Voice and Speaking Skills For Dummies

Chapter 8

Filling Your Speech with the Sounds of Music

In This Chapter

Using emphasis skilfully

Getting into the groove of rhythmic speech

Acquiring the ancient art of rhetoric

Making the most of silent moments

A memorable piece of music, whether the latest pop hit or an enduring classical composition, contains certain key ingredients: great melodies, contrasts of dynamics and tempo, crescendos and diminuendos, interesting harmonies, repeating rhythms and artfully placed pauses. You need just those same ingredients to speak in a captivating, unforgettable way too.

You aren’t particularly aware of the individual elements when you hear a speaker who has a highly developed sense of music in speaking. However, you do find yourself entertained and entranced, and drawn into the speaker’s magic circle by the melodic life in the words. Listen to the elderly poet Maya Angelou speak her poem, ‘Still I Rise’ (you can find it on YouTube). Her rises and falls of pitch and subtle pauses bring a humour and pathos that goes far beyond the actual words. Listen to recordings of Ronald Reagan, especially ...