Here is a Summary video of how the Stress and Reduction systems of English are two of the three principal way of making particular syllables more or less prominent as we speak. (Intonational pitch changes are the third.)
There are two important points. Firstly, that physical actions generate the distinctions in prominence that we make use of in English. These are all teachable. Secondly, that the syllables of most languages contain full vowels and are unstressed. This type of syllable is in the minority in English. Instead, most syllables are either stressed or reduced, and learning to differentiate and produce syllables in these ways is the start of good pronunciation for a learner.
You can download the slides below, and please share any thoughts you have in the Comments section.
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