5 Things to Know About Leon Thomas’s Yodelling on Pharoah Sanders’ *Karma*
- Leon Thomas used a yodelling technique on Karma that he learned from African pygmy singing traditions.
- This style is not typical in jazz, making his vocal performance on the album stand out.
- The yodelling adds a raw, earthy texture to Sanders’s spiritual jazz composition.
- Thomas’s approach was a deliberate choice to bring non-Western vocal traditions into the music.
- This technique became a signature element of the album, influencing later vocalists in experimental jazz.