- Home
- All exercises
- Mix and belt
- Yodel flips into falsetto
Yodel flips into falsetto
Quick flips between chest voice and falsetto: from the bottom a sixth up into falsetto, back to the third in chest voice, up to the octave and down. The audible break is the point here – that’s the country yodel.
Eight quick notes that jump between chest voice and falsetto, the break that makes a yodel. You start on the root, leap a major sixth, drop back to the third, leap to the octave, then step down through the sixth and fifth to the third and root. Each note gets its own syllable: yo, dee, lah, hee, dee, ree, yah, ho. The narrow “ee” helps the voice flip up, while open vowels keep the low notes easy.
How to do it
- Wait for the two count-in clicks, then sing along. The piano plays with you.
- Sing the syllables shown on the tiles: yo dee lah hee dee ree yah ho.
- Use chest voice on the low notes and flip lightly into falsetto on the high ones.
- Let the break happen. A crack between registers is the sound you want, so don't smooth it over.
- Hold the last “ho” for two beats. Each repetition starts a semitone higher, climbs through your range, then returns.
Coach's tip: Low notes on open “oh” and “ah”, high ones on a narrow “ee” – the vowel helps you flip. Keep it light, no pushing; if a flip hurts, go lower.
What to watch out for
The app scores pitch only. It doesn't detect chest voice or falsetto, so you judge the flip by ear. Flips go wrong when chest voice is pushed up toward the sixth, or when the throat tightens to avoid the break. Keep the low notes light and let the voice flip instead of reaching. The notes are short, so if the line smears on the leaps, slow the tempo with the slider. If a flip hurts, stop and rest.
Who it's for
Level 2, for singers who can already produce a light falsetto and want to play with the break. Warm up with Flip into falsetto 1-8-1 on “oo”, which has just one slow flip up and back. Cool down afterward with Hum 5-4-3-2-1. No program lists it. In the daily training it comes up more often when you pick the Folk / country style.
Opens the app in your browser. Free to start, no account needed. Put on headphones first.
Related exercises
- “Nay” 1-3-5-8-5-3-1 (mix) A nasal, bratty NAY. Sets the voice in mix – the top without shouting and without falsetto.
- “Gee” 1-5-8-5-1 (cord closure) A hard “G” closes the folds, “ee” keeps it thin. High notes without air in the tone.
- “Mum” 8-5-3-1 (top down) Start at the top, come down. Teaches carrying the lightness of the top into the bottom.
- “Wee” siren through the passaggio The narrow “ee” vowel helps you ride through the voice “break” (E4–G4 for men) without a flip.
- Twang on “nyah” A bright, narrow “nyah” on the first five scale degrees, holding the fifth. Twang is the safe base of rock edge – the voice sounds sharp while the throat stays loose.
- Pentatonic over a drone The piano holds a low drone – the tonic an octave down, like bagpipes or a hurdy-gurdy – and you sing the major pentatonic over it, up to the sixth and back. You hear the melody first, then sing it alone with just the drone.