I’m just finishing up Level 1 Italian and I can’t help but notice that many people are asking about ending vowels being dropped (myself included). I’ve come to the opinion that this is just a consequence of human nature wanting to simplify things. It’s just easier to speak the language this way.
I’ve been listening to a lot of Italian pop music on YouTube; following the lyrics when they’re available. I’m seeing that dropping the ending vowel is SO COMMON that it must be the norm. Especially in music where rhythm counts. Even Sonia does it on the DVD. (quest’ hotel, instead of, questo hotel)
I’m convinced that when we finally get to Italy and try to converse with the natives, we’d better be prepared for this. Naturally, we need to know the correct spelling of words for writing and reading, but for everyday conversation, we need to understand common conversational practices.