3.5 Vocables: easy vocal improvisation activities

Introduction

Musicologists use the term vocable to describe a sung syllable that has no meaning. This is a very widely used technique, in traditional musics around the world, as well as in jazz and popular music. ("Hey, hey, hey" is essentially a vocable line.) Using vocables frees the singer from the requirement of having a text that "fits" the melody (in mood as well as in length and meter). It allows the voice to be used simply as a musical instrument, with all of the "meaning" expressed simply in the sound, allowing the singer to concentrate on such things as the tone quality of a particular vowel sound or the accenting potential of a specific consonant.

Outlined below are two music class activities that explore the use of vocables, particularly in vocal improvisation. Vocable Singing , based on a singing style that often accompanies mbira music in Zimbabwe, encourages students to listen carefully to instrumental lines and imitate fragments of them vocally. Scat Singing encourages students to begin improvising in a jazz style. Also listed below are some suggestions for finding recordings of vocables to share with your class.

Use these activities for:

• General Music Class - These exercises are useful as ear training or voice training exercises, or as an introduction to improvisation.
• In conjunction with African or African-American studies - These exercises provide insight into jazz, one of the most important African-American cultural contributions to the world, and to a complex musical style developed in eastern Africa which is now influencing world music.
• Vocal training - for students who are trying to develop their musicianship as vocalists, these activities give students a chance to experiment with the tone quality of various vowels and consonants in different registers, to practice listening skills, and to practice rhythm and accents without the distraction of a text.
• Improvisation Practice - not just for singers, but also for students who would like to be able to improvise on an instrument! These exercises allow the student to concentrate on listening to the accompaniment and producing a compatible melody, without having to worry about things like key signature and fingerings. If students are also practicing scales and arpeggios, it will then be a relatively small step to be able to play the melodies that they are singing, in any familiar key.

Activity information

Goals and standards

• Goals - The student will learn to improvise sung melodic lines that are appropriate to a given instrumental accompaniment or harmonic progression. The student will practice and improve listening, vocal, and musical improvisation skills, and will gain first-hand experience with a technique that is basic to both jazz and to many traditional Non-Western musics.
• Music Standards Addressed - National Standards for Music Education standards 1 (singing, alone and with others, a varied repertoire of music), 3 (improvising melodies, variations, and accompaniments), and 9 (understanding music in relation to history and culture).
• Other Subjects Addressed - These activities also address National Standards in the Social Studies standard 1 (culture).
• Grade Level - K-12 (adaptable)
• Student Prerequisites - None; if kept simple, these can be introductory-level singing and ear-training exercises.
• Teacher Expertise - The teacher should understand basic music theory regarding melody and harmony , should be able to provide appropriate accompaniment (either on an instrument such as the piano, or recorded accompaniments), and should be able to demonstrate the techniques.
• Time Requirements - These activities can be used to fill a class period dedicated to improvisation, or they can be used as short (5-10 minute) warm-ups at the beginning of music class or as introductions to other activities, such as instrumental improvisation.