Physics 1240: Sound and Music
The musical group
Huun-Huur-Tu from Tuva, in central Asia (watch them
here and
here).
Tuva is famous for a vocal technique known as
throat singing. Ordinary vowel sounds are created by resonances in the vocal tract called
formants. Throat singing works in basically the same way, but the resonances are sharper and they are carefully manipulated to create a second melody above a low fundamental pitch. Other cultures around the globe have developed related vocal techniques, known collectively as
harmonic singing or overtone singing. Once upon a time, there was even a throat singing cowboy (listen to
Arthur Miles here and
here). Mark van Tongeren gives a throat singing lesson
here.