An Introduction to French Pronunciation

20.7 Level Intonation
Intonation 155
20.7.1 While no type of sentence has a level intonation
throughout, a level intonation occurs with certain elements
that are, so to speak, inserted in a sentence without forming
part of its basic structure. This occurs mainly in relation to
(i) parenthetical elements (20.7.2) and (ii) vocative expressions
(20.7.3).
20.7.2 Parenthetical comments, ‘asides’, are often pronounced
on a low and generally level tone, though there may
be a slight rise in pitch on the last syllable (e.g. rien and -ré in
the following examples):
Le ministre, | qui d’ailleurs ne valait rien, | a démissionné.
‘Si vous l’aviez vu’, | a-t-il déclaré, | ‘vous auriez compris’.
20.7.3 Vocative expressions, i.e. names, titles, etc. addressed
to the person(s) one is speaking to, and the expressions s’il te
plaît and s’il vous plaît, are normally pronounced with a level
intonation at the same pitch as that of the end of the previous
rhythmic group. They will therefore have a high intonation
if they occur at the division between the two main parts of a
declarative sentence (see 20.3.3 and 20.3.4), e.g.:
Si vous voulez, | monsieur, | vous pouvez entrer.
or in association with yes-no questions (see 20.4), e.g.:
Tu viens, | Jean-Paul? Pouvez-vous m’aider, | s’il vous plaît?