɔːl ɒn ɑːr `əʊn | ˈɑːn ˈwi …

Kraut	ɪt siːmz tə bi |
JWL	`jes ɪt `siːmz tə ˏbiː.

Kraut	jes tɪz | [section omitted] rɪmembə | ɪt wəz dɒktə ɡɜːblz hu veri ɜːli ɒn | baɪ naɪntiːn θɜːti θriː | rɪəlaɪzd ðət reɪdiəʊ wʊdm bi ðæk ɡʊd fə prɒpəɡændə | fɪlm wʊb bi betə | bikəz ɪn fɪlm evribɒdi sɔː ðə seɪm θɪŋ | ɒn ðə reɪdiəʊ ðeɪ dɪdnt |
JWL	`jes ɪt ˎɪz. [ jər `ɔːwɪz gedɪŋ bӕk tə ðӕt. dju]. ˈmemˈbər  ˈᴧ | ɪt  wəz ˈdɒktə ˎgəʊblz | u ˈveri ˈɜːli ˎɒn | ˈnaɪnˈtiːn | θɜːti ˎθriː | ˈrɪəˈlaɪz ðət | ˈreɪdiəʊ wʊdn bi ðӕt `gʊd fə prɒpəˏgӕndə. `fɪlm | wʊd bi `betə | bikəz ɪn `ˏfɪlm | evribɒdi sɔː ðə seɪm `θɪŋ. ɒn ˈreɪdiəʊ | ðeɪ ˎdɪdnt.

   

A learned friend came to me once - by Stephen Crane

Stephen Crane

A learned man came to me once.
He said, "I know the way, -- come."
And I was overjoyed at this.
Together we hastened.
Soon, too soon, were we
Where my eyes were useless,
And I knew not the ways of my feet.
I clung to the hand of my friend;
But at last he cried, "I am lost."

What interests in this poem by Stephen Crane is the adjective 'learned' in the first line. Most of you - whether you are a NS or a (fairly competent) NNS of General British - will know that this adjective is pronounced either /lɜːnɪd/ or /lɜːnəd/ because you've /lɜːnd/ (or lɜːnt/) English prop'ly.

Test yourself with these sentences:

1. the seminar was held by an elderly learned professor;
2. leadership is a learned skill;
3. JIPA is a learned journal;
4. I 've learned more from my father than from my mother;
5. art historians are more learned than art critics;
6. I think my learned friend has a problem;
7. elegance is learned, my friend;
8. I trust my learned colleage has learned his lesson;

The Aged Aged Man - by Lewis Carroll

The first stanza of a poem by Lewis Carroll runs like this:

I'll tell thee everything I can;
There's little to relate.
I saw an aged aged man,
A-sitting on a gate.
"Who are you, aged man?" I said,
"And how is it you live?"
And his answer trickled through my head
Like water through a sieve.

 How would you pronounce 'aged' in the noun phrase marked red? (It re-occurs two lines further down.) If you are a NNS of English, doubts may creep in: "Is it /eɪʤd/ or /eɪʤɪ|əd/?" Listen to the stanza spoken by Richard Worland: 

credit: vimeo - Richard Worland

So it's /eɪʤɪ|əd/. There're two forms then (though not in this stanza) - one with and one without a schwa. Test yourself if you get these expressions right:

1. too small for aged eyes; - /eɪʤɪd/
2. she’s aged 24; - /eɪʤd/
3. the aged father; - /eɪʤɪd/
4. a man aged between 30 and 35; - /eɪʤd/
5. open to children aged 12 and over; - /eɪʤd/
6. the care of children and the aged; - /eɪʤɪd/
7. half blind and so rapidly aged; - /eɪʤd/
8. my aged car can’t make it up that hill; - /eɪʤɪd/
9. he aged 10 years in that night; - /eɪʤd/
10. this wine has aged for many years; - /eɪʤd/

an after-lunch chat with David Hockney - transcribed

The following transcription is based solely on my imagination, not on the original broadcast.

credit: BBC

ən ɑːftəlʌnʃ tʃæt wɪð deɪvɪd hɒkni 

SF: ɪts wʌndəfl tə θɪŋk əv hʌndədz əv θaʊznz əv piːpl aʊt ðɛː | ən ɪf wi bəʊθ sed ðə wɜːd | aɪ dən nəʊ | tɜːkwɔɪz | wɒts ɪn piːplz maɪndz | 
DH: jes | a miːn | ɪts ə lɪtl bɪt dɪfrənt frəm wɒts raɪzɪŋ ʌp ɪn ðeə hed | a miːn wɪr ɔːl ɒn ɑːr əʊn | ɑːn wi | 
SF: ɪt siːmz tə bi | 
DH: | jes tɪz | rɪmembə | ɪt wəz dɒktə ɡɜːblz hu veri ɜːli ɒn | baɪ naɪntiːn θɜːti θriː | rɪəlaɪzd ðət reɪdiəʊ wʊdm bi ðæk ɡʊd fə prɒpəɡændə | fɪlm wʊb bi betə | bikəz ɪn fɪlm evribɒdi sɔː ðə seɪm θɪŋ | ɒn ðə reɪdiəʊ ðeɪ dɪdnt | 
SF: wɪtʃ meɪks ɪt streɪnʒ tə bi tɔːkɪŋ speʃli əbaʊk kʌlə | wer iːvn ɪn rɪəl laɪf wi kɑːmp bi ʃɔː | 
DH: ðæts ɪt | 
SF: ənd ðæk kaɪnəv sʌmz ʌp ðə tɑːsk əhed | kʌlər ɪz səbdʒektɪv | ɪməʊtɪv | pɜːsnl | ɪts rileɪʃnʃɪp wɪð læŋɡwɪdʒ ɪz | ʃəwi seɪ | ðə veri liːst prɒbləmætɪk | aɪ lʌv ðæt stændəd ɔɪl peɪnt vəkæbjəlri | jənəʊ | kædmɪəm red | jeləʊ əʊkə | vərɪdiən | 
DH: jes | peɪntəz wʊd | vərɪdiən | aɪ juːstə kɔːl ɪt meksɪkən ɡriːn | ɪts ə kʌlə ju siː ɪn meksɪkəʊ | ju kən siː wɔːlz peɪntɪd vərɪdiən | 
SF: ən ɒskə waɪldz feɪvrɪt wɜːd ɪn ɔːl ɪz læŋɡwɪdʒ wəz vəmɪliən | 
DH: ɪts dʒəst ə skiːm ju set ʌp ɪn ə weɪ | aɪ miːn pɪkæsəʊ sed | ɪf ju hævnt ɡɒt eni red ju juːz bluː | ðə riːzn wi dəʊnt ɔːl siː ðə seɪm θɪŋz ɪz wɪə siːɪŋ wɪð memri ɪznt ɪt | ən maɪ memriz dɪfrənt tə jɔːz | ən memri ɪz naʊ | 
SF: bət ɪf wi dəʊnt ɔːl siː ɪɡzækli ðə seɪm θɪŋz | ɪf ɪts ɔːl ə bɪt səbdʒektɪv | haʊ ɒn ɜːθ dɪd wi evə stɑːt wɜːkɪŋ aʊt wɜːdz tə ɡəʊ wɪð kʌləz | tʃuːzɪŋ ə neɪm fə kʌləz ɪz sɪmpli ə laɪn ɑːtɪfɪʃli drɔːn | jə dʒəst ɪmædʒɪn ə reɪmbəʊ ən jə θɪŋk | wɛː ʃl aɪ drɔː ðə laɪnz | ɑːbɪtri ɪn ʌðə wɜːdz | ən kʌltʃəz ɪnflʊəns ɒn wɛː wi drɔː ðə laɪnz ən haʊ wi meɪk ðə wɜːdz ɪz ɪnestɪməbl | æz wiːl lɜːn | bət ðen | səʊz neɪtʃəz ɪnflʊəns | na tə ðəʊz əv ju hu wə həʊpɪŋ fr ə prəʊɡræm kɔːld kʌləfəl læŋɡwɪdʒ tə bi ɔːl əbaʊt efɪŋ əm blaɪndɪŋ | əpɒlədʒiz freni dɪsəpɔɪntməŋ kɔːzd |

mjuːzɪkl̩ trænskrɪpʃn̩z

Here are a few titles of musical compositions transcribed in General British (= GB). D'you know the respective composer? If not, look him up; then transcribe his (last) name as it is pronounced in GB.

1. ðə bluː dænjuːb - straʊs, ʃtraʊs
2. ðə bɑːtəd braɪd - ˈsmetənə
3. ðə nʌtkrækə swiːt - tʃaɪˈkɒfski, tʃaɪˈkɔːfski
4. muːnlaɪt sənɑːtə - ˈbeɪt(h)əʊv(ə)n
5. ðə meri waɪvz əv wɪnzə - ˈnɪkəlaɪ
6. ðə fɔːs əv destɪni - ˈveədi
7. ðə flaɪt əv ðə bʌmblbiː - rɪm(p)ski 'kɔːsəkɒf, - 'kɔːsəkɒv
8. ðə kɑːnɪvəl əv ði ænɪməlz - sæ̃ 'sɒ̃(s), sæ̃nˈsɑ̃ːŋ, - ˈsɑ̃ːns
9. ðə dɑːns əv ðə ʃʊɡə plʌm feəri - tʃaɪˈkɒfski, tʃaɪˈkɔːfski
10. ðə deθ ənd ðə meɪdən - ˈʃuːbət, ˈʃuːbɜːt

after-lunch chat between Stephen Fry and David Hockney

What follows is the first part of a slightly edited script of a talk between Stephen Fry (= SF) and David Hockney (= DH) on the topic of colour and language. Those of my dear followers who want to practise their transcription skills are invited to take a pencil and a piece of paper and try to transcribe in General British the verbal intercourse between the two celebrities. I will publish my version of the text in the near future. Try to transcribe the text as if spoken in a relaxed colloquial speech style.

credit: BBC

credit: Royal Academy of Arts

Here you go!

An after-lunch chat with David Hockney

SF: It’s wonderful to think of hundreds of thousands of people out there and if we both said the word – I don’t know – turquoise, what is in people’s minds?
DH: Yes, I mean, it’s a little bit different from what’s rising up in their head. I mean we’re all on our own, aren’t we?
SF: It seems to be.
DH: Yes, it is. Remember, it was Dr Goebbels who very early on, by 1933, realised that radio wouldn’t be that good for propaganda. Film would be better because in film everybody saw the same thing. On the radio they didn’t.
SF: Which makes it strange to be talking especially about colour, where even in real life we can’t be sure.
DH: That’s it.
SF: And that kind of sums up the task ahead. Colour is subjective, emotive, personal. Its relationship with language is, shall we say, the very least problematic. I love that standard oil paint vocabulary, you know: cadmium red, yellow ochre, viridian.
DH, Yes, painters would. Viridian – I used to call it Mexican green. It’s a colour you see in Mexico. You can see walls painted viridian.
SF: And Oscar Wilde’s favourite word in all his language was vermilion.
DH: It’s just a scheme you set up in a way. I mean Picasso said: “If you haven’t got any red, you use blue”. The reason we don’t all see the same things is we’re seeing with memory, isn’t it, and my memory is different to yours, and memory is now.
SF: But if we don’t all see exactly the same things, if it’s all a bit subjective, how on earth did we ever start working out words to go with colours? Choosing a name for colours is simply a line artificially drawn. You just imagine a rainbow and you think: “Where shall I draw the lines?” Arbitrary – in other words. And culture’s influence on where we draw the lines and how we make the words is inestimable, as we’ll learn. But then, so is nature’s influence. Now to those of you who were hoping for a programme called ‘colourful language’ to be all about effing and blinding, apologies for any disappointment caused.