If you are learning Russian, start with phonology. Not vocabulary lists, not case endings, not verb aspects—phonology. The sound system is the substrate everything else sits on. Mishear a consonant and you mishear a word; misproduce one and you announce yourself as a foreign speaker before the sentence is finished.
This series is the first part of a larger phonology track. Palatalization—hard versus soft consonants—is the focus here, but the groundwork is general: how Russian speech is organized, which contrasts matter, and how to practice them deliberately. Later parts cover assimilation, prosody, and a final integration pass. You do not need to finish the whole track before moving on to grammar or conversation, but you should expect to circle back. Phonology is not a one-time unit you check off; it is something you revisit as your ear sharpens and your mouth catches up.
Who this is for. Beginners will encounter many unfamiliar words in the examples. That is fine. The point is to hear and produce contrasts, not to memorize every lemma on the first pass. Advanced learners—people who already read, write, and converse—should read this too, especially if an accent persists. Rebuilding basics is not remedial; it is how you strip away habits that textbooks never corrected. Treat the series as course material, drill book, and reference shelf at once: read it through once, practice the tables, and return to a section when you forget a pattern or notice a recurring mistake.
What to expect. Early articles establish the articulation framework and the palatalization system in the abstract. Later articles work through consonant classes and mixed drills. Phonology beyond palatalization—voicing, reduction, stress—gets mentioned where it touches this material; those topics have their own series. The goal throughout is grouping and hierarchy: see the system before drowning in exceptions. Depth comes article by article; this opening installment only has to orient you.