Definition

1. Verb:

   • To sing by rapidly alternating between the normal chest voice and a high falsetto voice: This is a specific singing technique, often associated with the folk music of the Alps.
   • To utter a songlike cry with rapid pitch changes: It can also refer to producing a call or cry using this vocal technique.

2. Noun:

   • A song, cry, or vocal performance using the yodeling technique: It refers to the sound or piece of music produced by yodeling.

Examples

• Verb:

  • The singer learned to yodel from a Swiss folk musician.
  • You could hear him yodel from across the valley.

• Noun:

  • Her performance included a beautiful yodel that echoed through the hall.
  • The traditional Alpine yodel is a unique art form.

Advanced Usage

• "to break into a yodel": to suddenly start yodeling.
  • During the festival, it was common for someone in the crowd to break into a yodel.

Variants and Related Words

• Yodeler (noun): A person who yodels.
  • The famous yodeler performed for the crowd.
• Yodeling (noun/gerund): The act or skill of producing a yodel.
  • Yodeling requires precise control of the vocal cords.

Synonyms

• Warble: To sing with trills, runs, or other melodic embellishments (similar in the sense of a fluctuating melody, though not technically identical).
• Trill: A rapid alternation between two adjacent notes (a related musical technique).

Related Phrases

• Yodel-ay-ee-oo: A common, stereotypical lyrical phrase used in yodeling.
  • The classic yodel-ay-ee-oo echoed off the mountain walls.

Noun

1. a songlike cry in which the voice fluctuates rapidly between the normal voice and falsetto

Verb

1. sing by changing register; sing by yodeling
   • The Austrians were yodeling in the mountains