I’ve never met a yodeler in person.
At least, I don’t know of any. Perhaps I have friends who are excellent yodelers, and they simply don’t yodel around me.
I’ve been to countries where yodeling is a thing. I mean, when we think of the yodel, we think of the Swiss Alps and some blonde-headed, pig-tailed Swiss girl, yodeling on the tall hills with her sheep. Most experts agree that yodeling was used in the Central Alps by herders as they would call to their flock. Sometimes they would yodel communications between Alpine villages.
What is it exactly? Yodeling is a form of singing. It involves repeated and rapid changes of pitch. It goes between the low-pitch chest register — what they call the “chest voice” — and the high-pitch head register — or falsetto.
But, most agree, this came from Switzerland. It was a significant part of the region’s traditions and musical expressions. They say the earliest record of a yodel goes way back to 1545, where it is described as “the call of a cowherd from Appenzell.” That’s about midway between Zurich and Lichtenstein if you want to visit the home of the yodel.
But, as a yodel will do, it spread all throughout Europe, especially Germany, and eventually to the United States. It is thought that yodeling was first introduced to the United States by German immigrants in Pennsylvania in the early 1800s. Heck, by 1920, the Victor recording company listed 17 yodels in their catalog. That’s a lot of yodel songs.
And there have been a lot of yodeling stars in our past, from Riley Puckett to Jimmie Rodgers.
But one big thing that has always interested me about this was the trend of Cowboy Yodelers. There, you would see some macho guy, in his chaps, a Colt revolver on each hip, and a dusty leather hat on his head, standing there. Yodeling his little heart out. High-pitchy yodeling.
Maybe the cows like it.
The sheep and goats in Switzerland probably like it.
It is not all fun and games, mind you. There are yodeling competitions, and it is serious business. In fact, on today’s date, February 9, 1992, a record was set for the “Fastest Yodeler” by Thomas School of Germany. That guy yodeled 22 tones / 15 falsetto in one second.
Whew.
Whether we are aware of it or not, yodeling has touched our lives in ways unimaginable.
It was even in Star Wars.
I just learned of Yoda’s last name.
Yoda Layheehoo.
==========
“I would like to paint the way a bird sings.”
― Claude Monet
==========
“He who sings scares away his woes.”
― Cervantes
==========
“If I cannot fly, let me sing.”
― Stephen Sondheim
==========
