didEnterRegion - audio not playing - Swift - swift

Question

I am updating an existing app to Swift. The issue I am having is that the main purpose of the app is to play a sound file when the app gets to a specific location. Everything works in the simulator, but it does not play the sound on the device. If I add the background mode for audio and airplay, it works flawlessly. Apple has rejected this as it doesn't use the audio all the time, just when it enters a region. I did not have to have audio and airplay background mode enabled for iOS7.
I think it has something to do with the audioplayer being dealocated before it has a chance to be used. I cannot figure out how to get it set properly. There is this same question on StackOverflow for Objective C, but I cannot find anything similar for swift (and to me, this is what the answer to that question suggests and the way I had it set for iOS7).
class MasterViewController: UITableViewController, NSFetchedResultsControllerDelegate, CLLocationManagerDelegate, AVSpeechSynthesizerDelegate, AVAudioPlayerDelegate {
var myManager: CLLocationManager!
var audioPlayer = AVAudioPlayer()
var mySpeechSynthesizer = AVSpeechSynthesizer()
func playSound()
{
audioPlayer.prepareToPlay()
audioPlayer.play()
}
func audioPlayerDidFinishPlaying(player: AVAudioPlayer!, successfully flag: Bool)
{
speak()
}
func speak()
{
var myString = "This is the phrase I want to speak"
var mySpeechUtterance:AVSpeechUtterance = AVSpeechUtterance(string:myString)
mySpeechUtterance.rate = 0.12
mySpeechUtterance.voice = AVSpeechSynthesisVoice(language: "en-US")
mySpeechSynthesizer .speakUtterance(mySpeechUtterance)
}
func locationManager(manager: CLLocationManager!, didEnterRegion region: CLRegion!)
{
playSound()
scheduleAllLocations()
}
override func viewDidLoad()
{
super.viewDidLoad()
myManager = CLLocationManager()
myManager.delegate = self
myManager.desiredAccuracy = kCLLocationAccuracyBest
myManager.requestAlwaysAuthorization()
var alertSound = NSURL(fileURLWithPath: NSBundle.mainBundle().pathForResource("SpeakMinder", ofType: "mp3")!)
var error:NSError?
audioPlayer = AVAudioPlayer(contentsOfURL: alertSound, error: &error)
audioPlayer.delegate = self
mySpeechSynthesizer.delegate = self
}
This is the complete code. It works flawlessly if I have audio/airplay enabled in the background. Doesn't play a sound or speak if I have the audio/airplay disabled in the background. (Apple has rejected the app for having audio/airplay enabled)

Answer 1

From the Technical Team
If you are attempting to use AVSpeechSynthesizer from the background you should have the background audio key enabled. AVSpeech simply uses the same audio plumbing as playing any sound.
Regarding it working in iOS7 without having audio in the background enabled
If this key was not required, you were most likely getting lucky due to a bug that we have since corrected.
And an app was approved today with the audio background enabled.
If you are rejected due to having audio enabled in the background for the Speech Synthesizer.
Our own Location Based sample “Breadcrumbs" has the following enabled in the plist. You may point to this sample in your appeal.