Vocal scratch

The best wow factor per minute of practice

Time to unpack your human turntables. Scratching was invented in 1975 by Grandwizard Theodore and became a fixture of DJing and hip-hop culture in record time. In beatboxing it is the technique that impresses fastest – and the one that lives most on confidence.

This lesson covers two kinds: the whistle scratch, built from three blocks, and the vocal scratch, which comes from the diaphragm.

The whistle scratch in three parts

Part one is a hi-hat with an „i“ and a „u“ added to it.

ll:  Ts - Ts - Ts - Ts  :ll                34 BPM
ll:  tsiu - tsiu - tsiu - tsiu  :ll        34 BPM

Part two is a „Wii“, part three an emphasised „Sch“. Then you put all three together:

ll:  Wii - Wii - Wii - Wii  :ll                                 32 BPM
ll:  Sch - Sch - Sch - Sch  :ll                                 32 BPM
ll:  Tsiu Wii Sch - - -  :ll                                    34 → 64 BPM

Shaping it: this is where your own style begins

The scratch is not one sound but a whole family. You change it by moving lips, tongue and the corners of your mouth:

Tongue: during the „tsiu“, let it glide slowly backwards along the roof of your mouth – the sound pitches with it.
Lower lip: tuck it behind your upper teeth and pull it back out as you make the scratch. Try the same scratch once with and once without – the difference is obvious.

This is where copying ends. Experiment until you have a whistle scratch that is yours.

The scratch pattern

ll:  Tsiu Wii - Tsiu Wii - Sch - Tsiu Wii - Tsiu Wii - Tsiu Wii - Sch  :ll   64 → 90 BPM

The vocal scratch – this one comes from the diaphragm

The vocal scratch uses more than your vocal cords: above all it uses the diaphragm. You need a short, controlled burst of air – not simply more volume.

Build it in steps: an emphasised „Hey“ first, then an „Ah“ with the diaphragm briefly tensed, then „Aha“ – and raise the tempo.

ll:  Hey - - - Hey - - -  :ll              52 BPM
ll:  Ah - - - Ah - - -  :ll                52 BPM
ll:  Aha - - - Aha - - -  :ll              52 → 78 BPM
ll:  Aha - Aha - - - - -  :ll              78 → 86 BPM

You can swap „Aha“ for any syllable. That is how the finished vocal scratch comes together, in two halves:

ll:  Iwi - Iwi - One - - -  Awa - Uwa - Ewa - Two  :ll        70 → 90 BPM

Keep the diaphragm burst round and roughly as loud as the rest of the vocal sound. Getting louder alone misses the point.

Frequently asked questions

How do you learn a beatbox scratch?

In blocks. The whistle scratch is made of three parts – „tsiu“, „Wii“ and „Sch“ – which you practise separately and then connect. Start at 34 BPM; that is deliberately slow.

What is the difference between a whistle scratch and a vocal scratch?

The whistle scratch comes from lip and tongue position and imitates the movement of a record. The vocal scratch works with a short burst of air from the diaphragm and sounds like a scratched voice.

Who invented scratching?

Grandwizard Theodore, in 1975. The technique moved from the turntable into beatboxing, where it is produced with nothing but mouth and breath.

My vocal scratch is just loud, not sharp – why?

Because the power comes from the throat instead of the diaphragm. The burst has to be short and controlled, and roughly as loud as the rest of the sound.