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From:  Margaret Harrison <peggyh@i...>
Date:  Wed Apr 12, 2000  3:40 am
Subject:  Re: [vocalist-temporary] re: speaking of Italian diction


Naomi Gurt Lind wrote:

> Open-vowel Italian works for me; closed-vowel Italian works for you.
> Ultimately the conductor and stage director will have the "right" answers!

And I'd like bring uyp the one area of Italian diction that I'm told makes
Italian sound
"wrong" to a native speaker: not "stopping" the double consonants (the correct
technical
term is be welcome).

Of course, I don't know this from my own experience, since I don't speak
Italian, but I've
heard this criticism often from Italian-speakers about failing to speak the
double
consonants correctly being the most common Italian diction mistake Americans
make. I think
if we all were perfect with double consonants, no one would complain about out
open/closed
e's and o's. (And I find that really hard to do properly, myself.)

Peggy

--
Margaret Harrison, Alexandria, Virginia, USA
"Music for a While Shall All Your Cares Beguile"
mailto:peggyh@i...

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