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Between-speaker variability of acoustically measurable speech rhythm (%V, ∆V(ln), ∆C(ln), and ∆Peak(ln)) and speech rate (rateCV) was investigated when within-speaker variability of (a) articulation rate and (b) linguistic structural characteristics was introduced. To study (a), 12 speakers of Standard German read 7 lexically identical sentences under five different intended tempo conditions (very slow, slow, normal, fast, very fast). To study (b), 16 speakers of Zurich Swiss German produced 16 spontaneous utterances each (256 in total) for which transcripts were made and then read by all speakers (4096 sentences; 16 speaker x 256 sentences). Between-speaker variability was tested using ANOVA with repeated measures on within-speaker factors. Results revealed strong and consistent between-speaker variability while within-speaker variability as a function of articulation rate and linguistic characteristics was typically not significant. We concluded that between-speaker variability of acoustically measurable speech rhythm is strong and robust against various sources of within-speaker variability. Idiosyncratic articulatory movements were found to be the most likely factor explaining between-speaker differences.

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Intensity contours of speech signals were sub-divided into positive and negative dynamics. Positive dynamics were defined as the speed of increases in intensity from amplitude troughs to subsequent peaks, and negative dynamics as the speed of decreases in intensity from peaks to troughs. Mean, standard deviation, and sequential variability were measured for both dynamics in each sentence. Analyses showed that measures of both dynamics were separately classified and between-speaker variability was largely explained by measures of negative dynamics. This suggests that parts of the signal where intensity decreases from syllable peaks are more speaker-specific. Idiosyncratic articulation may explain such results. Abstract: Intensity contours of speech signals were sub-divided into positive and negative dynamics. Positive dynamics were defined as the speed of increases in intensity from amplitude troughs to subsequent peaks, and negative dynamics as the speed of decreases in intensity from peaks to troughs. Mean, standard deviation, and sequential variability were measured for both dynamics in each sentence. Analyses showed that measures of both dynamics were separately classified and betweenspeaker variability was largely explained by measures of negative dynamics. This suggests that parts of the signal where intensity decreases from syllable peaks are more speaker-specific. Idiosyncratic articulation may explain such results.