Overtone Singing (throat singing) "Amazing Grace"

[torsejuf]

Como mola el profundo este.

[MrJBoma]

@torsejuf Gracias.

[kaneko269]

WTF? that's amazing¡¡ it's beautiful, i wish i knew about this before... i think this is the second time i ever hear this type of singing, amazing¡¡¡

[ImBoredKay]

LOL

[pnskbk]

i've seen some of your videos, great singing, but next time, fix your hair dude.

[justrixx]

I'm curious but what is your background? Are you of Inuit descent?

[MrJBoma]

@justrixx No Inuit. Slovak, Italian, English, and Irish.

[justrixx]

@MrJBoma Really? You do look "Asiatic" in a way :)

[eleventhing]

Someone should \do a tutorial on tounge placement!!

[MrJBoma]

@eleventhing - lots of people have done tutorials on tongue placement. Just do a search for tutorials. The thing I have found, is that what works for someone else wont necessarily work for me. Everyone's mouth, throat, and vocal chords are unique. In this style, the tip of my tongue is lightly touching the ridge behind my front teeth on the roof of my mouth. In other styles, I curl the tip of my tongue backwards or shape my tongue into a U with the sides agains my top back teeth.

[BlushingRoses]

GAHHH! You're my new inspiration :)

[MrJBoma]

@BlushingRoses I saw your comment on another video and you said you are also a throat singer, but when checked your profile I didn't see any videos posted. I love hearing other people throat sing because everyone's style is unique because everyone's voice and vocal tract are unique. Glad you like my style. Thanks.

[BlushingRoses]

@MrJBoma Yeah, I'm not good enough to be able to actually control the pitches of the overtones, and make a melody. I can get two notes to sound at the same time, and I was just thrilled to be able to do THAT, haha! I don't make videos because I don't have the equipment, plus I'm not good enough that people would actually be able to learn anything from me! omg, you are so amazing at this!

[Surferboy7PR]

you freak of nature..... (in a good and positive way) XD b^^d

[MrJBoma]

@Surferboy7PR Thanks?

[Thrawn6211]

It sound reminiscent of the Highland Pipes the way there's a humming in the background, almost like having two vocal tracts. Of course, the Highland Pipes are beautiful so, props for the video.

[MrJBoma]

@Thrawn6211 Thanks. You are right, the sound with a droning undertone and high-pitched melody reminds a lot of people of bagpipes. And especially singing Amazing Grace, which is a bagpipe standard, it just reinforces that similarity. Thanks for watching.

[erizos25]

Thank you, Im learning overtones . After listening the same amazing grace from others ...now I think that yours is the best. So naturality, so good. thanks for the post.let me ask you did you have good results in your health since you sing overtones? Andrew

[MrJBoma]

@erizos25 Thanks for the complements. I have not noticed a change in my health (either positive or negative) that I can attribute to overtone singing. I started doing a daily saline nasal rinse at about the same time I started singing overtones, and that has helped my allergies and sinuses, but I don't think the overtone singing has played a part in that.

[saramary33]

☼Cool!☼

[MrJBoma]

@saramary33 Thanks!

[paulyhart]

nice nice nice. overtones are something that my friend john and i were working on for a long time when we heard chirgilchin singing with bela fleck. it's been a journey but a worthwhile one.

[MrJBoma]

@paulyhart : Thanks. It took me about a year to get a good overtone and learn to manipulate it. I like your didgeridoo I'd love to learn that.

[dadyown]

At first I do not hear the whistle

Then I find that was RADICAL!!

Good job mayne

[MrJBoma]

Thanks. You definitely have to know what to listen for or it can be confusing.

[lorenaneyra]

Is this guy for real? Am I being Punked????

[synapse349]

filo: do a search for "crash course in khoomei"

[synapse349]

Weird thing is, that even constricted, the fundamental can be quite strong. My overtones are nice and piercing, too, but my throat IS constricted. I will post reply.

[kenawesom]

neat stuff

[MrJBoma]

Thanks.

[filosophydude]

ok THAT IS AWESOME how exactly do you learn that... i don't even know what it means to constrict my throat is there a website or something where i can learn it...

(i trie to "close my throat while making sounds, after a certain point i start coughing uncontrollably, is that it?)

[paganininicco]

like this you will just hurt your body!!! the secret is to relax it

[MrJBoma]

Paganininicco is right. You do't want to constrict to the point it is painful or makes you cough. You don't need that much constriction to get the overtones to come out. I use very little throat constriction. The number one rule is "DON'T HURT YOURSELF!" If something hurts or irritates, STOP!

[UpcomingJedi]

What makes this 'western' style?

[MrJBoma]

I am not constricting my throat enough to qualify as the Tuvan style. With some Tuvans, you barely hear the fundamental pitch at all because they have so much throat constriction. But I think I have a nice strong high pitch without needing the throat constriction. So why strain myself?

[MrJBoma]

There are also some other nuances in the Tuvan style. There is usually a subtle rhythmic thrumming to the fundamental in the Tuvan style. And they also often have a distinctive embellishment when changing pitches (not sure how to describe it almost like they say "yuh" every time they change pitch). But since there is a lot of variation between Tuvans, I don't think you can say that my style is wrong, it's just my own.

[tagtagtag9]

omg, urs is soo good, well done, you actually have it

now, try to do it with song or something

[MrJBoma]

Try to do it with song or something? I don't understand what you mean. I sang a song: Amazing Grace.

[tagtagtag9]

i meant, you should do some songs with the AMAZIG grace, because what you have done is the basic and now you need to use it to make song with it . It is actual name is "Hoomii", if you type this, you will see plenty of resultants of people using Amazing grace to make song or following the song with the amazing grace

good luck

[MrJBoma]

Its "actual" name can be spelled any number of ways because it is a translation from a different writting system. Legitimate spellings include: khoomii, khoomei, hoomei, hoomii, xhoomii, xhoomei. Khoomei is the most common spelling for the Tuvan form. If you are saying I need instrumentation to make this into a song, you are wrong. A capella singing is a legitimate form of song.

[tagtagtag9]

mmmmm okey,

i said hoomii to make my point clear and to make you see what i meant by song

i think you should try that

[VreeFisions]

weird comment

[MrJBoma]

Thank you very much.

[fyafyta13]

Wasnt sure what i was listening to the first time around. Second i heard what u were doing. Very impressive.

[MrJBoma]

Thanks. If you don't know to listen to the high pitch for the melody, it can be a bit confusing.

[BrahmaviharaBrahman]

That's the best Amazing Grace I've heard so far!

[MrJBoma]

Thanks.

[xsportzgurlx3]

i dont get this over tone thing??

so your singing from your throat right? but it sounds like your also whisling but it sounds wonderful though

[MrJBoma]

The voice is made of many frequencies that normally all blend together so you only hear one pitch. I am isolating and amplifying the high frequencies that are normally hidden in my voice. This is done by manipulating the vocal tract. So even though it sounds like whistling it is really my voice.

[blastocyst]

IMPRESSSIVE

[MrJBoma]

Thanks.

[ForTheLove0fMusic]

Wow!! Really great, really great... :)

keep it up

[MrJBoma]

Thanks. Glad you like it. I am working at more western songs that work with the harmonics. Mary Had a Little Lamb" is an easy one. And I can do some of "The Lion Sleeps Tonight." hopefully I'll be posting those soon.

[XdarkdomainX]

weird note at .40, but other then tht it was pretty good, ive seen better tho

[MrJBoma]

I've seen better, too.

The note at :40 is the right note. Unfortunately, because the note is at the edge of my range, the fundamental is just as loud as the sygyt note. That is why it sounds funky.

[TeetoPlastic]

No doubt you've seen "Genghis Blues." If not, I recommend it.

Also, I thought I was pretty good amateur, now I need to practice to catch up with you! Very good, sir.

[MrJBoma]

Thanks.

I've seen parts of Genghis Blues, but not the whole thing.

[FXclamation]

That's really good, and yes it's very western. If you want to learn more about the inner asian styles, look up Brian Grover's crash course in khoomei. It has good tutorials on throat constriction.

[MrJBoma]

Thanks. I'm not really too concerned with authenticity. I can get a good strong high tone and control it fairly well. That is about all I wanted. I have heard that too much throat constriction can cause polyps or scarring in the vocal tract, and I definitely don't want that. That's why I don't sing kargyraa, either.

[MrJBoma]

OK, I listened to Grover's crash course and did not find it helpful. Yes, he talks about throat constriction, but he does so in a way that is not helpful. He repeatedly suggests that you must have constriction before anything else. That is clearly and demonstrably false. Throat constriction may be necessary for authentic Tuvan style singing and may help suppress the fundamental, but it is not required to achieve the whistling sound, and to tell people it is needed is counterproductive and wrong.

[xxDoM3niCxx]

hahahahahahahahahahahahahah what a nerd!!!

jk good job!

[mtd3vv]

thats so amazing

[MrJBoma]

Thanks. I just sang to a middle school music class last Friday, and they were pretty blown away.

[FunnySnaps]

WOW nice!

[MrJBoma]

Thanks. Sometimes I nail it, sometimes I'm just off by a little. Obviously, this was good take.

[WhistlersBrother]

Hey Boma, good job! Nailed it.

[MrJBoma]

Thanks, Bro.

[puavpheej]

that was really good!

[MrJBoma]

Thanks. Unfortunately, it's about the only thing I can sing in that style.

[MrJBoma]

That's not entirely true, I can sing lots of stuff in that style, just no other recognizable tunes. I don't know any of the Tuvan or Mongolian songs, and I haven't tried any other western tunes. The harmonics are a bit limiting. If I learn to change the fundamental pitch while I sing, it will open up a whole lot more possibilities. So that's my next challenge to learn.