The Velum (also know as the “soft palate”) is a piece of soft tissue at the back of your mouth that directs airflow through your nose and mouth.
If you are learning French, Portuguese or any other language that possess “nasal vowels”, then you will need to develop motor control over this articulator.
If your target language does not include, nasal vowels, velar motor control will not be necessary. However, the more awareness and control you have over in speech instrument in general, the easier time you will have mimicking speech.
After you’ve watched the video and attempted the exercises, share a reflection in
#completions.
You do not need to wait until you master this to move on. Just integrate it into your spontaneous practice, and it will improve over time. Reference Image
For nasal vowels, the velar muscles are relaxed and the nasal passage is open, allowing air to pass through both the nose and mouth.
For oral vowels, the velar muscles are contracted and the nasal passage is blocked, so air can only pass through the mouth.
