Common Pronunciation Traits in Accent Reduction for Russians
In the Los Angeles area, there is a large community of individuals from Russia. I have had the pleasure of working with many people from this country, including lawyers, actors, pharmacists, insurance brokers, and IT managers, helping them to reduce their accents.
Naturally, the severity of accents differs from person to person (See my blog post “Everyone is Unique”); however, there are some common pronunciation traits that I often observe. I’ve worked with a variety of individuals on Accent Reduction for Russians and have seen great success.
Firstly, because the Russian language does not normally use articles such as “the,” “a,” and “an” many of my clients speak English without including these words. So, for example, they might say, “I have white shirt,” instead of saying “I have a white shirt,” and “Witch is ugly,” instead of “The witch is ugly.”
Secondly, the most common sound production differences I have observed are trilled /r/ sounds; the addition of a hard /g/ at the end of words ending in ‘ing,’ ‘ong,’ ‘ang,’ and ‘ung;’ /v/ substituted for /w/ (for example ‘vite’ for the word ‘white’), and the use of unvoiced consonants for voiced consonants at the end of words, (for example ‘jop’ for ‘job’, ‘flak’ for ‘flag’, ‘luff’ for ‘love’, ‘bus’ for ‘buzz’, and ‘bret’ for ‘bread’).
There are also several vowel sounds that I often work on such as the short ‘i’ as in the word “hit” that gets pronounced as a long ‘e’ and sounds like “heat”.
Through the accent reduction course that I teach, all of these areas are addressed, and considerable improvement rates are achieved.
If you struggle with the same pronunciations as this example, my Accent Modification program is perfect for you. The customized program designed for you will address voice projection, grammar, intonation issues, and Standard American English pronunciation. Clients who attend all sessions and practice diligently can expect to achieve clear, understandable speech and at least a 50% improvement in reducing their accent by the end of the training. Contact me today to learn more about the program and get your questions answered!
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About Derra Huxley, Speech and Language Pathologist
I am a California-licensed Speech-Language Pathologist in Los Angeles. I earned my Bachelor of Arts and Master of Arts degrees in Communicative Disorders from California State University, Northridge. I work as a Preferred Trainer with LDS & Associates – Accent Modification Program, and I am a member of CORSPAN (Corporate Speech Pathology Network). I collaborate with people of all ages to improve their communication and pronunciation skills in schools, hospitals, and private practice settings. To learn more or to contact me, complete this form or reach me at 818-421-7444. I look forward to hearing from you!