The Art and Craft of Yodeling

You can learn all about the history and full cultural range of yodeling by reading Bart Plantenga’s two fine books: Yodel-Ay-Ee-Oooo: The Secret History of Yodeling Around the World (2004), and Yodel in Hi-Fi: From Kitsch Folk to Contemporary Electronics (2012). Yodeling is found in many cultural settings around the globe, from indigenous to classical operatic. Yodeling is fundamentally singing by moving from the regular chest voice to the falsetto in rapid sequence. Finding that break between the chest voice and the falsetto is the most challenging for most people who try to learn. Many cannot find that break or the break is not clear and clean. For those who find a clear and clean break, staying on pitch is the next challenge. Some do not have the ear for clear and correct intonation, so more fall by the wayside. For those who find a clean break and have a good ear for intonation, the final challenge is how far along the difficulty continuum can they progress. I am still trying to discover the technique for reaching that highest level of difficulty that is the clear but very rapid articulation of long yodel routines. Only a few yodelers reach this pinnacle.

There are several instructional CDs available. I have collected the five below that are available through the internet..
• Kerry Christiansen. U2 Can Yodel
• Rudy Robbins & Shirley Field. How to Yodel the Cowboy Way
• Larry Wilder. It’s Easy to Yodel
• Wiley Gustafson. How to Yodel: Lessons to Tickle Your Tonsils
• Margo Smith: Yodeling Instruction Tape
The critical part of yodeling is finding the break between your regular voice and your falsetto voice. The other hurdle is staying in tune. Practice in secret or in the car with the windows rolled up or out behind the barn.

I classify yodeling into three general styles: alpine yodeling, country yodeling, and cowboy/western yodeling. Alpine yodeling is found in the alpine countries of Europe: Switzerland, Austria, Germany, Italy, France, and Slovenia. If you have seen the movie “Sound of Music,” Julie Andrews yodels in that style. If you liked the traditional country music of Jimmy Rodgers, he is perhaps the best example there. Those yodels are short and not very difficult. The cowboy and western music of Roy Rogers is perhaps the best example of that style, with Ranger Doug Green of Riders in the Sky the best contemporary example. The country and western styles in the United States are direct descendents of alpine yodeling brought to this country by immigrants. There is one Australian woman who loves to yodel to classical music and opera and does it fantastically well.