Most of Vocal Percussion isn’t nearly as tricky as it sounds. A lot of the coolest rolls and fills and rhythms are actually just really simple patterns that you can work into your muscle memory and do at blazing speeds through simple repetition. Here are a few that I use frequently to spice up my percussion:

• dig-uh dig-uh dug-uh dig-uh - Especially useful for kick rolls and toms
• biggidy biggidy biggidy biggidy - I use this one in drum solos as a “what the?” moment
• dividi-kuh (the rhythm is trip-uh-let kuh) - I use this one all over the place, from cymbals to snares to scratching.

Start out slow, getting your tongue used to performing each rhythm with precision and consistency (if you have a metronome, use it to make sure you’re keeping a steady tempo). As you get better, gradually increase your tempo - focus on crispness and steady rhythm before moving on to the next speed.

Once you’ve mastered a rhythm, you can start to work it into your beats. Be creative. I’m sure you’ll find places for each of these flairs that I would never think of.

Advanced Note: Feel free to change the sounds that you use with each rhythm. For example, I often substitute tifiti-kah or bividi-kah for dividi-kah, depending on the sound I’m aiming for.

Noteworthy, an all-female a cappella group from BYU, has been around for 3 1/2 years now. They’ve had guys from Vocal Point serving as directors and advisers for the last few years, including Dave Brown, Dan Dunn, Ghoti and me. This year they broke free from masculine oppression as Catherine Papworth graduated from performer/arranger to director/arranger/renaissance woman.

Noteworthy has competed in the International Championship of Collegiate A Cappella (ICCA) each year since their inception. In March of this year, they took first place at the Western Regional Semifinals, beating out reigning champion Vocal Point (my alma mater) and landing them a spot in the International Finals in New York City’s Lincoln Center in April. My wife and I drove out to watch BYU’s groups compete. We were floored by both groups, but Noteworthy’s performance took it to another level. Their choreography, musicality, repertoire, energy and confidence were off the charts.

“Don’t You Worry ‘Bout a Thing” has been stuck in my head for weeks at a time.

As you may have guessed from the title, Noteworthy blew away the judges at the finals as well, bringing back to BYU for the second year running the title of International Champions of Collegiate A Cappella! Big props to them for representing both BYU and women’s a cappella with grace, dignity and knock-your-socks-off performances.

Their rendition of How Great Thou Art, arranged by Catherine, is one of the best I’ve ever heard.

And this was their encore, “Unwritten” by Natasha Bedingfield.