2006/10/18

Xu, Y. (2005). Speech melody as articulatory implemented communicative functions. Speech Communication. 46, 220–251.

Presentation: Shelly
Summary: Chris

The aim of this study is to demonstrate the correlation between acoustic cues and communicative meaning and to introduce the parallel encoding and target approximation model (PENTA). Various communicative meanings are conveyed by human articulatory system by invarious acoustic forms. This paper attempts to consider articulatory mechanism and communicative function together. Different speech melody in information encoding is accomplished by manipulating a limited number of articulatory parameters which can be regarded as phonetic primitives including local pitch targets, pitch range, articulatory strength and duration. Indirect mappings between these primitives and the communicative meaning can be seen through different encoding schemes. Controlling the melodic primitives is the way to show specific encoding schemes and this makes it possible to convey multiple communicative functions through speech melody in parallel. Through a process of syllable-synchronized sequential target approximation, communicative functions are transformed into continuous surface acoustic patterns. The PENTA model is a model of tone and intonation which is restricted to its articulatory assumptions and multiple communicative functions.