InterpretingSkills, British Council Podcasts
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LearnEnglish Professionals
IMPROVING YOUR INTERPRETING SKILLS AUDIOSCRIPT
Listen to an interview with an interpreter. Have you ever thought of being an interpreter? What do you
know about the profession?
Optional exercise
Listen to the interview and choose the best answer.
1. The interviewer
a. has been also been a translator
b. has met a translator before
c. is very critical of interpreters
2. Consecutive interpreting
a. puts pressure on the interpreter’s memory
b. is easier than simultaneous interpreting
c. involves translating every word
3. Interpreting the words of a conference speaker is usually done
a. consecutively
b. in advance
c. simultaneously
4. What should speakers do to help an interpreter?
a. speak more loudly
b. speak in turn
c. use long sentences
5. Which type of job is
not
mentioned in the interview?
a. conference speaking
b. financial negotiations
c. telephone interpreting
Interviewer:
Today’s programme is devoted to people employed in international settings. My first guest is Dana
Ivanovich who has worked for the last twenty years as an interpreter. Dana, welcome.
Dana:
Thank you
Interviewer:
Now I’d like to begin by saying that I have on occasions used an interpreter myself, as a foreign
correspondent, so I am full of admiration for what you do. But I think your profession is sometimes underrated, it’s
something of an unknown quantity. Many people think that anyone who speaks more than one language can do
it…
Dana:
There aren’t any interpreters I know who don’t have professional qualifications and training. You only really
get proficient after many years in the job.
Interviewer:
And am I right in saying you can divide what you do into two distinct methods, simultaneous and
consecutive interpreting?
Dana:
That’s right. The techniques you use are different, and a lot of interpreters will say one is easier than the
other, less stressful.
www.britishcouncil.org/professionals.htm
© The British Council, 2009
The United Kingdom’s international organisation for educational opportunities and cultural relations.
We are registered in England as a charity.
LearnEnglish Professionals
IMPROVING YOUR INTERPRETING SKILLS AUDIOSCRIPT
Interviewer:
Simultaneous interpreting, putting someone’s words into another language more or less as they
speak, sounds to me like the more difficult.
Dana:
Well, actually no, most people in the business I think would agree that consecutive interpreting is the more
stressful. You have to wait for the speaker to deliver quite a chunk of language, before you then put it into the
second language, which puts your short term memory under intense stress.
Interviewer:
You make notes, I presume
Dana:
Absolutely, anything like numbers, names, places, have to be noted down, but the rest is never translated
verbatim you have to find a way of summarising it so that the message is there, without repeating word for word.
That would put too much strain on the listener, and slow down the whole process too much.
Interviewer:
But with simultaneous interpreting, you start translating almost as soon as the other person starts
speaking. You must have some preparation before the event, I presume.
Dana:
Well, hopefully the speakers will let you have an outline of the topic a day or two in advance. Conference
speeches are an obvious example. You have a little time to do research, prepare terminology and so on
Interviewer:
Can you give us an example of when you would do consecutive interpreting?
Dana:
Well, something I am involved in a lot is financial negotiations, where representatives are discussing the
fine details of a business deal for example.
Interviewer:
And how do you stop everyone speaking at once? These things are rarely choreographed.
Dana:
This is where you as a professional have to assert yourself, to orchestrate things so that the
communication flows. You let the participants know how you want them to speakto respect the conventions of
turntaking, to get used to pausing frequently to let the interpreter translate, to use short sentences, not to speak
too fast.
Interviewer:
And be prepared to interrupt if the speaker forgets you’re there?
Dana:
Absolutely
_______________________________________________________________________________________
Answers:
1b, 2a, 3c, 4b, 5c
www.britishcouncil.org/professionals.htm
© The British Council, 2009
The United Kingdom’s international organisation for educational opportunities and cultural relations.
We are registered in England as a charity.
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