ABOUT THE SPEAKER
James Burchfield - Human beatbox
James Burchfield is a human beatbox. Using only his mouth, tongue, throat and vocal cords, he performs heavy, layered, club-style jams that seem to come from real drum machines and lusciously scratched turntables.

Why you should listen

Outside of the hip-hop world, the art of "human beatboxing" was mostly overlooked until the droves came to YouTube. For that trend -- from obscure fad to open mic-night fixture to full-scale Internet meme -- some credit is due to James Burchfield. Known by the handle AudioPoet, the young artist was a main figure in Seattle beatboxing competitions and open-mics in the early 2000s, and then on larger stages like San Francisco's Palace of Fine Arts Theatre.

For a musician whose goal is "enlightenment of the mind," Burchfield has a fairly concrete tack: studying the mathematical formulas that are the foundation of music. He brings that knowledge -- and an instinct for dance-friendly grooves that simulate seemingly impossible-to-mimic machine sounds -- onto every stage.

More profile about the speaker
James Burchfield | Speaker | TED.com
TED2003

James Burchfield: Playing invisible turntables

James Burchfield joue des platines (invisibles)

Filmed:
860,132 views

La boîte à rythmes humaine James "PoèteAudio" Burchfield joue un break compliqué de trois minutes -- des rythmes et des sons de platine hip-hop vigoureux -- uniquement avec sa voix.
- Human beatbox
James Burchfield is a human beatbox. Using only his mouth, tongue, throat and vocal cords, he performs heavy, layered, club-style jams that seem to come from real drum machines and lusciously scratched turntables. Full bio

Double-click the English transcript below to play the video.

00:13
Let's just get startedcommencé here.
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Commençons par là.
00:22
Okay, just a momentmoment.
1
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D'accord, juste un moment.
00:25
(WhirringVrombissement)
2
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(Bruissement)
00:31
All right.
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Très bien.
00:33
(LaughterRires)
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(Rires)
00:45
Oh, sorry.
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Oh, désolé.
00:48
(MusicMusique) (BeatboxingBeatboxing)
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(Musique)
(Beatbox)
04:34
Thank you.
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Merci.
04:35
(ApplauseApplaudissements)
8
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(Applaudissements)
Translated by Anna Cristiana Minoli
Reviewed by Catherine riedo

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ABOUT THE SPEAKER
James Burchfield - Human beatbox
James Burchfield is a human beatbox. Using only his mouth, tongue, throat and vocal cords, he performs heavy, layered, club-style jams that seem to come from real drum machines and lusciously scratched turntables.

Why you should listen

Outside of the hip-hop world, the art of "human beatboxing" was mostly overlooked until the droves came to YouTube. For that trend -- from obscure fad to open mic-night fixture to full-scale Internet meme -- some credit is due to James Burchfield. Known by the handle AudioPoet, the young artist was a main figure in Seattle beatboxing competitions and open-mics in the early 2000s, and then on larger stages like San Francisco's Palace of Fine Arts Theatre.

For a musician whose goal is "enlightenment of the mind," Burchfield has a fairly concrete tack: studying the mathematical formulas that are the foundation of music. He brings that knowledge -- and an instinct for dance-friendly grooves that simulate seemingly impossible-to-mimic machine sounds -- onto every stage.

More profile about the speaker
James Burchfield | Speaker | TED.com