My name is MIKE YANCHAK (pronounced YAN-chak, no kidding, just the way it's spelled), and I'd like to think I'm any normal guy you'd find walking around the streets of Pittsburgh. Except if you walk by me, you might hear some weird noises coming out of my mouth. I call this "practice".
I do some strange stuff with my mouth. Nothing dirty or anything like that (at least, not usually). Just some stuff a lot of people don't do (at least, not without thinking that they will be acting very, very silly).
Here's some stuff that I can do with my mouth (besides talk, which I like to do. A LOT. You could ask anyone who's known me longer than five minutes, but will have probably determined this for yourself by the end of this bio).:
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1. Sing. I am a chorally trained vocalist. I like to sing stuff. I usually do that as part of a cappella, or unaccompanied, vocal music.
2. Vocal Percussion. Now what exactly is vocal percussion? Well, it's a bunch of things, but it basically boils down to making goofy sounds with your mouth...
2(a). If it sounds like a drum set, it's Mouthdrumming.
2(b). If it sounds like a drum machine, it's Beatboxing.
2(c). If it sounds like music and the beat at the same time, that's Beatbass.
3. If it sounds like none of the above, but you don't recognize it as human speech, or you DO recognize it as something you hear outside the realm of music, it's probably Effects, Impressions, or Impersonations. Doing impressions of instruments am sometimes referred to as Voicestrumentation or Voicestrumentalization. There's also Throat Singing (and yes, it is exactly what it says it is).
4. Spoken Word Art. I used to write poetry, but I have always enjoyed performing rap music. I have brought a rap influence with me to all of my a cappella projects, including my current one, DoubleShot!.
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I consider myself a very lucky guy, because I've gotten to do a lot of these things far beyond the realm of your average karaoke night at the local bar or open mic night (although you might very well see me there). I have performed with the Duquesne University Chamber Singers under the direction of Dr. Brady Allred and the Mendelssohn Choirs of Pittsburgh under the direction of Dr. Robert Page, which allowed me to set foot in some of the most amazing performance venues across the United States and in Europe. I have performed with the legendary Johnny Angel and the Halos, doo-wop sensations William Dell and WeeJams, and local harmonizers the Magic Moments and White Noise. I have guest performed barbershop music with the Steel City Harmonizers and beatboxed with Pittsburgh pop talent Random Play, the South Side Crashers, and DJ Bus-T-Nut. I have performed on KDKA Television as well as onstage at Heinz Hall, the Benedum Center, Carnegie Hall, and the Johnny Angel Stage at PNC Park.
I have also been fortunate enough to study vocal percussion with some of the most amazing talent in the music business, including the father of contemporary mouthdrumming Wes Carroll, the venerable Jon J. Ryan of Ball in the House, Toxic Audio Director/Performer Rene Ruiz and NYC Beatboxing talents Yo Yo Beats and Adam Matta.
Currently, I have taken up residence as a human drum, bass, lead, and business manager for DoubleShot! -- Pittsburgh's only all-vocal band. I have founded PittsburghACappella.org in the hopes of getting young people in my area back in touch with the sheer awesomeness of all-vocal music and will be looking to start a new all-vocal performance, outreach, and education project in Spring of 2007. I will be debuting as a freelance solo performer of these vocal arts (particularly vocal percussion) in the near future as well.
And since this is my only page on MySpace, I thought you should know that I also like (in alphabetical order) Jennifer Aniston, Casino Blackjack, just about all the collegiate and pro Pittsburgh Sports Teams, Sports Talk Radio, Sushi, Ultimate Frisbee, and Yuengling Beer. (For those of you surprised at all these expensive habits with no record label anywhere in sight, I should note that I fund most of the aforementioned habits by Computer Programming.)
