Conference Interpretation Training by Vladimir Lakeev, an interpreter of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Russian Federation
From 13th to 18th April the MA students of the Caspian Higher School of Interpreting and Translation had a number of lessons with Vladimir Lakeev, an interpreter of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Russian Federation, who once again came to our School for holding interpreting classes. During his first visit in 2014, Vladimir Lakeev concentrated on the practical issues of the interpreter’s work, interpreter’s safety technique and other organizational aspects. But this time the lessons were devoted primarily to simultaneous interpretation from Russian into English and from English into Russian. To practice the interpreting skills Vladimir Lakeev advised the MA students to interpret long and challenging politicians` speeches, and then analyze carefully every sentence, no single word to be left unclear. It is the only way to attain perfection. Classes were quite intense: some students interpreted simultaneously in booths while others followed them to check attentively the accuracy of the interpretation, and then all students discussed the difficulties they faced. Vladimir Lakeev gave valuable recommendations, suggested better choice of word variants, assessed emotional aspect of interpretation, emphasized the importance of accurate sentence structuring and clear pronunciation, particularly in the mother tongue. The MA students got a list of tongue twisters to practice pronunciation and articulation. According to the experienced interpreter, it is important to warm up before interpretation by practicing the tongue twisters. Besides the MA students used a chance to ask questions about the interpreters` work and employment in the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Russian Federation, about the nuances of working in foreign institutions etc.
