polly-ssml-builder
v1.0.1
Published
A utility for building valid SSML for Amazon Web Services Polly & Lex Services
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Polly SSML Builder
A utility for building valid SSML for use with Amazon Web Services Lex and Polly services.
Amazon Lex & Polly support a subset of the SSML markup tags as defined by Speech Synthesis Markup Language (SSML) Version 1.1, W3C Recommendation.
Using a Builder Pattern, PollySsmlBuilder allows you to programmatically build up a valid SSML string.
Install
npm install polly-ssml-builder
Usage
Start by requiring the library.
const PollySsmlBuilder = require("polly-ssml-builder");
Then, for each SSML String you want to create, do the following:
- create a new PollySsmlBuilder
- call methods to speak text
- build the String result
let pollySsmlBuilder = new PollySsmlBuilder();
let ssml = pollySsmlBuilder.speak("Don't tell anyone, but ")
.whisper("I see dead people.")
.build();
This produces the following String:
<speak>Don't tell anyone, but <amazon:effect name="whispered">I see dead people.</amazon:effect></speak>
All options are available as constants on the PollySsmlBuilder class. For example:
let pollySsmlBuilder = new PollySsmlBuilder();
let ssml = pollySsmlBuilder.speakPhonetically("pecan", pollySsmlBuilder.ALPHABET_IPA, "pɪˈkɑːn")
.build();
PollySsmlBuilder.ALPHABET_IPA specifies the "ipa" language.
Break
To add a break (pause) into the speech, call addBreak().
let pollySsmlBuilder = new PollySsmlBuilder();
let ssml = pollySsmlBuilder.speak("Legen - wait for it.")
.addBreak(pollySsmlBuilder.BREAK_STRONG)
.speak("dary")
.build();
The duration parameter can be one of the following:
- The number of seconds specified as "10s" for 10 seconds
- The number of milliseconds specified as "500ms" for 500 milliseconds
- One of the BREAK_* constants
Speak with Volume
To change the volume of speech, call speakWithVolume().
let pollySsmlBuilder = new PollySsmlBuilder();
let ssml = pollySsmlBuilder.speakWithVolume("I'm shouting!", pollySsmlBuilder.VOLUME_XTRA_LOUD)
.build();
The volume parameter can be one of the following:
- An increase in volume as "+5dB" will increase the volume by 5 decibels
- A decrease in volume as "-3dB" will decrease the volume by 3 decibels
- One of the VOLUME_* constants
Speak with Pitch
To change the pitch of speech, call speakWithPitch().
let pollySsmlBuilder = new PollySsmlBuilder();
let ssml = pollySsmlBuilder.speakWithPitch("I'm speaking with a high voice!", pollySsmlBuilder.PITCH_HIGH)
.build();
The pitch parameter can be one of the following:
- A percent increase in pitch as "+7%" will increase the pitch by 7 percent
- A percent decrease in pitch as "-5%" will decrease the pitch by 5 percent
- One of the PITCHE_* constants
Paragraphs
Paragraphs can be spoken with one method call:
let pollySsmlBuilder = new PollySsmlBuilder();
let ssml = pollySsmlBuilder.speakWithParagraph("The quick brown fox jumped over the lazy dog. It is a sentence that contains all the letters of the alphabet.")
.build();
Or with multiple methods calls:
let pollySsmlBuilder = new PollySsmlBuilder();
let ssml = pollySsmlBuilder.startParagraph()
.speak("The quick brown fox jumped over the lazy dog. ")
.speak("It is a sentence that contains all the letters of the alphabet.")
.endParagraph()
.build();
Both of these options produce the same result.
If you forget to call endParagraph() before you build(), an Error will be thrown.
Sentences
Sentences work similar to paragraphs - they can be spoken with one method call, or multiple method calls.
Languages
Speaking in a language works similar to paragraphs - it can be spoken with one method call, or multiple method calls.
The language parameter is not defined by a constant. This is to allow new languages to be added by Amazon Web Services without the need to update this utility. A warning will be logged if a language is not recognised.
See SUPPORTED_LANGUAGES array for a list of currently supported languages.
Supported Tags
For a full list of supported SSML tags, see SSML Tags in Amazon Polly
All tags listed as of July 2017 are supported by this builder.
Authors
- Mark Borner - Initial work - Software By Mark
License
This project is licensed under the Apache 2.0 License - see the LICENSE.txt file for details
Change History
Release 1.0.0
- initial release
Release 1.0.1
- refactoring to provide extensibility
- renamed SsmlBuilder to PollySsmlBuilder
- fixed spelling in Readme