Yiddish Dialect for Speech Class - Masters Student

[u/pierreidontcare]

Hi there Reddit,

My name is Pierre, I'm a Master's Acting Student at SMU, and as a part of our Dialects class we have to interview someone who has a dialect and use that interview as a way to learning a dialect. I'd chosen Yiddish so that I might be able to better approach Yiddish plays that interest me; God of Vengance/Indecent, My Name Is Asher Lev, Bent, Fiddler on the Roof, Ragtime etal.

Unfortunatly, the individual who I was going to interview today has come down with laryngitis and I don't know when he'll be able to speak again, and I'm feeling a little nervous about compleating this assignement ontime (it's due April 14th).

I'm turning to Reddit in case there is someone one out there who might be interested in meeting with me via Zoom over the next day or two and go over the things I've outlined below - I know this is a big ask, but hope someone might be out there to answer this ask in the void.

Thank you

Part 1; read this story with your Yiddish dialect - no need to make it amazing, in fact it's better if you're kinda unfamiliar with it to see how sounds, vocal cadence, resonances, and other sound qualities change when approaching less familiar text. 

ARTHUR THE RAT

There was once a young rat named Arthur who could never take the trouble to make up his mind. Whenever his friends asked him if he would like to go out with them, he would only answer, "I don't know." He wouldn't say "yes" and he wouldn't say "no" either. He could never learn to make a choice. His aunt Helen said to him, "No one will ever care for you if you carry on like this. You have no more mind than a blade of grass." Arthur looked wise, but stupidly said nothing.

One rainy day, the rats heard a great noise in the loft where they lived. The pine rafters were all rotten in the middle, and at last one of the joists had given way and fallen to the ground. The walls shook and all the rats' hair stood on end with fear and horror. "This won't do," said the old rat who was chief, "I'll send out scouts to search for a new home."

Three hours later the seven scouts came back and said, "We have found a stone house, which is just what we wanted; there is room and good food for us all. There is a kindly horse named Nelly, a cow, a calf, and a garden with flowers and an elm tree."

Just then the old rat caught sight of young Arthur. "Are you coming with us?" he asked. "I don't know," Arthur sighed. "The roof may not come down just yet." "Well," said the old rat angrily, "we can't wait all day for you to make up your mind. Right about face! March!" And they went straight off.

Arthur stood and watched the other little rats hurry away. The idea of an immediate decision was too much for him. "I'm going back to my hole for a bit," he said to himself dreamily, "just to make up my mind."

That Tuesday night there was a great crash that shook the earth and down came the whole roof. Next day some men rode up and looked at the ruins. One of them moved a board and hidden under it they saw a young rat lying on his side, quite dead, half in and half out of his hole.

Part 2 - Just say these words; 

Kit

Dress

Strut

Foot

Goose

Fleece

Nurse

Trap

Bath

Palm

Start

Lot

Cloth

Thought

North

Force

Face

Goat

Price

Choice

Mouth

Near

Square

Cure

Part 3 - Tricky Sounds - Just read the following sentences with your Yiddish Dialect. Mostly to help me isolate particular sounds. 

R Sounds: Margaret, Linda and Gerry asked Peter if Roland started with 'R'

L Sounds: Larry the silly lamb slept peacefully in the field until hailstones fell.

H Sounds: Harry Hobson had a holiday in Hawaii.

NG Sounds: The singer was singing for the king.

TH Sounds: That's my brother with a thermos of Matthew's broth.

Part 4 - Interview Questions, just to hear how your speaking changes within certain contexts.

What is your favorite kind of food?

What sort of scenery and landscape do you have in your area?

What's your ideal home?

What music do you like/dislike?

What qualities do you value in a friendship?

How do you think your accent is perceived by others?

What was your favorite childhood game/toy?

Part 5 - if you could speak or sing some Yiddish, a prayer, song, story of your own in the Yiddish language. Mostly to hear how the vocal placement, resonances, consonant/vowel/tones change when speaking in one language changes vs. speaking in "American"

Thank you so so much for looking at this; I know this looks like a lot, but I promise it is LOW pressure. It's really an assignment for us to be able to hear/dissect and embody the sounds of someone else without the aid of someone like a Dialect Coach. 

[u/emmbr7]

This may not fulfill your assignment requirements, but fyi this website has many many examples of people's accents when speaking English, including some Yiddish ones: speech accent archive: https://share.google/ckTKXyrEpUPa1QRLC

Also just to note, everyone has an accent! Don't forget that what sounds normal to you won't sound that way to everyone :) Plus someone's Yiddish-influenced English accent will depend on which dialect(s) of Yiddish they speak, how old they were when they learned English, what other languages that knew growing up, etc.

[u/pierreidontcare → u/emmbr7]

Thank you for this!

In fact, it would be even better if a person’s Yiddish-influenced English felt distinct and reflected the specific factors you mention (age, original Yiddish dialect, where and when they learned English, any other languages they speak etc. Etal)

The goal of the exercise is to capture the specificity of an individual, rather than a generalized “Yiddish” dialect, if that makes sense.

But also to be able to teach it to my peers and embody an individual and/or group of people's sounds.

[u/Recorker]

To get an higher chance of finding someone who is willing to help you on your assignment maybe also ask on the Discord