The prounciation of 'ga' in normal (fast) speaking japanese

[istephenyu8790]

So i was listening to jpod101 hearing sentences that had 'ga' in the middle. Particularly, a video lesson in absolute beginner, category "learning with pictures and videos" , lesson 1 "talking about your daily routine in japanese. The sentence that had it was 男の子が、朝、起きる。 When i listen to the 'ga' sound, it doesn't sound like a ga, but more like something else. I can't really describe what I'm hearing nor am I able to reproduce the sound. Can any native speaker try to inform me on what the sound is and how to reproduce it?

Thanks!

[mmmason8967]

The sound is ga. It's not uncommon for 'g' to be pronounced in this nasal way--I think it's the preferred way for newsreaders to pronounce it. I find it quite difficult to imitate too; you can get something similar by trying to say 'ng' through your nose.

マイケル

[istephenyu8790]

Thanks, I think my pronunciation is getting closer now. It definitely has a n to it.

[community.japanese]

istephenyu8790-san, マイケルsan,
kon'nichiwa.

Yes; マイケルsan is very right about "nasal" sound.
In "standard" Japanese, "ga", "gi", "gu", "ge" and "go" are often/usually pronounced as nasal sound
when it's not the first sound of a word or sentence.
Many people might struggle at first, but if you try the word "nihon-go", this "go" easily comes out as nasal
sound comparing to other cases (due to "n" sound right before "go").
Hope it helps!

Natsuko (奈津子),
Team JapanesePod101.com