Please help me pronounce "Viennoiserie"

[mymeowzer]

For some reason I just can't pronounce this word and I really need to.

Can someone give me the phonetic spelling of Viennoiserie.

Thanks so much!!!!

[The Chowhound Team]

We're not sure how a thread about pronunciation got so personal so quickly, but unfortunately it did, and while we've removed some posts, we're going to lock it since the question has been answered, even if there's some debate.

[Tripeler]

Now, could someone tell me what the word refers to?

[buttermarblepopcorn]

Google it. Here, take your pick of the Google results --

http://www.google.com/search?q=vienno...

[buttermarblepopcorn]

vyen-wahz-REE (capitals = emphasis)

[SnackHappy]

That's about right, but there's no emphasis in French unless you're intentionally focusing on a part of the word to make a point.

I don't know why the guy in todao's link pronounces the "e" at the end of viennoise. Just like the "e" is silent in viennoise, it's also silent in viennoiserie.

[cinnamon girl]

No, the e at the end of Viennoiserie is pronounced; it's actually the "ie" you're pronouncing and sounds the same in French as it does in English.

[SnackHappy]

Well no, the "i" is pronounced and the "e" is silent. There's no such thing as an "ie" sound in French. But that not what I was talking about. I was saying that the preceding "e" is silent as well. You should re-read my post.

[browniebaker]

That "e" is indeed pronounced, just as in tadao's link. It's only when you say the word fast that the sound of the "e" disappears.

[SnackHappy]

"That "e" is indeed pronounced, just as in tadao's link."

Maybe if you have a Southern French accent, but otherwise it's vjɛnwazʀi.

http://www.wordreference.com/fren/vie...

[cinnamon girl]

I'm saying when you read "ie" in French it sounds the pretty much the same as it does in English, which is "ee". So maybe you should reread my post.

As for Viennoise many people subtly pronounce the final syllable in words (particularly in the south); think of Edith Piaf singing la Vie en Rose - Rose becomes two syllables (albeit it's more exaggerated than a lot of people would pronounce it). In fact I know people born and raised in Paris, very bourgeoise (dad educated at the ENS), who subtly pronounce the ending of words. Or at leat don't swallow the word endings.

The pronunciation in Todao's link is correct. I took a course in Viennoiserie at Le Cordon Bleu, where the teachers and administrators spoke French as a first language and this is how it's pronounced.

[Karl S]

The "schwa," or "shadow vowel," is standard for articulation even when singing in the English language. But gracefulness is key...

[cinnamon girl]

Thank you Karl! I couldn't for the life of me think of how to articulate that. You did so in two graceful sentences.

[carswell]

«As for Viennoise many people subtly pronounce the final syllable in words (particularly in the south); think of Edith Piaf singing la Vie en Rose - Rose becomes two syllables (albeit it's more exaggerated than a lot of people would pronounce it).»

Syllables silent in spoken French are traditionally pronounced when sung. That's why (to use an example most everyone's familiar with) *Frère Jacques* is "frer jahk" when spoken but "frer-eh jah-keh" when sung. Turning that around, just because a syllable is pronounced when sung doesn't mean it's pronounced when spoken. The standard pronunciation of *viennoiserie* is as SnackHappy describes. See the Robert if you don't want to take our word for it.

[todao]

It's easier to have you check this link that to try and break it down into its combined sounds:
http://www.howjsay.com/index.php?word...

[Masonville]

Thanks for the website. Haven't checked it out completely, but it looks useful. Pronunciation is such an intimidating factor in ordering. With food, it's not a big deal. In a French restaurant in America, I resolutely refuse to order in French. But wine's a different story--the name's the name, and there's no way to say it in English. I know a lot about wine, but given limited $$$$, know relatively little about pronunciation of some high-end French wine labels. That said, if I want to splurge, it would be pleasant if not completely necessary, to pronounce my selection rather just pointing and saying "uh, yuh".