Apple Using the GarageBand Jam Pack: World Music Instruments - Manual (Page 5)

5
Choir
World Music includes two instruments featuring the sounds of a South African choir:
one singing common syllables and the other performing voice effects.
South African Singers
South African Voice Effects
Music-making in Africa belongs to all people, and Africa’s many musical styles are all
folk styles that developed from local cultures. While its history is not recorded, the
sound of the South African choir is believed to have developed in migrant labor camps
in the early 20th century. It provided workers with one of the few means for both
communal recreation and personal recognition. The singers often perform intricately
choreographed dance steps along with the singing. In the past two decades, the sound
of the South African choir has become known to Western audiences through its use by
popular artists and in movie soundtracks.
Contemporary South African choral groups are usually divided into the standard four
voice-parts: soprano, alto, tenor, and bass. The South African Singers Software
Instrument features the voices singing four commonly used syllables; the South African
Voice Effects instrument features three additional syllables, one in both long and short
versions. In both instruments, the four parts are distributed and blended across the
keyboard range.