La prononciation française pour de vrai - Where to find?

All about language programs, courses, websites and other learning resources
User avatar
jonm
Orange Belt
Posts: 202
Joined: Mon Jun 04, 2018 10:06 pm
Location: Massachusetts, USA
Languages: English (N)
Spanish (adv.)
Bangla (int.)
French (passive)
Language Log: https://forum.language-learners.org/vie ... =15&t=9402
x 667

La prononciation française pour de vrai - Where to find?

Postby jonm » Sun Aug 12, 2018 4:46 am

Hi, would anyone know where I could find Penny Sewell's video series La prononciation française pour de vrai? I've seen it recommended in a few threads here, but I can't find anywhere to order it online or any libraries where I could borrow it. I did find one seller on Amazon.de, but I'm in the US and the seller doesn't ship here. Other versions of Amazon list it as unavailable, and sites like BookFinder don't turn up any other leads.

Short clip here, looks like a great course.

The English version (French Pronunciation: Your Key to Success) seems a bit easier to track down, but I think the French version would be much better practice.

Thanks very much for any help!
0 x

garyb
Black Belt - 1st Dan
Posts: 1572
Joined: Mon Jul 20, 2015 12:35 pm
Location: Scotland
Languages: Native: English
Advanced: Italian, French
Intermediate: Spanish
Beginner: German, Japanese
Language Log: viewtopic.php?f=15&t=1855
x 5992
Contact:

Re: La prononciation française pour de vrai - Where to find?

Postby garyb » Mon Aug 13, 2018 11:14 am

I bought it from Sewell's own site, but that was back in 2012 according to my records and I can't find any trace of the site any more so I suppose it no longer exists! Sorry I can't help you.

I found it useful but nothing groundbreaking. From what I remember, the first part is about the prosody and mainly comes down to syllable-timing, syllable-group intonation, and not reducing vowels. The second part explains and demonstrates each individual sound in detail. You can probably find similar information in other resources; I've heard good things about CLE's "phonétique progressive" series but never used it.
1 x

User avatar
jonm
Orange Belt
Posts: 202
Joined: Mon Jun 04, 2018 10:06 pm
Location: Massachusetts, USA
Languages: English (N)
Spanish (adv.)
Bangla (int.)
French (passive)
Language Log: https://forum.language-learners.org/vie ... =15&t=9402
x 667

Re: La prononciation française pour de vrai - Where to find?

Postby jonm » Mon Aug 13, 2018 5:33 pm

Thanks, garyb! That's really helpful. I'd been thinking of it as maybe having some tips that I couldn't find elsewhere, so it's good to know that it's solid but not groundbreaking. CLE seems like a good option, as I've used some of their other books and found them quite good. I should also probably just practice speaking more, as I think I have a pretty good handle on the individual phonemes, but when I try to speak at a conversational speed, the transitions from one to the next can feel clumsy, without much of a flow. I suppose the remedy for that is just to talk more.

Thanks very much for your help!
1 x

garyb
Black Belt - 1st Dan
Posts: 1572
Joined: Mon Jul 20, 2015 12:35 pm
Location: Scotland
Languages: Native: English
Advanced: Italian, French
Intermediate: Spanish
Beginner: German, Japanese
Language Log: viewtopic.php?f=15&t=1855
x 5992
Contact:

Re: La prononciation française pour de vrai - Where to find?

Postby garyb » Tue Aug 14, 2018 11:03 am

I've had the same problem: being able to pronounce the sounds quite well individually but it all goes out the window when talking at normal speed. I think it's important to practise slowly too, because if you only practise at normal speed it's easy to keep making the same mistakes and reinforce bad habits. Even in normal conversations it can be better to err on the slow side and focus on getting it right rather than trying to keep up with the natives. My pronunciation has never been good and probably never will be though, it's a skill I simply don't have, so take my advice with a pinch of salt. But I like to think I've taken it from bad to acceptable with some conscious work. Part of the difficulty is that I didn't learn it properly in the first place (thanks to high school and the listen-and-repeat "method") so had lots of bad habits to undo.
2 x

User avatar
jonm
Orange Belt
Posts: 202
Joined: Mon Jun 04, 2018 10:06 pm
Location: Massachusetts, USA
Languages: English (N)
Spanish (adv.)
Bangla (int.)
French (passive)
Language Log: https://forum.language-learners.org/vie ... =15&t=9402
x 667

Re: La prononciation française pour de vrai - Where to find?

Postby jonm » Fri Aug 17, 2018 2:57 am

That's a good idea to slow down when speaking so there's enough time to consciously work on pronunciation. I think I may be getting ahead of myself, in pronunciation and in other areas as well. I know I was doing that with reading, and today I tried reading something much closer to my "i+1" and found it went really well. Would be nice to do the same with output skills like pronunciation. Will give it a try!
0 x


Return to “Language Programs and Resources”

Who is online

Users browsing this forum: No registered users and 2 guests