Explaining the Dispersion of the Single-Vowel Occurrences in an F1/F2 Space
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Antti Iivonen
Abstract
The variability of the Finnish vowel occurrences on the F<sub>1</sub>/F<sub>2</sub> chart was studied. Repetitions (n = 8 x 10 + 10 = 160) of two syllable types, /hVh/ and /tVt/, produced by a male speaker were analysed. The F<sub>1</sub>/F<sub>2</sub> variability in both contexts was estimated. In the /hVh/ context, the phoneme targets were considerably more peripheral than in the /tVt/ contexts. In the /tVt/ context, the phoneme placements were nearer the upper left corner of the F<sub>1</sub>/F<sub>2</sub> space in /u/, /o/, /a/, and /æ/. That is understandable on the basis of the alveolar tongue blade position: the tongue holds its position nearer the alveolar area during its movement from [t] to [V] and back to [t] compared to the [hVh] articulation. In the latter articulation, the tongue is free to move and the vowel reaches its ideal position. This interpretation was corroborated by means of the test items with an open syllable (/tVV/). In order to explain the variability of the repetitions in one context, the notion of auditory critical band window (CBW) was used. A CBW covers an area on the psycho-acoustical F<sub>1</sub>/F<sub>2</sub> plot that comprises 1 bark on the F<sub>1</sub> and F<sub>2</sub> scales. Its modification CBW-F<sub>1</sub> implies that a critical band is presented as a circle comprising the diameter of 1 bark according to the F<sub>1</sub> scale. Practically all single F<sub>1</sub>/F<sub>2</sub> points occur within the CBW-F<sub>1</sub> circle. In most cases, the variability is smaller than one CBW-F<sub>1</sub> circle, but we can consider that a greater amount of repetions would yield a greater dispersion. The auditorily motivated CBW-F<sub>1</sub> circle might appear to be a good prediction for the articulation precision.
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© 1995 S. Karger AG, Basel
Artikel in diesem Heft
- Special Section
- Contents, Vol. 52, No. 3, 1995
- Editors’ Introduction
- Paper
- Phonetic Explanations for Cross-Linguistic Prosodic Similarities
- Feature, Phoneme, Syllable or Word: How Is Speech Mentally Represented?
- Kleine Phonetik und Große Phonetik
- A Probable Case of Clicks Influencing the Sound Patterns of Some European Languages
- Phonetic Interpretation of the Word Accent Contrast in Swedish
- Interactions of Fundamental Frequency Contour and Perceived Duration in Norwegian
- Effect of Fundamental Frequency on Medial [+Voice] / [–Voice] Judgments
- Determination of Glottal Excitation Cycles in Running Speech
- Vowel-Vowel Production: The Distinctive Region Model (DRM) and Vowel Harmony
- Original Paper
- Danish Vowels – Surface Contrast versus Underlying Form
- Paper
- Explaining the Dispersion of the Single-Vowel Occurrences in an F1/F2 Space
- Schwa vs. Schwa + /r/ in German
- An Interactive Technique for Matching Speaker Identity
- Phonetic and Phonological Aspects of English Affricate Production in Children with Speech Disorders
- The Acoustic Parameters of Polish Voiceless Fricatives: An Analysis of Variance
- Syllable Structure and Dorsal Friction in German
- Further Section
- Index autorum
Artikel in diesem Heft
- Special Section
- Contents, Vol. 52, No. 3, 1995
- Editors’ Introduction
- Paper
- Phonetic Explanations for Cross-Linguistic Prosodic Similarities
- Feature, Phoneme, Syllable or Word: How Is Speech Mentally Represented?
- Kleine Phonetik und Große Phonetik
- A Probable Case of Clicks Influencing the Sound Patterns of Some European Languages
- Phonetic Interpretation of the Word Accent Contrast in Swedish
- Interactions of Fundamental Frequency Contour and Perceived Duration in Norwegian
- Effect of Fundamental Frequency on Medial [+Voice] / [–Voice] Judgments
- Determination of Glottal Excitation Cycles in Running Speech
- Vowel-Vowel Production: The Distinctive Region Model (DRM) and Vowel Harmony
- Original Paper
- Danish Vowels – Surface Contrast versus Underlying Form
- Paper
- Explaining the Dispersion of the Single-Vowel Occurrences in an F1/F2 Space
- Schwa vs. Schwa + /r/ in German
- An Interactive Technique for Matching Speaker Identity
- Phonetic and Phonological Aspects of English Affricate Production in Children with Speech Disorders
- The Acoustic Parameters of Polish Voiceless Fricatives: An Analysis of Variance
- Syllable Structure and Dorsal Friction in German
- Further Section
- Index autorum
