A chara,

I'm using a program (BYKI.com) whose audio component reveals sounds I don't naturally form in English. Specifically they sounds like at D & TH combined as in:

Dé Déardaoin = Thursday
I hear it right after Déar is pronounced. Sounds like "dare-dtheen" to me.

Another one that gets me are the T sounds between dhúirt & tú in the phrase:

Céard a dhúirt tú
It's almost like the first T drags a bit. When I say it it sounds like "dort too" (too choppy and separate) but when the speaker says it it sounds like "dortt-too" and the T sounds blend together.

The trouble with both of these sounds is that with whatever command of english I have, I just can't reproduce these sounds. I can approximate them, but the approximation sounds too primative.

I might be asking the impossible, but does anyone know of an on-line resource that describes how to form these sounds. For instance, "hold flatttend tounge behind front teeth and exhale.."

Slán,
Scott

In true schizo-form, I'm beginning to answer my own question. I found a site which details the formation of sounds within the mouth as their material is without an audio component. With any luck, as I progress, I'll find these sounds I have trouble with:

http://www.irishpage.com/irishpeople/Lesson2.htm

"Céard a dhúirt tú? " is grammitically incorrect
it should be "Céard a dúirt tú?"
Should be spoken with this breathing pattern
DooH (exhale)- irt (inhale) tooh(exhale)

(Message edited by mickrua on December 09, 2006)

Go raibh maith agat Mickrua. Correct spelling in my naitve language eludes me and is contaminating my Irish!

Ahh! That little inhale DOES make a difference. Thanks.

By 'inhale', do you mean 'change stress'?