Yodeling was inspired by donkeys. Bored shepherds in the alps needed a way to pass the time and found inspiration in their asses. They sang to the mountains with donkey voices and the mountains sang back, or another yodeler, or a donkey.
Yodeling is one of the manliest forms of singing. You start with your chest voice and then move up to your head voice and back down to your chest voice. It is very sexy.
The classic yodel starts on the 5th, goes up to the major 3rd, and then down to the 1, like a doorbell. The vowel sounds ah, oh, and oo are usually sung with the chest voice, while ay and ee are in falsetto.
The classic donkey bray also involves a jump from chest to head voice. Beginning high on the “hee,” down to the “haw” and back up again. This donkey brays in a perfect octave of Cs as if bred for pedagogy.
Yodeling is well-suited to every kind of music, especially progressive rock. My favorite band Focus features yodeling in their 1971 hit “Hocus Pocus.” Focus is the greatest band ever and “Hocus Pocus” is the national anthem of the Netherlands. Donkeys should be proud of the music they’ve inspired. Horses can’t compete.
