Consecutive

translation
Lesson 1
 What is consecutive interpreting?
Consecutive interpreting is one of the two skills
that go to make up what we call conference
interpreting.
It involves listening to what someone has to say
and then, when they have finished, reproducing
the same message in another language.
The speech may be anything between a minute
and twenty minutes in length and the interpreter
will rely on
a combination of notes, memory and general
knowledge
to recreate their version of the original.
Equipment required for
Consecutive Interpreting
A speaker,
an interpreter,
a notepad and
a pen
is all the equipment you will need.
Equipment required for
Consecutive Interpreting
Interpreters working in consecutive
mode generally use notepads to take
notes on,
although sheets of paper and,

napkins and menus have been known

to be requisitioned.
Equipment required for Consecutive
Interpreting
Reporter's notepad 10x15 cm
A convenient size. Big enough for clear
notes, small enough to carry around.
Spiral bound from the top
Pages turn easily and never get lost,
dropped or mixed up.
Firm sheet of card as
You will often have to take notes and speak
standing up. Try doing either of these with
a floppy notepad!
Equipment required for Consecutive
Interpreting
Plain pages or lines or squares as feint as
possible
What you write must be clearly seen on the
paper you are using.
Write on one side of the page only.
The order of the pages gets very confusing if
you don't.
Check that the pen you use
Writes quickly, smoothly, clearly and quietly.
Have several spares
Bring a spare, or two!
The ink must be clearly visible on the
paper you are using.
 When is consec used?
Ceremonial speeches
After-dinner speeches at banquets or to
open receptions are a classic example: the
host will want to say a few words to the
guests and the guests will want to reply.
You may also find that you have been
recruited to interpret for the opening of a
cultural event held at a centre like the
British Council or Goethe Institute.
The organizer will introduce the event in,
say, English or German and you will
interpret into the language of the host
country.
When is consec used?
Visits and guided tours
Groups of MPs,
business people,
technical experts
will often make trips abroad as part of their
jobs.
When is consec used?
Working meetings without equipment
Sometimes, of course, you will still find
yourself in an old-fashioned meeting room,
interpreting consecutively
what the participants have to say to one
another across the table.
The meeting rooms will all look much the
same,
but the subject of the debate will depend on
who your clients are.
 When is consec used?
Accreditation tests
Finally, it is worth mentioning accreditation tests.
Many large international institutions insist on
testing interpreters' abilities before offering them
any work.
Such accreditation tests cannot be considered to
be "real" interpreting:
we are not helping people with no mutual
language to communicate with one another.
Rather we are demonstrating to people who
understand perfectly the 2 languages involved
that we are capable of facilitating communication
when necessary.
Skills required for Consecutive
Interpreting
Ability to concentrate
Pleasant and loud voice
Long-term memory
Ability to listen and take notes at the same
time
Good background knowledge
 Good note-taking is the key to good
consecutive interpreting,
This system can be used where booths
and simultaneous facilities are not
available and
avoids a speech being interrupted every
few sentences
as would be necessary if the speech
were interpreted bit by bit.
 Note-taking systems used by
consecutive interpreters are many and
varied ' some use
short-hand,

some rely on symbols and others use a

combination of both.
Obviously it's not possible to have a
symbol for every single word or concept,
so abbreviated words are also used.
 Many are derived from Latin.
c.f. (confer) = compare

i.e. (id est) = that is

e.g (exempla grate) = for example

NB (nota benne) =note well

no. (numero) = number

etc. (et cetera)= and so on

 Symbols for note-taking
= equals/is equal to/is the same as
is not equal to/is not the same as
is equivalent to
therefore, thus, so
+ and, more, plus
> more than, greater than
< less than
less, minus
gives, causes, leads to, results in,
is given by, is produced by, results from
rises, increases by
falls, decreases by
 3. Personal Abbreviations
Here you can shorten any word

that is commonly used in your

lectures.

diff =different

Gov = government

NEC = necessary
 BOMB in Afghan
kills
4 US sold. + 1 Afg.

planted by Taliban mil.

against USA
Consec vs Sim Interpreting
What is the difference?
- mode of work
- type of memory involved
- number of interpreters involved
- time limits
Equipment required for
Simultaneous Interpreting

Special equipment headphones,

booth
Notepad, pen (depending on the type
of sim)
Skills required for Simultaneous
Interpreting

Ability to concentrate
Pleasant and loud voice

Short-term memory

Ability to listen and speak at the same

time
Good background knowledge
Questions you ask to the
customer
Topic of the conference (as narrow as
possible)
Type of event
Availiability of equipment
Time and date
Availiability of conference materials
Preparatory work before
consec
Reading materials on the topic
Glossary

Translation of materials given

beforehand (if any)
Checking for notepad and pen
Instructions for class work
1. Create folder masterat on disk D
2. Within folder create another with your
name
3. Try to register your voice using Audicity
programme
Audicity programme
 Memory exercise figures and dates
Listening to the text
Writing down names and figures
Reading the text aloud
Work with vocabulary