Features
- Automatically transcribes foreign language texts (Latin, Italian, German and French) into IPA symbols based on common rules for lyric diction
- Allows you to import text (.txt) files or simply copy and paste text from MS Word documents, PDFs or the internet
- Produces a clean, finished product that can be exported as Rich Text Format (.rtf) file, which can be opened and edited in MS Word or other word processing applications
- Easy-to-use interface for inserting accents, umlauts and other diacritical marks associated with each foreign language - no need to memorize complex keystroke combinations
- Includes comprehensive help files to aid in the use of the program as well as an IPA primer to help you if your IPA skills are a bit rusty
Latin Options
IPANow! allows you to choose between Italianate and Germanic pronunciations of Latin. While the Italianate pronunciation is more commonly utilized, some choose to use the Germanic pronunciation when performing works by certain German composers (Bach et. al.).
The pronunciation of intervocalic 's' in Latin is a thorny issue for scholars. IPANow! allows the user to choose to have intervocalic 's' transcribed as either [s] or [z].
Italian Options
IPANow!'s Italian module includes options for using the three 'n' assimilations, which change the sound of the letter "n" before certain consonant sounds in order to avoid a "ghost" vowel after the "n."
Vocalists often disagree about the appropriate application of "open e" versus "closed e" and "open o" versus "closed o" in lyric diction. IPANow! offers three options in this regard. It can either:
- transcribe all "e"s and "o"s open
- transcribe all "e"s and "o"s closed
- make an automatic educated guess on all "e"s and "o"s.
Phrasal doublings are often used by Italian singers in certain places for emphasis. IPANow! has the ability to include these phrasal doublings in the transcriptions.
German Options
Some voice professionals advocate the use of glottal stops before all German words beginning with a vowel. IPANow!'s German module includes the option to insert glottal stops before words beginning with a vowel.
French Options
Because final schwas in French are only sung when the composer has assigned note value to them, the French module has the option of adding parentheses around final schwas.
This program also includes the option to choose between the "closed o" nasal vowel (default) and "open o" nasal vowel.
Regarding the pronunciation of "r"s in sung French, most vocalists avoid the "uvular r" that is commonly used in speech. Most prefer to utilize either a "flipped r" symbol or a "rolled r" symbol in phonetic transcription. Thus, this program allows the user to choose either of these symbols.
Many diction experts recommend attaching final consonants involved in liaison to the second word in transcription. Doing this promotes the fluidity and connectedness that is a must for French diction. IPANow! offers the option to transcribe linked consonants with the second word.
IPA Fonts
IPANow! utilizes the IPA-SAM fonts, which are freely available from the UCL Department of Phonetics and Linguistics. These fonts are automatically installed on your computer along with the software.
The three font-faces included with IPANow! are Doulos (similar to Times), Manuscript (similar to Courier), Sophia (sans-serif). The font faces and sizes can easily be altered within the program.
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