eido wrote:@rdearman: I've been considering learning the IPA chart for a good month and a half now, but it's a bit overwhelming. I'm trying to figure out how to break it down into smaller, more manageable chunks so I can understand it. The only way I can see understanding it would come from knowing the definitions of the descriptions/adjectives of each sound, and then memorizing the sound. I guess I'd have to go systematically through the chart, maybe starting at the top left and working in a snake formation to the bottom right to absorb all the information. Thank you for trying to help, though. When my brain sees something it can't immediately make at least partial sense of, it gives up. Not a good quality. Especially when everyone says that anyone can do anything if they try hard enough.
Cavesa wrote:I recommend the good old repeating after audio. Coursebook audio serves, or audiobooks are awesome (the actor is chosen for the job exactly because of the nice way they speak). Later, tv series or other shows serve well. I have never been able to shadow, the inability to focus properly on either me or the audio record stresses me out, but I don't doubt it can be efficient for many people. Simple listening to the sentence, pushing the pause button, repeating as closely as possible, that works fine too and I recommend it.
For me this is relatively straightforward, but not necessarily quick. I absolutely agree with Cavesa's comments on course audio. So, when you learn a new sound/phoneme (or are aiming to perfect one), look out for it in course audio and imitate it till the cows come home. At the same time, look up words in a dictionary with IPA transcription and simply associate that sound with the IPA symbol. Sound by sound, phoneme by phoneme you will eventually acquire all the IPA symbols (it's much easier than you think) through association. Learn the sounds, hammer them in your head, learn them in context, repeat the hell out of them with good quality audio (for which courses are great), and in due course, you'll know all the (relevant to Spanish) IPA symbols, be sounding Spanish and well, Bob's your uncle.
There will be more steps though - learning intonation correctly, word stress, how phonemes change in quick succession or when linking into another word. Keep in mind the same phoneme could be represented by different letters or letter combinations. Moreover letters are not always a reliable source of reliable, same pronunciation in different parts of words or followed or preceding different letter combinations. For example a Spanish 'd' at the beginning of a word or sentence/sentence break can sound very different to a Spanish 'd' at the end of a word or sentence/sentence break. That's where IPA is your friend. Don't be overwhelmed. One sound at a time, little by little. Just ensure not to move on too quickly or too slowly. Learn something too fast and apply it sloppily, your Spanish won't sound fantastic, too slow you (arguably) risk fossilising errors.
And back to the topic of which course... I do recommend Pimsleur (I've not used it for Spanish though), as the audio is very clear and very slow (from my experience with French Pimsleur). Still if that irritates you, use something quicker, or something that will speed up after a few lessons, like Assimil. Some even find Assimil too slow, but for your purposes, slowing things down, breaking things down will help. This is what has worked for me, it may not work for others, but it certainly does work for me, and I don't necessarily
need Pimsleur either, it's just extra slow, which could prove extra useful.
Take home messages - be analytical: slow things down, break things down, imitate, one small step/sound at a time, don't get sloppy, learn IPA through association.