Intonation Clinic

Master Melody, Music, and Meaning in American English

Master Melody, Music, and Meaning

You know your English speaking voice has so much more potential.

You want to sound more interesting, more engaging, and more natural when you talk.

Intonation Clinic will teach you how to create the melody and music of English through the rise and fall of your voice.

This American intonation course will help you feel confident that you’re expressing the right emotions, attitude, and meaning through your tone of voice.

Remember:

Your ideas matter.

Your voice is a powerful tool.

You can learn how to express yourself effectively.

You know that something’s missing when you speak English.

Even though your language skills are good (you might already be fluent!), you still don’t sound the way you want to.

Maybe your pitch is all over the place - you know you need more control.

Or your voice sounds flat - you realize that Americans are much more expressive than you.

You’re tired of misunderstandings based on the way people interpret what they hear in your tone of voice.

You want to finally feel confident that you're communicating your feelings and intentions clearly.

Ever asked yourself one of these questions?

“I’ve been working on the ups and downs of my voice… but it seems like there’s more to intonation than that. What am I missing?”

“Why do people think I sound bored, annoyed, or demanding when I'm actually trying to sound polite?”

“Will I ever sound as interesting, friendly, or emotional as Americans do when I speak English?”

Here's what I know about you.

You are definitely aware that you sound different than native speakers.

You can hear pitch rises and falls, but when you try it, you're not sure if you're doing it right.

You like listening to people who sound expressive, energetic, and friendly.

You’ve probably watched a bunch of YouTube videos on stress and intonation. Maybe you’ve tried shadowing or imitating what you hear.

You get that intonation is important: after all, it’s not what you say, it’s how you say it.

You want to have more control over your tone of voice.

You’re nervous that you’ll choose the wrong intonation and your meaning will be completely misunderstood.

You want to make sure your tone reflects the true intentions behind your words.

You know that you can use your voice to communicate your ideas more powerfully.

You're ready to learn how.

Let's work together in the Intonation Clinic.

You're looking for step-by-step guidance so you can feel confident that you’re expressing precisely what it is you want to express.

In short, you want to improve your intonation, and you want help.

intonation (noun): the way your pitch rises and falls when you speak in order to communicate feelings, emotions, and attitudes

clinic (noun): an intensive session of instruction in a specific skill or field of knowledge

Step 1: Intonation Basics: Melody and Music of English

You’ll discover how to create the natural rise and fall in pitch throughout your sentences by stressing, or emphasizing, the right words.

You’ll find out how to emphasize key words in order to bring attention to important ideas, clarify your meaning, and answer questions confidently.

You’ll understand how to change your inflection by focusing attention on different words and by shifting your pitch up or down through steps and glides.

Step 2: Intonation Patterns in American English

Next, you’ll master the three primary intonation patterns in American English: rising, falling, and non-final intonation.

You’ll understand how to choose the right intonation pattern in normal statements as well as five different types of questions.

You’ll find out how to use intonation in longer sentences and how to break your ideas into logical thought groups to make it easier for people to follow what you’re saying.

Step 3: Express Your Emotions and Meaning Through Intonation

Building on this strong foundation, you’ll learn how to interpret and communicate different emotions, attitudes, and feelings in English.

You’ll practice changing your pitch for various conversational reasons, as well as how to express positive emotions and indicate negative feelings and opinions.

You’ll understand how to choose the right intonation pattern for the situation and understand nuances of American intonation that will help you understand native speakers and fit in better.

Step 4: How to Use Intonation in Real-Life Conversations

The last section of the Intonation Clinic will help you put what you’ve learned into practice by examining real-life situations where you’ll need to use the right intonation.

You’ll learn different ways to sound more polite using stress and intonation, as well as how to speak with authority or uncertainty, and how to show openness and respect.

You’ll understand how to use intonation to have more interesting conversations, how to sound more engaging, and how to show you're listening to keep conversations going smoothly - just by using your tone of voice.

Last but not least, you’ll learn special uses of intonation in American culture so that you present the best version of yourself when speaking English.

Get Feedback and Answers to Your Questions

Chat with Me

If you have questions as you work through the lessons, you can chat with me on the course site. You can also email me directly or comment on specific lessons.

Get Feedback

As you work on pitch and intonation, you may be wondering what you personally need to focus on. Submit a short audio recording for private written feedback and tips.

What Will Change When You Master Intonation

Intonation helps you understand the deeper meaning behind the words you hear.

You'll understand exactly what people mean when they stress different words or change their tone of voice. You'll be able to decipher key information that isn't said in words, but with a change in inflection.

Intonation helps sound more expressive and natural in English.

Your pitch will sound more natural, and less monotone. Your voice will sound more expressive and interesting. Your accent will improve because you'll be using the music and melody of English correctly.

Intonation helps you communicate how you feel without needing the perfect words.

You'll understand how to use your voice more powerfully to emphasize key parts of your message. You'll be able to sound more polite, more professional, and more respectful of other people's ideas.

Intonation helps people follow what you're saying and encourages better conversations.

You'll know how to keep people listening by breaking your ideas into smaller pieces and helping them follow along.

You'll feel confident reflecting other people's emotions back to them with your voice.

You'll be able to use the rise and fall of your pitch to encourage people to respond to your questions, to wait before jumping in, or to invite them to keep talking.

What's Inside the Intonation Clinic

30+ detailed video lessons with clear explanations and tons of practice exercises
Clear, organized sections designed to help you build the skills you need step by step
Practice exercises and drills for each and every lesson so that you can immediately practice what you learn
Assignments and next steps for each and every lesson so you know how to apply what you've learned to your real life
Support for your questions and concerns by private chat on the course site as well as by email
Private feedback so you can check how you're using pitch and intonation
Guidebook in PDF format for when you want to review

Intonation Clinic Is Different Than Other Programs

Speaking courses usually teach words and expressions, but not how you should say them, even though the way you change your pitch can completely change the meaning.

Accent training programs often focus on how you say certain sounds, even though stress and intonation are what truly help people understand you (even if you make pronunciation mistakes).

To make sure your message and meaning are clear, you need to master both key aspects of intonation: the melody and music of English, as well as how to express your emotions and attitude through your tone of voice.

During the Intonation Clinic, I’ll guide you through all of this step-by-step.

If you’re tired of trying to decipher intonation through bits and pieces of knowledge, Intonation Clinic is for you - we'll cover it all!

What My Students Are Saying

Before taking this course, I was virtually tone-deaf. I never had the opportunity to examine the intonation aspect of speech at such a nuanced level. But now I'm able to spot these patterns whenever I listen to American English and that's something I didn't notice before. With this program, my ability to identify and develop pitch variation in speech has improved enormously.

Intonation is that final piece of the accent puzzle that will help any ESL student to put together a more engaging and responsive voice, and Intonation Clinic is that missing link that will help you connect your emotions to your voice.

Students who have already mastered the essentials and wish to work on the musical aspect of American English will find this resource indispensable. I don't think there's any comprehensive course in the market like this one that deals with intonation in such depth. I would highly endorse Intonation Clinic to anyone serious about advancing their fluency to the next level.

-Shikhar, India

I wanted to thank you so much - I'm so happy and glad I took your course. I have been practicing my recordings and I sound so much different now. Wow! So many years taking classes and to know that the key is not in the accent, it's the intonation. That is wonderful. Now I don't sound boring or monotone. Thank you!

-Lazara, Cuba (living in Canada)

After working with you, I feel more confident interacting with people. I can now use my English to get into a deeper conversation, but I wasn’t able to do that before because I was constantly worried about my accent and my intonation. I’m not a perfectionist anymore, once I got rid of the idea of being a perfectionist, I’m actually one step closer to being more perfect.

-Nikki, Japan (living in the US)

I've learned that small nuances make a big impact on how people perceive, or receive, my message and that key messages are more important than sounding perfect. What I needed wasn’t perfection, but communication.

-Min Jeong, South Korea (living in the US)

Kim has an engaging and practical way of teaching sounding natural. She is big on "musicality" of English so she trained me hard on intonation and length of pronunciation. She has phenomenal ears that could single out the subtle differences in my accent.

-Carol, China (living in the US)

In my humble opinion you are awesome... you didn't just provide us with the combination of words which we have to use... but you provide us also with the emotional part... with feelings... what to say in which occasion... that's absolutely fantastic for me!

-Vladimir, Serbia

Ready to join me?

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FAQs

Who is this intonation program for?

This intonation program IS for you if:

you want to master the melody and music of English
you want to be able to confidently express your emotions, attitudes, feelings, and meaning through intonation
you are interested in learning American intonation - while the patterns are often the same, you may find differences in the UK, Ireland, Australia, South Africa, and other English speaking countries
you are interested in sounding more socially and emotionally intelligent when interacting with other English speakers
you speak English at an intermediate, advanced, proficient, or fluent level
you can commit to spending 2-4 hours per week reviewing the video lessons, repeating the practice exercises, and completing the assignments that help you apply what you've learned to your life
you are comfortable asking questions if you don’t understand or you need more clarification - I'll be answering all your questions through chat, and by email!

Who is this program NOT for?

This program is NOT for you if:

you are looking for an accent training program focused on the articulation of sounds, word stress patterns, or connected speech (this program covers sentence stress, thought groups, and intonation patterns)
you are not interested in learning North American intonation
you are not willing to invest the time into watching the video lessons, repeating the practice exercises, and completing the intonation assignments (the only way to improve is through doing)
you speak English below the intermediate level and/or you find it extremely challenging to understand my natural speaking speed
you are not interested in the nuances of interpersonal communication or understanding the emotions and attitudes we communicate through tone of voice

What level of English do I need?

Intonation Clinic is for high intermediate, advanced, proficient and fluent non-native English speakers who can follow natural spoken English.

If you feel comfortable understanding me in my YouTube videos, you'll do fine in this program.

You will be able to adjust the speed of the pre-recorded videos, turn on captions (subtitles), and download a guidebook with transcripts of the videos.

I’ve just heard about pitch and intonation in American English. Is this course for me?

If you’ve just learned about the importance of pitch and intonation when speaking English, that’s wonderful!

Most people first learn about intonation when they’re trying to figure out how to make their sentences and questions sound natural. Or they receive some feedback that their voice isn’t communicating their emotions and how they feel.

I have had many clients who have lived in the US for five, 10, or even 20+ years who still need to work on intonation. Learning to express yourself through your tone of voice takes time, patience, and practice. Even native speakers have to work on intonation sometimes.

This course starts off by building a solid foundation so you understand how pitch, stress, and intonation work together. You’ll start off by exploring pitch in your voice so that you’re ready to practice intonation patterns.

There are many different ways we use intonation to communicate meaning, and that’s what you’ll explore through this course. You’ll have plenty of opportunities to practice so that you feel more confident using intonation.

What is the time commitment? How long will it take me to complete the Intonation Clinic?

This program is designed to take about one month to complete, if you watch one video lesson and do the practice exercises almost every day.

You will need 2-4 hours a week to watch the videos, repeat the practice exercises, and do the assignments that help you apply intonation to your real life.

While I believe you will be able to hear progress after one month, I encourage you to continue reviewing these lessons and practice exercises as you apply what you've learned to your real-life conversations.

Remember, you have access to the course for the lifetime of the course, so be sure to come back and review as much you need!

What do I need to participate in the program?

You need a phone, tablet, or computer that can access the internet. The course is hosted on a platform available on all devices. You will need the ability to stream videos, listen to MP3s, and open PDF documents. You need to give yourself at least 10-30 minutes a day to watch the video lessons and practice.

Will I receive your feedback on my intonation?

Yes! You will have a few options to get feedback from me, as well as answers to your questions:

submit a short audio recording for private, written feedback directly from me;
ask questions via email, the chat box on the course site, on by commenting directly on lessons.

I also provide detailed guidance on how to record yourself before you start and evaluate your intonation after finishing the program. You need to be able to reflect on how you sound and self-monitor for lasting results.

Intonation Clinic is a self-paced program for independent learners who want to intensively practice intonation on their own schedule.

You'll benefit from consistent practice and regular guidance without the cost or scheduling conflicts of group courses or one-to-one coaching.

What if I have questions or get stuck?

I am 100% here to support you! If you have any questions about the lessons, practice exercises, or anything to do with intonation, you can chat with me directly using the chat function on the course site. (Just look for the little chat bubble on the bottom right corner!)

Because I'm old-school, you can also email me directly and I'm happy to answer questions over email.

You can also share insights, experiences, and reflections with other students as well as me by commenting on the lesson pages within the course community.

This is not a course where you'll never hear from the instructor. I'm available to answer questions every (business) day and I truly want you to succeed.

You will also receive regular emails motivating you to complete the course.

Can I see a sample of what's inside the program?

To get an idea of what's inside the Intonation Clinic program, check out these two videos:

I also encourage you to explore my free resources on pitch and intonation patterns on my website and YouTube channel. After watching a few videos, you'll be able to decide whether you want to intensively work on intonation with structure, support, and feedback from me.

You may also want to sign up for the Find Your Voice email course. The videos in this course will help you get started with stress, thought groups, and key intonation patterns. You'll better understand this approach to communicating clearly and confidently and get a chance to practice.

If I don't like the program, can I cancel?

Because this is a digital program with downloadable resources, purchases are non-refundable.

That said, I want you to be happy with your investment; if you are not happy with the program, please contact me directly so we can work together to find a solution.

Learn more about my course policies here.

If you're not sure, I encourage you to thoroughly explore the free resources available on my website and YouTube channel. You can start with the Find Your Voice email course.

By watching and practicing with the videos in this course, you'll better understand this approach to communicating clearly and confidently. Then you can decide if you want to intensively work on intonation with structure, support, and feedback from me.