University of Toronto Magazine University of Toronto Magazine
Group photo of the Hart House Jazz Choir, better known as Onoscatopoeia.
Photo by Amy Sheffield

Onoscatopoeia

Hart House’s choir members only use one instrument: their voices

The Hart House Jazz Choir – better known as Onoscatopoeia – has been performing scat singing since the group’s inception in 1998. The technique is used in jazz music when a vocalist substitutes an instrumental solo or a song’s words with improvised, wordless syllables. Think of Stevie Wonder’s “Shoo-Be-Doo-Be- Doo-Da-Day,” or vocalist Ella Fitzgerald’s famous scat rendition of “One Note Samba.”

Hart House’s 24 choir members pride themselves in using only one instrument: their voices. What may sound like a trumpet or violin can be a soprano busting out melodic harmonies. “The actual term ‘onomatopoeia’ means the imitation of sound,” says Kurt Sampson, the choir’s former music director. “Aside from scatting, our group can also imitate instrumental sounds – so the name ‘Onoscatopoeia’ seemed to fit well.”

Watch a video of Onoscatopoeia performing “Ain’t No Sunshine.”

Recent Posts

Nisha Pahuja, wearing a black 3/4 sleeve top and black-framed glasses, sitting on a chair at a corner next to potted plants in front of large windows, with sunlight flooding the room

Fighting for Justice

In her latest documentary, filmmaker Nisha Pahuja tackles a most difficult topic – sexual assault

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *