These are some of the recommendations you all made in today’s chat–for interesting examples of nonvocal verbalization and nonsense words or sounds. I’m pasting the chat below. It’s not so easy to read, so here are some highlights.

Jonathan: Elvis’ also sound like he’s playing sports
Muniba: when ur trying to push something heavy
Or weighlifting
Nathalie: Giving birth
Mahpara: Anger

Pete: Prince’s vocalizations seem to be reminiscent to the sexualization featured in Elvis’s music
Tatiana: reverse it—> she literally reversed the words (on Missy Elliot)

Jonathan:  Sounds like release of pleasure (on James Brown)

Salia: The grunts can definitely be interpreted as sexual especially in context of the song (on Elvis, I think)

Nathalie: Bidi bam bam sounds like percussion instrument

Ryan: Her vocals sound eerie but also enticing at the same time (on Donna Summer)
Nathalie: backup singers create an echo effect. High pitched opera-like vocals. It sounded heavenly
Johnny: Falsetto:
Tatiana: I hear a lot of uhhs and gasping
Note: “I Feel Love” owes its controversy and popularity to the fact that it’s a song about orgasm, or that mimics orgasm. Lots of songs do this, actually, but in this case it’s intentional and pointed.

Nathalie and Erynn recommended “Summer Breeze” as an example of a funk / soul song with crying sounds in it.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=w3o6ECdCZ7Q

Salia recommended Sister Nancy’s “Bam Bam” as a great example of nonsense lyrics. She made the point that the song is sampled A LOT.

Johnny Sugggested Blind Willie Johnson’s “Dark Was The Night” as a masterclass in nonverbal vocalization. I agree! You can see where Elvis learned to slur!

Nathalie suggested  oSamuel Beckett’s short play “Not I” as an example of these kinds of sounds in experimental theater.

Me to Everyone (3:06 PM)
https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC6yYNAtZf3Xn6yFyMD9W8Xw
Nathalie Avalo to Everyone (3:34 PM)
Focused on emotion
Nathalie Avalo to Everyone (3:39 PM)
The “da, da, da, da”’s go down in octaves like a ladder and sometimes quicken pace and are sung very fast
Salia to Everyone (3:43 PM)
An artist who has amazing non-verbal communication is Amy Winehouse. specifically the 1st song on her debut album starts off with scatting
jimmy mcmillian to Me (Direct Message) (3:53 PM)
Sorry I don’t have it right now. I’m just listening and taking notes. I cant ten on my mic today sorry.
Me to jimmy mcmillian (Direct Message) (3:56 PM)
I hear you.
Johnny Sullivan to Everyone (3:58 PM)
The growls and yips
Nathalie Avalo to Everyone (3:58 PM)
I Got The Feelin’: “Ha-ah-ah”. Long screams
Makes you want to shake and dance
Johnny Sullivan to Everyone (3:58 PM)
The ba-baby-baby
Ryan Bottitta (she/her) to Everyone (3:58 PM)
You can feel the power and emotion in his longer screams
Jonathan Jacques to Everyone (3:58 PM)
Sounds like release of pleasure
Salia to Everyone (3:58 PM)
“the feeling” is something he probably can’t express in words, so he resorts to noises that translate those feelings better
Johnny Sullivan to Everyone (3:59 PM)
The drawn out vocal bends. eeeeEEEEEhey
Christopher Latortue to Everyone (3:59 PM)
the “ahhh” he did
Salia to Everyone (4:00 PM)
The grunts can definitely be interpreted as sexual especially in context of the song
Nathalie Avalo to Everyone (4:00 PM)
All Shook Up— He slurs his words a lot. It sounds silly and playful. He’s expressing how the girl makes his body feel. He’s all shook up
Tatiana to Everyone (4:00 PM)
^^ especially with his body movements
Ryan Bottitta (she/her) to Everyone (4:00 PM)
The releases in his voice almost match his movements. Like he uses movement as well for release
Salia to Everyone (4:01 PM)
the non sense of his words match the playfulness of the song
Dominique Morgan to Everyone (4:01 PM)
He uses his vocals as a beat
Nathalie Avalo to Everyone (4:01 PM)
Tutti Frutti— “A wa da do da” and “yeahs” are fun
Pete San Pedro to Everyone (4:01 PM)
Elvis owes his career success to Little Richard
jimmy mcmillian to Everyone (4:02 PM)
Some sonds sounded like Excitement
Screeching sonds
Salia to Everyone (4:03 PM)
crying?
Jonathan Jacques to Everyone (4:03 PM)
Elvis’ also sound like he’s playing sports
muniba Haroon to Everyone (4:04 PM)
when ur trying to push something heavy
Or weighlifting
Nathalie Avalo to Everyone (4:04 PM)
Giving birth
Mahpara Elahi to Everyone (4:04 PM)
Anger ?
Pete San Pedro to Everyone (4:08 PM)
Is this I Feel Love?
Johnny Sullivan to Everyone (4:08 PM)
Sounds like kraftwerk
Salia to Everyone (4:08 PM)
heavy synth
Nathalie Avalo to Everyone (4:08 PM)
A wailing “oooh” that sounds ghostly.
Salia to Everyone (4:08 PM)
reverb disordering her voice
Johnny Sullivan to Everyone (4:08 PM)
The vocals are very sterilized
Although maybe that’s a function of the instrumentation
Tatiana to Everyone (4:09 PM)
you’re not sharing your screem
Dominique Morgan to Everyone (4:09 PM)
dragging out words
Ryan Bottitta (she/her) to Everyone (4:09 PM)
Her vocals sound eerie but also enticing at the same time
Nathalie Avalo to Everyone (4:09 PM)
backup singers create an echo effect. High pitched opera-like vocals
It sounded heavenly
Johnny Sullivan to Everyone (4:10 PM)
Falsetto
Tatiana to Everyone (4:11 PM)
I hear a lot of uhhs
and gasping
Nathalie Avalo to Everyone (4:11 PM)
smacking lips for kiss
Ryan Bottitta (she/her) to Everyone (4:12 PM)
Prince’s vocals are provocative
Nathalie Avalo to Everyone (4:12 PM)
Bidi bam bam sounds like percussion instrument
Pete San Pedro to Everyone (4:12 PM)
Prince’s vocalization seem to be reminiscent to the sexualization featured in Elvis’s music
Tatiana to Everyone (4:12 PM)
reverse it—> she literally reversed the words
Nathalie Avalo to Everyone (4:13 PM)
Missy Elliot “ra-ta-ta-ta”
Nathalie Avalo to Everyone (4:16 PM)
“Diggy”— Get you dancing’ to the diggi-diggi-diggi-digon
Johnny Sullivan to Everyone (4:17 PM)
I’d like to make a recommendation for a vocalization masterclass – Dark Was The Night, Cold Was The Ground by Blind Willie Johnson
Salia to Everyone (4:17 PM)
I got it here
Erynn Owens to Everyone (4:18 PM)
I hear it
Erik Berdecia to Everyone (4:20 PM)
One of the songs that comes to mind with sound effects and gibberish is Frenzy by Screamin’ Jay Hawkins
Nathalie Avalo to Everyone (4:20 PM)
Summer Breeze by the Isley Brothers is a funk/rock example of a song with crying-like sounds
Erynn Owens to Everyone (4:20 PM)
Yes Nathalie! I was thinking of that
Salia to Everyone (4:22 PM)
It sounds cool
Nathalie Avalo to Everyone (4:26 PM)
Example of these sounds in experimental theater is Samuel Beckett’s short play “Not I”: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=16rSsThMDiU
Salia to Everyone (4:28 PM)
I would highly suggest bam bam by Sister Nancy for a reggae nonsense lyrical song
jimmy mcmillian to Everyone (4:29 PM)
thanks!