American Accent
for Speakers of Russian

Everything you need to sound less stereotypically Russian and more like a native speaker of American English in one pre-recorded video course!

Do you feel like your English accent is holding you back from achieving your goals? Are you tired of people not understanding you because of your accent? Do you feel like your Russian accent is holding you back from sounding like a native speaker of American English? If so, you're not alone.

Many speakers of Russian struggle with their English pronunciation and accent, which can make it difficult for them to communicate effectively in English. This can be frustrating and even embarrassing, especially in professional settings. But don't worry, there is a solution: the American Accent for Speakers of Russian course

Accent coach Adrian demonstrates differences between English and Russian vowels and stress, words overlaid with phonetic transcription and marks
gif of mouth shape to create the /f/ or /v/ labiodental fricative sounds
Comparison of English vs Russian simple sentence intonation with overlaid text, Adrian demonstrates

Get multiple videos for each of the accent features that make up a Russian accent in English. We also provide exercises and practice materials to help you master each accent feature. By the end of the course, you'll have the knowledge and skills you need to sound like a native speaker of American English.

This course is designed specifically for speakers of Russian who want to improve their English pronunciation & accent. The materials are tailored to the unique linguistic and phonetic features of the Russian language, so you can be sure that you're getting the best possible instruction.

Closeups of mouth creating various sounds, Adrian demonstrates with a plastic mouth model

How I can help you:

I’m Adrian, and I’m an accent coach who has been teaching accent modification and pronunciation training for years. I’ve spoken at international language conferences and helped hundreds of students work toward having their dream accent.

Now, I’m taking my linguistic expertise, knowledge of Russian, and compiling my lessons & materials into an easy-to-use, comprehensive course, tailored to speakers of Russian and other east Slavic languages!

Adrian leading presentation at the 2022 Polyglot Gathering

Tailored for speakers of Russian

Russian speakers have been my biggest group of students ever since I started teaching accent modification many years ago. While teaching my students, I have noticed what work worked and what didn’t work, what features were more stereotypically Russian and what were accented and more subtle. Over the years I’ve created specific materials to help my students with these issues.

Because of this, as well as my many years of phonetic research into Russian and other Slavic languages, I have compiled the lessons together into a course that you can follow yourself for a fraction of the cost of my live training lessons

Testimonials from Russian-speaking students

– Oleksii, from Ukraine

– Natalya, from Russia

– Klim, from Russia

Tamara, from Ukraine

– Dmitrii, from Russia

– Olesya, from Russia

– Anya, from Ukraine

Course outline (Expand for free previews)

  • Explanation to several linguistic themes & challenges including:

    • Pronunciation vs accent

    • Intonation

    • Vowels & consonants

    • How to practice

    English & Russian phonological differences (Free preview)

  • Learn the sounds that Russian speakers often mispronounce, which can cause confusion or miscommunication, including:

    • the “th” sounds /θ, ð/ in “think” & “then”

    • the /æ/ vowel in “bat” (because “bet” and “bat” have different vowels!)

    • the /ʌ/ sound in “one” (because “wonder” and “wander” have different vowels!)

    • the “ng” sound /ŋ/ in “sing”

    • /i/ vs /ɪ/ vowels in “beat” vs “bit” (free preview)

  • Reduce your obviously stereotypical Russian accent by avoiding these most common Russian-influenced accent features, including:

    • Aspirated consonants [pʰ tʰ kʰ tʃʰ]

    • The English “r” sound (don’t rrrrroll it like in Russian!)

    • English word stress (free preview)

    • Secondary stress (Unlike in Russian, English words can have more than one stress!)

  • Here we focus on the more subtle and more difficult Russian-accented sounds that might give you away as a speaker of Russian, or at least a non-native.

    • Flapped T (pronounce “a bottle of water” like an American!)

    • Avoiding Slavic voicing (The озвончение in Russian does not occur in English)

    • Connected speech (Link & contract your words to sound native!)

  • By this unit, will be passing as a generic native speaker occasionally, so now let’s make you sound specifically American! We’ll do this with topics (free preview) such as

    • tense English vowels

    • the “ttn” sound in words like “button” or “mountain”

    • the difference between the “a” in “had” and “hand”

    • The different vowels of ”ice” and “eyes”

  • This unit (free preview) will cover intonation which is more difficult than consonants and vowels. Russian and English intonation differ in subtle ways but mastery of intonation will help you a lot in getting an American accent and lessening your Russian accent.

    • Yes/No questions (how not to sound angry!)

    • Listing intonation

    • Emphasis

Annotated, specially-written texts for accent practice

The benefits of the course go beyond just sounding more native. Improving your English pronunciation and accent can also help you communicate more effectively in professional and personal settings. You'll feel more confident speaking English, which can help you advance in your career or even make new friends

Demonstration of airflow differences between aspirated and unaspirated sounds using tissue held in front of Adrian's mouth

And let's face it, the Russian accent can sometimes sound intimidating and even evoke images of stereotypical baddie in Hollywood films! But with my course, you'll learn how to not sound stereotypically Russian and instead sound like a native speaker of American English. You'll be able to communicate effectively and confidently, without worrying about being misunderstood or judged based on your accent.

Contrastive intonation patterns demonstrated with overlaid text, Adrian explains

Don't let your accent hold you back any longer. Sign up for the American Accent for Speakers of Russian course today and start speaking English with confidence and clarity.

FAQs

  • The time required depends on various factors, but most notably these two: 1) How much you study, and 2) your current level of English. Both of these can vary.

    My lessons can help you quickly understand the theory and method to produce the accent feature correctly, but developing the muscle memory will usually take between several weeks to several months of consistent practice since you are overcoming ingrained bad habits. The results will be worth it though!

  • This is not an English grammar course and is solely aimed at improving your accent. As such, you should already speak English quite comfortably, ideally at a B2 level or higher.

    If you are still learning English grammar and struggling with intermediate vocabulary, you should aim to improve your language skills first rather than working on acquiring an American accent!

Get started on your dream accent today!