Here's a trick that I have found to be very helpful, both in understanding spoken Italian and in learning to speak faster myself:Buy or download one or two CD's of Italian pop music. I can highly recommend "Best of Nek, L'Anno Zero" (http://www.amazon.com/Best-Nek-lAnno-Zero/dp/B0000CGP1Y/ref=sr_1_3?ie=UTF8&s=music&qid=1255426816&sr=8-3) and "The Best of Laura Pausini: E Ritorno Da Te" (http://www.amazon.com/Best-Laura-Pausini-Ritorno-Da/dp/B00005Q66S/ref=sr_1_4?ie=UTF8&s=music&qid=1255430702&sr=1-4).Next, visit any one of dozens of online "lyrics" sites (just google "nek lyrics" for example) and print out the song lyrics. Find your favorite songs on the CD and listen to them as you follow along with the printed lyrics. If you are like me, you will find that your ability to understand spoken (sung) Italian rises dramatically in very short order. The next step, of course, is to practice singing along with the music; this will help with proper pronunciation and with improving your ability to speak quickly.I find this technique works much better than the previously suggested sub-titled movies or television for the simple reason that the sub-titles often do not match up very well with the actual spoken words and can lead to a lot of confusion. Also, you don't have the ability to practice your own speech as you would by listening to and singing along with the music.PS: Both of these artists record in Italian and in Spanish; when buying or downloading take care to ensure that you are getting the Italian versions. Also, both of the aforementioned recordings are available on iTunes, if you are into that sort of thing. :)
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Here's a trick that I have found to be very helpful, both in understanding spoken Italian and in learning to speak faster myself:Buy or download one or two CD's of Italian pop music. I can highly recommend "Best of Nek, L'Anno Zero" (http://www.amazon.com/Best-Nek-lAnno-Zero/dp/B0000CGP1Y/ref=sr_1_3?ie=UTF8&s=music&qid=1255426816&sr=8-3) and "The Best of Laura Pausini: E Ritorno Da Te" (http://www.amazon.com/Best-Laura-Pausini-Ritorno-Da/dp/B00005Q66S/ref=sr_1_4?ie=UTF8&s=music&qid=1255430702&sr=1-4).Next, visit any one of dozens of online "lyrics" sites (just google "nek lyrics" for example) and print out the song lyrics. Find your favorite songs on the CD and listen to them as you follow along with the printed lyrics. If you are like me, you will find that your ability to understand spoken (sung) Italian rises dramatically in very short order. The next step, of course, is to practice singing along with the music; this will help with proper pronunciation and with improving your ability to speak quickly.I find this technique works much better than the previously suggested sub-titled movies or television for the simple reason that the sub-titles often do not match up very well with the actual spoken words and can lead to a lot of confusion. Also, you don't have the ability to practice your own speech as you would by listening to and singing along with the music.PS: Both of these artists record in Italian and in Spanish; when buying or downloading take care to ensure that you are getting the Italian versions. Also, both of the aforementioned recordings are available on iTunes, if you are into that sort of thing. :)