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How to Yodel Like a Cowboy

Yodeling is an ancient singing technique that involves shifting the voice from chest to head to create a harmony of alternating high and low sounds. The low and high notes are separated by a break in the voice that is individual to the singer. In North America, yodeling is associated with the cowboy culture of mountainous north western states. Cowboy yodeling employs the use of a western twang and the notes ay, ee, and te.

Instructions

    • 1

      Find your voice break. Sing the note "ay" from inside your chest rising up to your head until your voice breaks. The voice you speak from your chest is your chest voice. Likewise, your head voice originates in the back of the throat rather than the chest.

    • 2

      Sing the notes "ay" in your chest voice and "ee" in your head voice. Push the note "ee" just above your voice break.

    • 3

      Shift the notes back and forth in succession as you sing. Do this for a while to practice. You may also sing the phrase "little old lady," pushing the last two syllables into the head voice.

    • 4

      Add the note "te" to your yodel. Experiment with different chest-voice successions of the notes "ay," "ee," and "te."

    • 5

      Speed up or slow down your variations of the notes in accordance with preference. Cowboy yodels can be fast or slow.

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