Vocal percussion

Vocal percussion is the art of creating sounds with one's mouth that approximate, imitate, or otherwise serve the same purpose as a percussion instrument, whether in a group of singers, an instrumental ensemble, or solo.

In Western music

Recent musicological research points at Brazilian songwriter and musician Marcos Valle as a pioneer of Latin vocal percussion. In the track "Mentira" from his 1973 album "Previsao do Tempo", Valle emulates Congas and Shakers with his voice.

Beatboxing, an artform pioneered by rapper Doug E. Fresh, is one school of vocal percussion, originating in hip-hop music and often used to accompany rapping. it is utilized by many musicians spanning over a wide variety of genres.

In Indian music

Vocal percussion is also an integral part of many world music traditions, most notably in the traditions of North India (bols) and South India (solkattu). Syllables are used to learn percussion compositions, and each syllable signifies what stroke or combination of strokes the percussionist must use.

The art of speaking these syllables is called konnakol in South India, and traditional dance ensembles sometimes have a dedicated konnakol singer, although this practice is now waning. At one time it was a very respected art form, with many masters and singers.

In North India, the practice of reciting bols is usually limited to the percussionist reciting the composition about to be played, often in the context of a longer solo. These recitations are also sometimes spoken by a Kathak dancer.

In Japanese music

Kuchi shoga is the equivalent vocal percussion in Japanese music

Common forms of vocal percussion

Notable performers

Latin vocal percussion

Beatboxing

Mouth drumming

Konnakol

External links

This article is issued from Wikipedia - version of the Sunday, May 01, 2016. The text is available under the Creative Commons Attribution/Share Alike but additional terms may apply for the media files.