Oh my goodness, we are suddenly super busy! Today I’d like to quickly delve into a couple of things related to speech. The first thing is called upspeak, the second is called vocal fry.
When you are speaking English and the pitch of your voice raises, it is called a “rising inflection.” In English, you most often hear this rising inflection at the end of a question, for example: “Are you go to Swami’s?” That higher pitch is called “upspeak” or “uptalk,” but upspeak has become more than just that word at the end of a sentence. Sometimes, rising inflection is used at the end of sentences and clauses, whether they are questions or not.
I was looking for an example, and some of them were too long, but here is a good one from a woman who demonstrates “uptalk” vs. “straight talk.”
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NQWej-hMiZI
There are other countries where this has been noticed, so it isn’t just American English or Southern California valley girls. I read that it occurs in England (the British blame it on Scandinavians), Australia, Northern Ireland, and other places.
Vocal fry is something similar. According to this article What is vocal fry? it is when…
“…(S)omeone doesn’t use enough breath to speak or sing. The lack of breath causes a creaky sound as the vocal cords come into close contact. It usually happens at the ends of phrases, as the pitch of the sentence goes down and tapers off.”
While neither of these kinds of speech are gender-specific, my next example says that vocal fry is a female phenomenon. I’m including it because the minute you hear it, you will understand exactly what a vocal fry is.
Many vocal coaches recommend against both of these types of speech, particularly if you want to sound authoritative, professional, and sure of yourself.
My favorite example is full of bad language, but I find it hilarious. If you aren’t easily offended, you can do a search for “Loudermilk and vocal fry” after work.
Kara Church | Technical Editor, Advisory | Technical Publications
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