不同语调条件下的声调音高实现

从调类个性、句中位置和重音级别3个层面的语音分析,考察普通话4个声调在不同语调条件下的音高实现。目标词被置于3种不同的焦点位置(即句重音最强的位置)和两种不同的非焦点位置(即非句重音位置)上,对目标词的调域以及目标声调的高音点和低音点进行了观察分析。实验结果表明,(1)在焦点条件以及非焦点条件下,阳平的音高位于调域的中低音区,去声低音点的理论调值尽管低于阳平低音点,但去声低音点在音高实现上往往接近阳平低音点甚至会高于阳平低音点;(2)焦点在句首位置表现为调域向上下两个方向扩展,在句末位置则表现为调域整体上抬,但不同声调的高音点并不都与调域上限同比例变化,不同声调低音点的变化也并不都与调域下限同比例变化;(3)重音后音节的音高对焦点音节的依赖关系受音步组合关系的制约,焦点和焦点后音节若在同一音步内,焦点后音节的音高与焦点音节的音高关系类似轻声音节与其前接非轻声音节的音高关系,焦点和焦点后音节之间如果存在音步边界,焦点后音节的音高表现出一定的独立性。这些结果说明了语句中声调音高实现的复杂性,一个具有较好预测性的汉语普通话语调模型的建立需要包括焦点结构、韵律结构、协同发音、调类个性等不同层面信息的诸多细节化规则。     

Effects of seeing the interlocutor on the production of prosodic contrasts (L)

This study investigated whether the production of prosodic focus and phrasing contrasts was modified when interlocutors could only hear each other [auditory only (AO)], compared to when they could hear and see each other [face to face (FTF)]. The prosodic characteristics of utterances produced by six talkers were examined using both acoustic and perceptual measures (ratings of the degree of focus or clarity of the statement-question contrast). The acoustic measures showed a range of differences between narrow focus and between phrasing contrasts and some of these differences were greater in the AO setting than the FTF one. The listener's ratings of focus and phrasing showed a clear difference between the AO and FTF conditions, with perceptual attributes of both narrow focus and echoic question phrasing being rated as clearer in the AO condition. To explain these results it is proposed that talkers compensate for the lack of visual prosodic cues in the AO condition by taking extra care (relative to FTF conditions) to ensure the effective transmission of prosodic cues.     

The roles of pitch and duration in sentence accent of Chinese discourse

Relying on a corpus of thirty narrative discourses,the roles of pitch and duration of prosodic words in sentence accent were studied in discourse context.At first,the pitch was normalized.Then according to the pitch range,the sentence and prosodic word were classified into three ranks of strengthened,normal and weakened respectively.In the same time the sentence accent was classified into two levels of primary and secondary by perceptual evaluation. The results showed that the relative pitch range of prosodic words in opposition to sentence contributed dominantly to sentence accent.Furthermore,the roles of pitch and duration in sentence accent were affected interactively by the rank of sentence and prosodic words.In normal prosodic words,primary sentence accents were realized by the mutual performance of pitch and duration while secondary sentence accents mainly depended on the variation of pitch. In strengthened prosodic words,the role of duration in sentence accent was more significant when the pitch range of the sentence was more compressed.Finally,it was found that the correlation between pitch and duration was influenced primarily by the strength of prosodic words,and in weakened,normal and strengthened prosodic words,the correlations between pitch and duration were positive,null,and negative respectively.     

利用线谱起伏实现目标测距

常见水中目标辐射噪声的线谱会随目标运动而出现强弱起伏。不同号简正波之间的干涉是目标声强随距离起伏的主要原因,利用简正波水平波数差和波导不变量之间的关系,推导了不同线谱随距离变化起伏的理论关系式。基于此关系式,提出利用两条或多条线谱声强起伏进行声源测距的方法。针对两条线谱起伏测距方法存在的旁瓣问题,解释其形成原因,并提出用多条线谱声强起伏抑制旁瓣。数值仿真验证了方法的可行性,利用多条线谱声强起伏测距的方法可有效抑制旁瓣。海试数据分析表明,当连续谱部分非常微弱无法有效测距时,利用多条线谱声强起伏测距的方法仍能稳定的估计渔船目标距离,估计距离的平均相对误差为12%。     

维吾尔语焦点的韵律实现及感知

通过严格控制的语音实验,研究了维吾尔语陈述句中焦点对音高和时长的调节作用。实验设计了两个目标句,请发音人根据上下文自然地强调句中相应的词,随后还考察了焦点的感知问题。结果表明:(1)以句末焦点为基线,维吾尔语焦点的韵律编码方式类似于北京话和英语中的\     

边界强度对焦点实现方式的影响

汉语普通话中,单焦点主要表现为焦点词音高上升和焦点后音高压缩(Post-Focus-Compression,PFC),而双焦点句中第一个焦点后音高压缩有限。韵律边界强度是否影响焦点的实现方式,特别是焦点后音高压缩?本实验借助句法上词、短语、分句和句子的分类,在句中关键词(X)后设定了4种韵律边界强度。通过问句引导的4种焦点条件分别为:关键词X为焦点,句末词Y为焦点,词X和Y都是焦点(双焦点),以及中性焦点。语音分析结果显示:(1)焦点词都表现出音高上升和时长延长,增加量在单焦点和双焦点间没有显著差异,且不受焦点词后边界强度的影响;(2)双焦点句中第一个焦点后的音高压缩会被中等强度的边界减弱,而只有非常强的边界才会减弱单焦后的音高压缩;(3)随韵律边界强度增加,边界前的词时长增加,但延长量是有上限的,且不受焦点位置的影响。总体来说,韵律边界和焦点在语调上是平行编码的。     

Effectiveness of spatial cues, prosody, and talker characteristics in selective attention

The three experiments reported here compare the effectiveness of natural prosodic and vocal-tract size cues at overcoming spatial cues in selective attention. Listeners heard two simultaneous sentences and decided which of two simultaneous target words came from the attended sentence. Experiment 1 used sentences that had natural differences in pitch and in level caused by a change in the location of the main sentence stress. The sentences' pitch contours were moved apart or together in order to separate out effects due to pitch and those due to other prosodic factors such as intensity. Both pitch and the other prosodic factors had an influence on which target word was reported, but the effects were not strong enough to override the spatial difference produced by an interaural time difference of +/- 91 microseconds. In experiment 2, a large (+/- 15%) difference in apparent vocal-tract size between the speakers of the two sentences had an additional and strong effect, which, in conjunction with the original prosodic differences overrode an interaural time difference of +/- 181 microseconds. Experiment 3 showed that vocal-tract size differences of +/- 4% or less had no detectable effect. Overall, the results show that prosodic and vocal-tract size cues can override spatial cues in determining which target word belongs in an attended sentence.     

Tonal coarticulation patterns in quadrisyllabic words and phrases with normal stress of mandarin

Quadrisyllabic words and phrases with normal stress of Mandarinwere used to study the tonal coarticuation.It was firstly found that the F_0perturbation at the starting—point and the ending—point of the F_0 curve ineach syllable caused by tonal coarticulation is larger than the intrinsic F_0 dif-ference of vowels at the starting—point and the ending—point of it.As for thetonal coarticulation,it was discovered that tonal coarticulation in word andphrase with normal stress is different to that in the nonsense sequence with evenstress,and in word and phrase with normal stress,the tonal coarticulatory ef-fects are unidirectional,and the carryover effect does not extend to theending—point of tone—section of the following syllable and the anticipatory ef-fect does not extend to the starting-point of tone-section of the preceding one,and the F_0 perturbation by tonal coarticulation has its pattern.     

Prosodic strengthening and featural enhancement: evidence from acoustic and articulatory realizations of /a,i/ in English

In this study the effects of accent and prosodic boundaries on the production of English vowels (/a,i/), by concurrently examining acoustic vowel formants and articulatory maxima of the tongue, jaw, and lips obtained with EMA (Electromagnetic Articulography) are investigated. The results demonstrate that prosodic strengthening (due to accent and/or prosodic boundaries) has differential effects depending on the source of prominence (in accented syllables versus at edges of prosodic domains; domain initially versus domain finally). The results are interpreted in terms of how the prosodic strengthening is related to phonetic realization of vowel features. For example, when accented, /i/ was fronter in both acoustic and articulatory vowel spaces (enhancing [-back]), accompanied by an increase in both lip and jaw openings (enhancing sonority). By contrast, at edges of prosodic domains (especially domain-finally), /i/ was not necessarily fronter, but higher (enhancing [+high]), accompanied by an increase only in the lip (not jaw) opening. This suggests that the two aspects of prosodic structure (accent versus boundary) are differentiated by distinct phonetic patterns. Further, it implies that prosodic strengthening, though manifested in fine-grained phonetic details, is not simply a low-level phonetic event but a complex linguistic phenomenon, closely linked to the enhancement of phonological features and positional strength that may license phonological contrasts.     

普通话四音节词和短语中声调协同发音模式

本文研究用正常重音念的普通话四音节词和短语的声调协同发音问题。本实验看到,声调协同发音对各音节声调起点和终点所引起的F₀扰动,一般地说,要大于音节中这些点处不同元音内在F₀的差异。至于声调协同发音,本实验看到,一般地说,声调协同发音是单向的,而且顺向作用只影响其后接声调的起点,逆向作用只影响前接声调的终点;声调协同发音引起的F₀扰动具有一定模式。声调协同发音受词重音模式所制约。声调协同发音还跟念词和短语的速度有关。     

Acoustic and perceptual cues for compound-phrasal contrasts in Vietnamese

This paper reports two series of experiments that examined the phonetic correlates of lexical stress in Vietnamese compounds in comparison to their phrasal constructions. In the first series of experiments, acoustic and perceptual characteristics of Vietnamese compound words and their phrasal counterparts were investigated on five likely acoustic correlates of stress or prominence (f0 range and contour, duration, intensity and spectral slope, vowel reduction), elicited under two distinct speaking conditions: a "normal speaking" condition and a "maximum contrast" condition which encouraged speakers to employ prosodic strategies for disambiguation. The results suggested that Vietnamese lacks phonetic resources for distinguishing compounds from phrases lexically and that native speakers may employ a phrase-level prosodic disambiguation strategy (juncture marking), when required to do so. However, in a second series of experiments, minimal pairs of bisyllabic coordinative compounds with reversible syllable positions were examined for acoustic evidence of asymmetrical prominence relations. Clear evidence of asymmetric prominences in coordinative compounds was found, supporting independent results obtained from an analysis of reduplicative compounds and tone sandhi in Vietnamese [Nguye;n and Ingram, 2006]. A reconciliation of these apparently conflicting findings on word stress in Vietnamese is presented and discussed.     

北京话声调分布区的知觉研究

声调分布区问题是研究声调信息是由字音的整个带音部分,还是由其韵母或主要元音所携带。本文采用感知实验方法研究这个问题。从一位说北京话的男青年单说的\     

圈养瓶鼻海豚对20 kHz连续声信号的行为响应研究

将20 kHz连续声信号作为刺激信号,测试了厦门某海湾圈养的两只瓶鼻海豚对该信号的行为变化。通过对比信号发射期与间歇期海豚相对声源的水面距离、露出水面的次数以及水下发出的click定位声信号的数目等变化,判断发射信号对海豚行为的影响。给出了瓶鼻海豚对测试信号产生躲避行为的声压级门限(154±2 dB re 1μPa,rms),并与鼠海豚的躲避声压门限级进行了对比。结果表明:信号发射期,瓶鼻海豚移离了声源位置,增加了露出水面的次数,水下发出click声信号的次数明显减少。因此,瓶鼻海豚对20kHz连续信号产生了行为改变。     

Separability of prosodic phrase boundary and phonemic information

It was hypothesized that the retrieval of prosodic and phonemic information from the acoustic signal is facilitated when prosodic information is encoded by co-occurring suprasegmental cues. To test the hypothesis, two-choice speeded classification experiments were conducted, which examined processing interaction between prosodic phrase-boundary vs stop-place information in speakers of Southern British English. Results confirmed that the degree of interaction between boundary and stop-place information diminished when the pre-boundary vowel was signaled by duration and F(0), compared to when it was signaled by either duration or F(0) alone. It is argued that the relative ease of retrieval of prosodic and phonemic information arose from advantages of prosodic cue integration.     

Effects of age and sequence presentation rate on temporal order recognition

The experiments examined the ability of younger and older listeners to identify the temporal order of sounds presented in tonal sequences. The stimuli were three-tone sequences that spanned two-octave frequency range, and listeners identified random permutations of tone order using labels of relative pitch. Some of the sequences featured uniform timing characteristics, and the sequence duty cycle was varied across conditions to examine the relative influence of tonal durations and intertone interval on recognition performance across a range of sequence presentation rates. Other stimulus sequences featured nonuniform timing with unequal tone durations and intertone intervals. The listeners were groups of younger and older persons with or without hearing loss. Results indicated that temporal order recognition was influenced primarily by sequence presentation rate, independent of tonal duration, tonal interval spacing, or sequence timing characteristics. The performance of older listeners was poorer than younger listeners, but the age-related recognition differences were independent of sequence presentation rate. There were no consistent effects of hearing loss on temporal ordering performance.     

Level effects in complex stimulus discrimination

The dependence of spectral-shape discriminations upon presentation level was studied using stimuli consisting of a bandpass noise and a less intense pure tone. The level of the noise band was held constant (+10 dB) relative to the level of the tone, and the minimum change in the intensity of the tone was measured across a range of presentation levels. The results demonstrated that, for tonal frequencies located near the upper edge of the noise band, subject's optimal performance occurred at intermediate presentation levels and became considerably poorer at high levels. This result is in accordance with upward spread of masking and emphasizes that presentation level is an important parameter to consider when measuring discriminations of complex spectral shapes.     

Phrase boundary effects on the temporal kinematics of sequential tongue tip consonants

This study evaluates the effects of phrase boundaries on the intra- and intergestural kinematic characteristics of blended gestures, i.e., overlapping gestures produced with a single articulator. The sequences examined are the juncture geminate [d(#)d], the sequence [d(#)z], and, for comparison, the singleton tongue tip gesture in [d(#)b]. This allows the investigation of the process of gestural aggregation [Munhall, K. G., and Lofqvist, A. (1992). "Gestural aggregation in speech: laryngeal gestures," J. Phonetics 20, 93-110] and the manner in which it is affected by prosodic structure. Juncture geminates are predicted to be affected by prosodic boundaries in the same way as other gestures; that is, they should display prosodic lengthening and lesser overlap across a boundary. Articulatory prosodic lengthening is also investigated using a signal alignment method of the functional data analysis framework [Ramsay, J. O., and Silverman, B. W. (2005). Functional Data Analysis, 2nd ed. (Springer-Verlag, New York)]. This provides the ability to examine a time warping function that characterizes relative timing difference (i.e., lagging or advancing) of a test signal with respect to a given reference, thus offering a way of illuminating local nonlinear deformations at work in prosodic lengthening. These findings are discussed in light of the pi-gesture framework of Byrd and Saltzman [(2003) "The elastic phrase: Modeling the dynamics of boundary-adjacent lengthening," J. Phonetics 31, 149-180].     

A Computational Model of Tonal Tension Profile of Chord Progressions in the Tonal Interval Space

In tonal music, musical tension is strongly associated with musical expression, particularly with expectations and emotions. Most listeners are able to perceive musical tension subjectively, yet musical tension is difficult to be measured objectively, as it is connected with musical parameters such as rhythm, dynamics, melody, harmony, and timbre. Musical tension specifically associated with melodic and harmonic motion is called tonal tension. In this article, we are interested in perceived changes of tonal tension over time for chord progressions, dubbed tonal tension profiles. We propose an objective measure capable of capturing tension profile according to different tonal music parameters, namely, tonal distance, dissonance, voice leading, and hierarchical tension. We performed two experiments to validate the proposed model of tonal tension profile and compared against Lerdahl’s model and MorpheuS across 12 chord progressions. Our results show that the considered four tonal parameters contribute differently to the perception of tonal tension. In our model, their relative importance adopts the following weights, summing to unity: dissonance (0.402), hierarchical tension (0.246), tonal distance (0.202), and voice leading (0.193). The assumption that listeners perceive global changes in tonal tension as prototypical profiles is strongly suggested in our results, which outperform the state-of-the-art models.     

Focus, prosodic context, and phonological feature specification: patterns of variation in fricative production

Because they consist, in large part, of random turbulent noise, fricatives present a challenge to attempts to specify the phonetic correlates of phonological features. Previous research has focused on temporal properties, acoustic power, and a variety of spectral properties of fricatives in a number of contexts [Jongman et al., J. Acoust. Soc. Am. 108, 1252-1263 (2000); Jesus and Shadle, J. Phonet. 30, 437-467 (2002); Crystal and House, J. Acoust. Soc. Am. 83, 1553-1573 (1988a)]. However, no systematic investigation of the effects of focus and prosodic context on fricative production has been carried out. Manipulation of explicit focus can serve to selectively exaggerate linguistically relevant properties of speech in much the same manner as stress [de Jong, J. Acoust. Soc. Am. 97, 491-504 (1995); de Jong, J. Phonet. 32, 493-516 (2004); de Jong and Zawaydeh, J. Phonet. 30, 53-75 (2002)]. This experimental technique was exploited to investigate acoustic power along with temporal and spectral characteristics of American English fricatives in two prosodic contexts, to probe whether native speakers selectively attend to subsegmental features, and to consider variability in fricative production across speakers. While focus in general increased noise power and duration, speakers did not selectively enhance spectral features of the target fricatives.     

韵律短语边界对降阶和焦点后音高骤降的影响

通过设计特定声调组合和语境的实验室语句,考察了韵律短语边界对语句中降阶和焦点后音高骤降的影响规律,以及降阶和焦点的作用域。结果发现,在由两个韵律短语组成的语句中,韵律短语边界会阻断前一短语中的降阶作用,降阶的作用域是韵律短语。焦点的实现与降阶不同:焦点后的正向音高降低作用会跨越韵律短语边界,使得后一韵律短语的高音线明显降低;如果后一韵律短语中有降阶,则焦点的跨边界音高降低作用会与降阶作用累积在一起,产生更低的高音线,说明焦点的作用域是语调短语。但当后一韵律短语也出现焦点时,音高重置阻断了前一短语中焦点的正向音高降低作用,此时两个焦点分别独立地实现。