Vocal Percussion

Vocal percussion (of English. Vocal, verbal 'or' vocal ' and percussion, percussion ') in the narrower sense, the lifelike as possible imitation of percussion rhythms with the vocal tract. In a broader sense vocal percussion means all vocal music with percussion or other rhythm reminiscent of instruments sounds and rhythms. Synonymous terms are mouth - percussion (English:, mouth percussion ') and Mouth Drumming (English:, mouth drums ', not to be confused with the Jew's harp ).

The transition from vocal percussion to traditional singing and also other sound gestures on the other hand is sometimes blurred.

Vocal percussion traditions

Vocal percussion comes in musical traditions before the world. Two forms are hereby specially emphasized because of their strong expression, on the one hand, based in the South Indian Carnatic music Konnakol, a well used for didactic mediation rhythmic structures as well as musical performances Chanting, on the other, dating back to the hip-hop beatboxing, which because of its great popularity is sometimes erroneously vocal percussion commonly called interchangeably.

Vocal percussion techniques are used in various ritual and folk music, often in combination with other singing techniques, sound gestures or dance. They found, for example in, the Indonesian Sanghyang Dedari and the Balinese Kecak intoned, chants, in the performance practice of the classical Indian dance Kathak above in various traditional African music.

The rooted in jazz singing scat collected by instrumental phrases and in this case has in its rhythmic moments elements of vocal percussion on. The same applies for the bulge, traditionally domiciled in Gaelic -speaking countries, Chanting Puirt a.

The vocal ensemble of Doo Wop used in her pieces sometimes vocal percussion elements ( for example, in Steamboat by The Drifters, The Lion Sleeps Tonight by The Tokens or One Kiss Led To Another by The Coasters ) and otherwise find vocal percussion techniques in the pop music of the 1960s and 70s occasionally use, for example in Come Together by the Beatles, In The Summertime by Mungo Jerry, Time of The Season by The zombies or True Love Can Be Beautiful by the Jackson 5 in a broader sense can also Little Richards " Womp - bomp -a -loom -op -a- womp - bam - boom" are considered ( from Tutti Frutti ) as vocal percussion. In contemporary a cappella music these forms are sometimes continued, where also the emergence in the 1980s Beatboxing can be made ​​here as influence.

Various avant-garde currents using elements of vocal percussion. These, attributable to the contemporary vocal music, so called " mouth works" of new music composers such as Dieter Schnebel or Helmut Lachenmann. The sound poems (about Dadaism and related flows) approach through her isolation, recombination, repetition and rhythm of individual phonemes sometimes the vocal percussion, examples are Kurt Schwitters ' Ursonata or the works of Ernst Jandl, Jaap Blonks or Christian Böks.