The Prosody of Excitement in Horse Race Commentaries

This study investigates examples of horse race commentaries and compares the acoustic properties with an auditorily based description of the typical suspense pattern from calm to very excited at the finish and relaxation after the finish. With the exception of tempo, the auditory impressions were basically confirmed. The examination shows further that the results of the investigated prosodic parameters pause duration, pausing and breathing rate, F0 level and range, intensity, and spectral tilt fit well with other forms of excitement such as anger or elation. Additionally, it is discussed how the specific speaking style of horse race commentators can be classified. Finally, the role of prosodic descriptions for modelling those speaking styles and emotions, especially for speech technology, is considered.