The kazoo is an American musical instrument that adds a "buzzing"

timbral In music, timbre ( ), also known as tone color or tone quality (from psychoacoustics), is the perceived sound quality of a musical note, sound or tone. Timbre distinguishes different types of sound production, such as choir voices and musical ...

quality to a player's voice when the player vocalizes into it. It is a type of '' mirliton'' (which itself is a

membranophone A membranophone is any musical instrument which produces sound primarily by way of a vibrating stretched membrane. It is one of the four main divisions of instruments in the original Hornbostel-Sachs scheme of musical instrument classification. ...

), one of a class of instruments which modifies its player's voice by way of a

vibrating Oscillation is the repetitive or periodic variation, typically in time, of some measure about a central value (often a point of equilibrium) or between two or more different states. Familiar examples of oscillation include a swinging pendulum ...

membrane A membrane is a selective barrier; it allows some things to pass through but stops others. Such things may be molecules, ions, or other small particles. Membranes can be generally classified into synthetic membranes and biological membranes. B ...

goldbeater's skin Goldbeater's skin is the processed outer membrane of the intestine of an animal, typically cattle, which is valued for its strength against tearing. The term derives from its traditional use as durable layers interleaved between sheets of gold st ...

or material with similar characteristics. Similar hide-covered vibrating and voice-changing instruments have been used in

Africa Africa is the world's second-largest and second-most populous continent, after Asia in both cases. At about 30.3 million km2 (11.7 million square miles) including adjacent islands, it covers 6% of Earth's total surface area ...

for hundreds of years.

Playing

A kazoo player hums, rather than blows, into the bigger and flattened side of the instrument.How to Play Kazoo
Kazoos.com, 2013, accessed July 12, 2013 The oscillating air pressure of the hum makes the kazoo's membrane vibrate. The resulting sound varies in pitch and loudness with the player's humming. Players can produce different sounds by singing specific syllables such as ''doo'', ''too'', ''who'', ''rrrrr'' or ''brrr'' into the kazoo.

History

It is popularly believed that Alabama Vest, an African-American in

Macon, Georgia Macon ( ), officially Macon–Bibb County, is a consolidated city-county in the U.S. state of Georgia. Situated near the fall line of the Ocmulgee River, it is located southeast of Atlanta and lies near the geographic center of the state of Geo ...

, invented the kazoo around 1840, although there is no documentation to support that claim.Harness, Jill
Great Moments In Kazoo History
Mental Floss, January 28, 2012, accessed July 12, 2013 The story originated with the Kaminsky International Kazoo Quartet, a group of satirical kazoo players, which may cast doubt on the veracity of the story, as does the name "Alabama Vest" itself. In 1879, Simon Seller received a patent for a "Toy Trumpet" that worked on the same principle as a kazoo: "By blowing through the tube A, and at the same time humming a sort of a head sound, a musical vibration is given to the paper covering c over the aperture b, and a sound produced pleasing to the ear." Seller's "toy trumpet" was basically a hollow sheet-metal tube, with a rectangular aperture cut out along the length of the tube, with paper covering the aperture, and a funnel at the end, like the bell of a trumpet. The first documented appearance of a kazoo was that created by an American inventor, Warren Herbert Frost, who named his new musical instrument ''kazoo'' in his

patent A patent is a type of intellectual property that gives its owner the legal right to exclude others from making, using, or selling an invention for a limited period of time in exchange for publishing an enabling disclosure of the invention."A p ...

#270,543 issued on January 9, 1883. The patent states, "This instrument or toy, to which I propose to give the name 'kazoo' "..."Kazoo Patent
U.S. Patent Office, Washington, D.C., accessed July 12, 2013 Frost's kazoo did not have the streamlined, submarine shape of modern kazoos, but it was similar in that the aperture was circular and elevated above the length of the tube. The modern kazoo—also the first one made of metal—was patented by George D. Smith of

Buffalo, New York Buffalo is the second-largest city in the U.S. state of New York (behind only New York City) and the seat of Erie County. It is at the eastern end of Lake Erie, at the head of the Niagara River, and is across the Canadian border from South ...

, May 27, 1902.Smith's Kazoo Patent
U.S. Patent Office, Washington, D.C., accessed July 12, 2013 In 1916, the Original American Kazoo Company in

Eden, New York Eden is a Administrative divisions of New York#Town, town located south of Buffalo, New York, Buffalo, in Erie County, New York, Erie County, New York (state), New York, United States. The population was 7,688 at the 2010 census. The basis for cho ...

started manufacturing kazoos for the masses in a two-room shop and factory, utilizing a couple of dozen jack presses for cutting, bending and crimping metal sheets. These machines were used for many decades. By 1994, the company produced 1.5 million kazoos per year and was the only manufacturer of metal kazoos in North America. The factory, in nearly its original configuration, is now called The Kazoo Factory and Museum. It is still operating, and it is open to the public for tours. In 2010,

The Kazoo Museum The Kazoo Museum is a museum dedicated to the history of the kazoo, located in Beaufort, South Carolina. The museum houses one of the largest collections of kazoos in the world. Originally established in 2007 in Seattle, Washington, The Kazoo Museu ...

opened in

Beaufort, South Carolina Beaufort ( , a different pronunciation from that used by the city with the same name in North Carolina) is a city in and the county seat of Beaufort County, South Carolina, United States. Chartered in 1711, it is the second-oldest city in South ...

with exhibits on kazoo history.

Professional usage

The kazoo is played professionally in

jug band A jug band is a band employing a jug player and a mix of conventional and homemade instruments. These homemade instruments are ordinary objects adapted to or modified for making sound, like the washtub bass, washboard, spoons, bones, stovepi ...

s and comedy music, and by amateurs everywhere. It is among the acoustic instruments developed in the United States, and one of the easiest melodic instruments to play, requiring only the ability to vocalize in tune. In

North East England North East England is one of nine official regions of England at the first level of ITL for statistical purposes. The region has three current administrative levels below the region level in the region; combined authority, unitary authorit ...

and

South Wales South Wales ( cy, De Cymru) is a loosely defined region of Wales bordered by England to the east and mid Wales to the north. Generally considered to include the historic counties of Glamorgan and Monmouthshire, south Wales extends westwards ...

, kazoos play an important role in

juvenile jazz band Juvenile jazz bands are a type of children's marching band that started in the 20th century almost exclusively in working class mining areas of the North of England and the Midlands, with a few bands in the mining areas of Wales. Historically, the ...

s. During

Carnival Carnival is a Catholic Christian festive season that occurs before the liturgical season of Lent. The main events typically occur during February or early March, during the period historically known as Shrovetide (or Pre-Lent). Carnival typi ...

, players use kazoos in the Carnival of Cádiz in Spain and in the corsos on the

murga Murga is a form of popular musical theatre performed in Montevideo, Uruguay, Panama, Argentina and Badajoz, Spain during the Carnival season. Murga groups also operate in the Buenos Aires Carnival, though to a lesser extent than in Montevideo; ...

s in Uruguay. In the

Original Dixieland Jass Band The Original Dixieland Jass Band (ODJB) was a Dixieland jazz band that made the first jazz recordings in early 1917. Their " Livery Stable Blues" became the first jazz record ever issued. The group composed and recorded many jazz standards, the ...

1921 recording of ''Crazy Blues'', what the casual listener might mistake for a trombone solo is actually a kazoo solo by drummer

Tony Sbarbaro Antonio Sparbaro, known professionally as Tony Sbarbaro or Tony Spargo (June 27, 1897 – October 30, 1969) was an American jazz drummer associated with New Orleans jazz. He was the drummer of the Original Dixieland Jazz Band for over 50 years ...

Red McKenzie William 'Red' McKenzie (October 14, 1899 – February 7, 1948) was an American jazz vocalist and musician who played a comb as an instrument. He played the comb-and-paper by placing paper, sometimes strips from the ''Evening World'', over the ti ...

played kazoo in a Mound City Blue Blowers 1929 film short. The

Mound City Blue Blowers The Mound City Blue Blowers were an American novelty jazz ensemble, formed in St. Louis, Missouri, United States. It was co-founded by Red McKenzie and Jack Bland and performed from 1923 to 1936. First assembled in 1923, the group's original membe ...

had a number of hit kazoo records in the early 1920s featuring Dick Slevin on metal kazoo and Red McKenzie on comb and tissue paper (although McKenzie also played metal kazoo). The vocaphone, a kind of kazoo with a trombone-like tone, was occasionally featured in

Paul Whiteman Paul Samuel Whiteman (March 28, 1890 – December 29, 1967) was an American bandleader, composer, orchestral director, and violinist. As the leader of one of the most popular dance bands in the United States during the 1920s and early 1930s, ...

's Orchestra. Trombonist-vocalist

Jack Fulton John Collins Fulton (June 13, 1903 – November 13, 1993) was an American composer, trombonist, and vocalist. At the age of 17, he started playing the trombone for small-town dances. He sang with the Mason-Dixon Orchestra. He also played the tro ...

played it on Whiteman's recording of ''Vilia'' (1931) and

Frankie Trumbauer Orie Frank Trumbauer (May 30, 1901 – June 11, 1956) was an American jazz saxophonist of the 1920s and 1930s. His main instrument was the C-melody saxophone, a now-uncommon instrument between an alto and tenor saxophone in size and pitch. He a ...

's ''Medley of Isham Jones Dance Hits'' (1932).

The Mills Brothers The Mills Brothers, sometimes billed the Four Mills Brothers, and originally known as the Four Kings of Harmony, were an American jazz and traditional pop vocal quartet who made more than 2,000 recordings that sold more than 50 million copies an ...

vocal group originally started in vaudeville as a kazoo quartet, playing four-part harmony on kazoo with one brother accompanying them on

guitar The guitar is a fretted musical instrument that typically has six strings. It is usually held flat against the player's body and played by strumming or plucking the strings with the dominant hand, while simultaneously pressing selected stri ...

. The kazoo is rare in

European classical music Classical music generally refers to the art music of the Western world, considered to be distinct from Western folk music or popular music traditions. It is sometimes distinguished as Western classical music, as the term "classical music" also ...

. It does appear in

David Bedford David Vickerman Bedford (4 August 1937 – 1 October 2011) was an English composer and musician. He wrote and played both popular and classical music. He was the brother of the conductor Steuart Bedford, the grandson of the composer, painter ...

's '' With 100 Kazoos'', where, rather than having professionals play the instrument, kazoos are handed out to the audience, who accompany a professional instrumental ensemble.

Leonard Bernstein Leonard Bernstein ( ; August 25, 1918 – October 14, 1990) was an American conductor, composer, pianist, music educator, author, and humanitarian. Considered to be one of the most important conductors of his time, he was the first America ...

included a segment for kazoo ensemble in the First Introit (Rondo) of his ''

Mass Mass is an intrinsic property of a body. It was traditionally believed to be related to the quantity of matter in a physical body, until the discovery of the atom and particle physics. It was found that different atoms and different elementar ...

.'' The kazoo was used in the 1990 Koch International and 2007

Naxos Records Naxos comprises numerous companies, divisions, imprints, and labels specializing in classical music but also audiobooks and other genres. The premier label is Naxos Records which focuses on classical music. Naxos Musical Group encompasses about 1 ...

recordings of American classical composer Charles Ives' ''Yale-Princeton Football Game'', where the kazoo chorus represents the football crowd's cheering. The brief passages have the kazoo chorus sliding up and down the scale as the "cheering" rises and falls. In

Frank Loesser Frank Henry Loesser (; June 29, 1910 – July 28, 1969) was an American songwriter who wrote the music and lyrics for the Broadway musicals ''Guys and Dolls'' and ''How to Succeed in Business Without Really Trying'', among others. He won a Tony ...

's score for the 1961

Broadway Broadway may refer to: Theatre * Broadway Theatre (disambiguation) * Broadway theatre, theatrical productions in professional theatres near Broadway, Manhattan, New York City, U.S. ** Broadway (Manhattan), the street **Broadway Theatre (53rd Stree ...

musical comedy ''

How to Succeed in Business Without Really Trying ''How to Succeed in Business Without Really Trying'' may refer to: * ''How to Succeed in Business Without Really Trying'' (book), a 1952 book written by Shepherd Mead and the inspiration for the musical of the same name. * ''How to Succeed in Bu ...

'', several kazoos produce the effect of electric razors used in the executive washroom during a dance reprise of the ballad ''I Believe in You''. In 1961 Del Shannon's "So Long Baby" issued on Big Top Records featured a kazoo on the instrumental break. In addition to the single release it featured on the UK London American release of his album ''Hats Off To Del Shannon''. Joanie Sommers' 1962 hit single "

Johnny Get Angry "Johnny Get Angry" is a song written by Hal David and Sherman Edwards and performed by Joanie Sommers. It reached #7 on the U.S. pop chart in 1962. It was featured on her 1962 album ''Johnny Get Angry''. The song was arranged and produced b ...

" featured a kazoo ensemble in its instrumental bridge, as did Dion's hit of the same year, "

Little Diane "Little Diane" is a song written and performed by Dion featuring The Del-Satins. The song reached number 8 on the ''Billboard'' Hot 100 in 1962. It was featured on his 1962 album, ''Lovers Who Wander''. The song was arranged by Glen Stuart. ...

", and

Ringo Starr Sir Richard Starkey (born 7 July 1940), known professionally as Ringo Starr, is an English musician, singer, songwriter and actor who achieved international fame as the drummer for the Beatles. Starr occasionally sang lead vocals with the ...

's 1973 cover of "

You're Sixteen "You're Sixteen" is a song written by the Sherman Brothers (Robert B. Sherman and Richard M. Sherman). It was first performed by American rockabilly singer Johnny Burnette, whose version peaked at number eight on the US Billboard Hot 100, ''Bill ...

Jesse Fuller Jesse Fuller (March 12, 1896 – January 29, 1976) was an American one-man band musician, best known for his song "San Francisco Bay Blues". Early life Fuller was born in Jonesboro, Georgia, near Atlanta. He was sent by his mother to live with ...

's 1962 recording of his song "San Francisco Bay Blues" features a kazoo solo,Peter Siegel, liner notes to ''Friends of Old Time Music'' (

Smithsonian Folkways Smithsonian Folkways is the nonprofit record label of the Smithsonian Institution. It is a part of the Smithsonian's Smithsonian Center for Folklife and Cultural Heritage, located at Capital Gallery in downtown Washington, D.C. The label was fo ...

, SFW40160
Media.smithsonianglobalsound.org
/ref> as does

Eric Clapton Eric Patrick Clapton (born 1945) is an English rock and blues guitarist, singer, and songwriter. He is often regarded as one of the most successful and influential guitarists in rock music. Clapton ranked second in ''Rolling Stone''s list of ...

's 1992 recording of the song on MTV's ''Unplugged'' television show and album. On the song "Alligator" on the

Grateful Dead The Grateful Dead was an American rock music, rock band formed in 1965 in Palo Alto, California. The band is known for its eclectic style, which fused elements of rock, Folk music, folk, country music, country, jazz, bluegrass music, bluegrass, ...

album ''

Anthem of the Sun ''Anthem of the Sun'' is the second album by rock band the Grateful Dead, released in 1968 on Warner Bros/Seven Arts. It is the first album to feature second drummer Mickey Hart. The band was also joined by Tom Constanten, who contributed avant ...

'', three members of the band play kazoo together. Many

Paolo Conte Paolo Conte (; born 6 January 1937) is an Italian singer, pianist, songwriter and lawyer known for his distinctly grainy, resonant voice. His compositions fuse Italian and Mediterranean sounds with jazz, boogie and elements of the French and L ...

performances include kazoo passages. Short kazoo performances appear on many modern recordings, usually for comic effect. For example, in his first album, ''

Freak Out! ''Freak Out!'' is the debut studio album by American rock band the Mothers of Invention, released on June 27, 1966, by Verve Records. Often cited as one of rock music's first concept albums, it is a satirical expression of frontman Frank Zappa's ...

'',

Frank Zappa Frank Vincent Zappa (December 21, 1940 – December 4, 1993) was an American musician, composer, and bandleader. His work is characterized by wikt:nonconformity, nonconformity, Free improvisation, free-form improvisation, sound experimen ...

used the kazoo to add comic feel to some songs — including one of his best known, "

Hungry Freaks, Daddy ''Freak Out!'' is the debut studio album by American rock band the Mothers of Invention, released on June 27, 1966, by Verve Records. Often cited as one of rock music's first concept albums, it is a satirical expression of frontman Frank Zappa ...

". In the song " Crosstown Traffic" from the album ''

Electric Ladyland ''Electric Ladyland'' is the third and final studio album by the Jimi Hendrix Experience and the final studio album released before Hendrix's death in 1970. A double album, it was the only record from the Experience produced by Hendrix. The ba ...

'',

Jimi Hendrix James Marshall "Jimi" Hendrix (born Johnny Allen Hendrix; November 27, 1942September 18, 1970) was an American guitarist, singer and songwriter. Although his mainstream career spanned only four years, he is widely regarded as one of the most ...

used a comb-and-paper instrument to accompany the guitar and accentuate a blown-out speaker sound. The song "

Lovely Rita "Lovely Rita" is a song by the English rock band the Beatles from their 1967 album ''Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band''. It was written and sung by Paul McCartney and credited to Lennon–McCartney. It is about a meter maid and the narrat ...

", from

the Beatles The Beatles were an English Rock music, rock band, formed in Liverpool in 1960, that comprised John Lennon, Paul McCartney, George Harrison and Ringo Starr. They are regarded as the Cultural impact of the Beatles, most influential band of al ...

album '' Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band'', uses combs-and-paper instruments. Kazoo playing parodied the sound of a military brass band in the

Pink Floyd Pink Floyd are an English rock band formed in London in 1965. Gaining an early following as one of the first British psychedelic music, psychedelic groups, they were distinguished by their extended compositions, sonic experimentation, philo ...

song "

Corporal Clegg "Corporal Clegg" is a song by the English psychedelic rock band Pink Floyd, and is featured on their second album, ''A Saucerful of Secrets'' (1968). It was written by Roger Waters and features David Gilmour, Nick Mason and Richard Wright sharing ...

". In the

McGuinness Flint McGuinness Flint was a rock band formed in 1970 by Tom McGuinness (musician), Tom McGuinness, a bassist and guitarist with Manfred Mann, and Hughie Flint, former drummer with John Mayall; plus vocalist and keyboard player Dennis Coulson, and mul ...

recording '' When I'm Dead and Gone'', Benny Gallagher and

Graham Lyle Graham Hamilton Lyle (born 11 March 1944, in Bellshill, Lanarkshire, Scotland) is a Scottish singer-songwriter, guitarist and producer. Between 1970 and 1997, he co-wrote 18 British Top 40 hits, 9 ''Billboard'' Hot 100 entries, 4 US Country No ...

play kazoos in harmony during the instrumental break.

The New Seekers The New Seekers are a British pop group, formed in London in 1969 by Keith Potger after the break-up of his group, The Seekers. The idea was that the New Seekers would appeal to the same market as the original Seekers, but their music would have ...

' live track ''(Ever Since You Told Me That You Loved Me) I'm A Nut'' features a kazoo solo by singer

Eve Graham Eve Graham (born Evelyn May Beatson; 19 April 1943) is a Scottish singer who found fame in the early 1970s with the pop group, The New Seekers. Biography Graham began her career during the 1960s as a band singer with the Cyclones in Scotland a ...

. British singer-songwriter

Ray Dorset Ray may refer to: Fish * Ray (fish), any cartilaginous fish of the superorder Batoidea * Ray (fish fin anatomy), a bony or horny spine on a fin Science and mathematics * Ray (geometry), half of a line proceeding from an initial point * Ray (g ...

, the leader of pop-blues band

Mungo Jerry Mungo Jerry are a British rock band, formed by Ray Dorset in Ashford, Middlesex in 1970. Experiencing their greatest success in the early 1970s, with a changing lineup always fronted by Ray Dorset, the group's biggest hit was " In the Summer ...

, played the kazoo on many of his band's recordings, as did former member Paul King. One of the best known kazooists of recent times is

Barbara Stewart Barbara Stewart may refer to: * Barbara Stewart (composer) (1941–2011), American composer and musician * Barbara Stewart (politician) Barbara Joy Stewart (born 1952) is a former New Zealand politician. She is a member of the New Zealand First ...

(1941–2011). Stewart, a classically trained singer, wrote a book on the kazoo, formed the "quartet" Kazoophony, performed kazoo at

Carnegie Hall Carnegie Hall ( ) is a concert venue in Midtown Manhattan in New York City. It is at 881 Seventh Avenue (Manhattan), Seventh Avenue, occupying the east side of Seventh Avenue between West 56th Street (Manhattan), 56th and 57th Street (Manhatta ...

and on the ''

Late Night with Conan O'Brien ''Late Night with Conan O'Brien'' is an American late-night talk show hosted by Conan O'Brien. NBC aired 2,725 episodes from September 13, 1993, to February 20, 2009. The show featured varied comedic material, celebrity interviews, and music ...

'' television show. The steampunk band Steam Powered Giraffe has audience members play kazoos at some of their concerts. They also sell Kazookaphones, a standard kazoo with optional bugle horn and phonograph. The kazoo is used regularly on the

BBC Radio 4 BBC Radio 4 is a British national radio station owned and operated by the BBC that replaced the BBC Home Service in 1967. It broadcasts a wide variety of spoken-word programmes, including news, drama, comedy, science and history from the BBC' ...

comedy panel game show ''

I'm Sorry I Haven't a Clue ''I'm Sorry I Haven't a Clue'' is a BBC radio comedy panel game. Billed as "the antidote to panel games", it consists of two teams of two comedians being given "silly things to do" by a chairman. The show was launched in April 1972 as a parod ...

'', often paired with the swanee whistle in a musical round called "Swanee-Kazoo". The soundtrack of the film ''

Chicken Run ''Chicken Run'' is a 2000 stop-motion animated comedy film produced by Pathé and Aardman Animations in partnership with DreamWorks Animation. Aardman’s first feature-length film and DreamWorks Animation's fourth film, it was directed by ...

'', released in 2000 and composed by John Powell and

Harry Gregson-Williams Harry Gregson-Williams (born 13 December 1961) is a British composer, conductor, orchestrator, and record producer. He has composed music for video games, television and films including the ''Metal Gear'' series, '' Spy Game'', ''Phone Booth'' ...

, makes use of kazoos in several pieces. The theme songs of the children's cartoons '' Little Princess'' and ''

Foster's Home for Imaginary Friends ''Foster's Home for Imaginary Friends'' (also known as ''Foster's Home'', or simply ''Foster's'' for short) is an American animated television series created by Craig McCracken for Cartoon Network. It was produced by Cartoon Network Studios as ...

'' feature this instrument heavily. The video game ''

Yoshi's New Island ''Yoshi's New Island'' is a 2014 platform game developed by Arzest and published by Nintendo for the Nintendo 3DS handheld game console. First released in Europe and North America in March 2014, ''Yoshi's New Island'' is a retcon of the events ...

'', released in 2014, has synthesized kazoos in several tracks of its soundtrack. The video game ''

Plants vs. Zombies 2 ''Plants vs. Zombies 2'' (originally known as ''Plants vs. Zombies 2: It's About Time'') is a 2013 free tower defense video game developed by PopCap Games and published by Electronic Arts. It is the sequel to ''Plants vs. Zombies'', and was ...

'', has medieval-styled kazoos in Dark Ages levels. The American glam metal band

Steel Panther Steel Panther is an American comedic glam metal band from Los Angeles, California. They are known for their profane and humorous lyrics as well as their exaggerated onstage pastiche of the stereotypical glam metal lifestyle. History Metal Sh ...

released in December 2014 the Christmas track "The Stocking Song", which includes a kazoo hook from ''

Deck the Halls "Deck the Hall” is a traditional Christmas carol. The melody is Welsh, dating back to the sixteenth century, and belongs to a winter carol, "Nos Galan", while the English lyrics, written by the Scottish musician Thomas Oliphant, date to 1862. ...

''. The Australian psychedelic rock band

Tame Impala Tame Impala is the psychedelic music project of Australian multi-instrumentalist Kevin Parker. In the recording studio, Parker writes, records, performs, and produces all of the project's music. As a touring act, Tame Impala consists of Parke ...

released a single in 2009 "Sundown Syndrome", which includes kazoo rhythmic part. The Swedish rock band

Ghost A ghost is the soul or spirit of a dead person or animal that is believed to be able to appear to the living. In ghostlore, descriptions of ghosts vary widely from an invisible presence to translucent or barely visible wispy shapes, to rea ...

have performed live acoustic renditions of their song "Ghuleh/Zombie Queen", which features the kazoo in place of the recorded version's keyboards. The Ukrainian polka band

Los Colorados ''Los Colorados'' (from the Spanish: ''The colorado potato beetles'', also known as ''The Colorados'') is a Ukrainian band formed in 2006 in Ternopil. The band plays their own songs, but have also covered several popular and folk songs. ''Los Col ...

released a cover of

Rammstein Rammstein (, "ramming stone") is a German Neue Deutsche Härte band formed in Berlin in 1994. The band's lineup—consisting of lead vocalist Till Lindemann, lead guitarist Richard Kruspe, rhythm guitarist Paul Landers, bassist Oliver Riedel, ...

song "Du Hast", which features a kazoo. In November 2010,

Sandra Boynton Sandra Keith Boynton (born April 3, 1953) is an American humorist, songwriter, director, music producer, children's author, and illustrator. Boynton has written and illustrated over seventy-five books for children and seven general audience book ...

produced and released a full-length 300-kazoo plus orchestra performance of Maurice Ravel's ''Bolero'', titled ''Boléro Completely Unraveled, performed by the Highly Irritating Orchestra''. Boynton played solo kazoo on this recording noting "I am at the perfect level of musical incompetence for this."

Records

On March 14, 2011, the audience at BBC Radio 3's Red Nose Show at the Royal Albert Hall, along with a star-studded kazoo band, set a new

Guinness World Record ''Guinness World Records'', known from its inception in 1955 until 1999 as ''The Guinness Book of Records'' and in previous United States editions as ''The Guinness Book of World Records'', is a reference book published annually, listing world ...

for Largest Kazoo Ensemble. The 3,910 kazooists played Wagner's ''

Ride of the Valkyries The "Ride of the Valkyries" (german: Walkürenritt Ritt der Walküren, links=no) refers to the beginning of act 3 of '' Die Walküre'', the second of the four operas constituting Richard Wagner's '' Der Ring des Nibelungen''. As a separate pie ...

'' and the Dambusters March.Largest Kazoo Ensemble
Guinness World Records, 2013, accessed July 12, 2013 This surpassed the previous record of 3,861 players, set in Sydney, Australia, in 2009.BBC Radio 3's Red Nose Show breaks Guinness World Records title for largest ever kazoo ensemble
Big Red Nose Show, March 15, 2011, accessed July 12, 2013 The current record of 5,190 was set later the same night in a second attempt. On August 9, 2010, the

San Francisco Giants The San Francisco Giants are an American professional baseball team based in San Francisco, California. The Giants compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (NL) West division. Founded in 1883 as the New Yor ...

hosted a

Jerry Garcia Jerome John Garcia (August 1, 1942 – August 9, 1995) was an American musician best known for being the principal songwriter, lead guitarist, and a vocalist with the rock band Grateful Dead, which he co-founded and which came to prominence ...

tribute night, in which an ensemble of an estimated 9,000 kazooists played "

Take Me Out to the Ball Game "Take Me Out to the Ball Game" is a 1908 Tin Pan Alley song by Jack Norworth and Albert Von Tilzer which has become the unofficial anthem of North American baseball, although neither of its authors had attended a game prior to writing the song ...

References

External links

The Original Kazoo Company
kazoo museum and manufacturer based in Eden, N.Y.
Kazooco
kazoo museum and historic manufacturer

Captain Kazoo: The world's largest private kazoo collection. More history, including details on the mirliton.

website of the Beaufort, South Caroline kazoo museum
Miss G and her Blues Kazoo
Woodstock Wooden Kazoo in Woodstock, New York
Doc Kazoo and his Wooden Folk Kazoo
in Lake Seneca, Florida
The Association of American Kazoologists
Information, including history, design and construction, of the kazoo {{Authority control American musical instruments Continuous pitch instruments Singing membranophones Toy instruments and noisemakers