RALUCOB@a... wrote:
> to those of you who have been able to make use of the technologies we've > been discussing, have there been significant changes you've made as a direct > result of using these technology, that you wouldn't have come across > otherwise, or, has it, so far, merely confirmed what you had already > suspected (please show your work)?
Sorry to take so long in replying.
There are many different styles of learning just as there are styles of teaching. I find that I can't retain a long string of aural information the same way that I can retain visual information. This is directly reflected in the way I teach. I prefer to engage as many different senses in my teaching and learning as I can.
I've been told that my vibrato sometimes takes my sound out of the balance. Using Gram, I discovered that my vibrancy rate is not consistent (usually on the slow side), and sometimes the pitch excursions are too wide. It was a great help to see the evidence as it happened and to see immediately what the changes were when I altered my production. This immediate reinforcement has quickly evened out a problem that has been long standing with me.
Often, it seems that no matter how many different ways you explain or demonstrate a concept, a student just can't get it, that is they don't readily hear it or feel it. Gram has been invaluable in providing another means of illustrating these concepts. Some examples from my teaching include helping students become aware of unnecessary diphthongs by seeing the formants change at the beginning or end of a vowel; showing where preceding or following consonants affect the vowel; showing vowel "drift" in melismas; providing evidence of over-aspirated consonants; showing vibrancy patterns; pointing out scoops and faulty onsets. In all of these instances students have been able to quickly rectify what had been chronic problems by first seeing and hearing the problem when played back and then observing the results of changes in their technique on the spectrogram.
Hope this sheds some more light on the subject!
Cheers Craig, Burnaby BC
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