Thus, all speech sounds result from air being somehow obstructed or modified within the vocal tract. Actually only a few hundred different sounds or types of sounds occur in languages known to exist today, considerably fewer than the vocal tract is capable of producing.
None are made outside of it (such as by stomping, hand clapping, snapping of fingers, farting, etc.) Theoretically, any sound could be used as a speech sound provided the human vocal tract is capable of producing it and the human ear capable of hearing it. (Use transparancy to discuss organs of speech oral, pharyngeal and nasal cavities articulators, lungs and diaphragm). Articulatory Phonetics We will spend the next few days studying articulatory phonetic: what is involved in the actual movement of various parts of the vocal tract during speech.
