contract #3

The Telegraphに英語のaccentに関する記事がありました。ここでのcontractは「〈物質・筋肉などが〉縮まる, 収縮する」という意味（『プログレッシブ英和中辞典』小学館）。Umeさんが以前に「〈経済などが〉縮小する」（『プログレッシブ英和中辞典』同上）という意味でcontractを採り上げていますが，それぞれの対義語には注意が必要です。筋肉などが伸びる場合は記事にもあるstretchを用い，経済などが拡張する場合はexpandを用います。
cf. http://d.hatena.ne.jp/A30/20140813/1407899452
記事の内容も面白いので是非読んでみてください。（Koyamamoto）

5 things you never knew about your accent
Why English people sound American when they sing, and other intriguing linguistic theories
1. In the 17th century, Brits and Americans sounded the same
The British Library's Shakespeare’s Original Pronunciation CD features speeches and scenes that claim to be performed as Shakespeare would have heard them, and reveals several instances of wordplay that only make sense when said aloud in the accent of Shakespeare's contemporaries.

4. Why do people sound American when they sing in English?
Brits, Canadians, Scots, Australians... usually, if they're singing pop music, they're singing it in an American accent. Linguists disagree over why this might be, but there are several theories.
One is that when you sing, you stretch and contract the length of your vowels to fit the rhythm. As rock'n'roll music developed first in America among singers with American accents, the musical patterns lead singers to make their pronunciation sound more like those original American accents.
Another theory is that as singing makes you elongate your vowels and stops you from stressing syllables as strongly as you do in speech, a pop singer simply sounds more "neutral" than someone speaking in, say, a New Zealand or Irish accent. This "neutral" accent happens to sound more like a generic American accent.
Alternatively, non-American pop singers could just be putting it on so they appeal more to listeners in the United States. After all, singers such as Lily Allen have no problem sounding like a Brit on their records.
http://www.telegraph.co.uk/culture/culturenews/11167569/british-american-accent-facts.html