Transformations of Tonality: A Longitudinal Study of Yodeling in the Muotatal Valley, Central Switzerland

This study examines the transformations of tonalities in the Central Switzerland valley of Muotatal, a small region attracting the focus of ethnomusicologists for harboring and conserving a unique style of yodel, called juuz.1 Conducting a longitudinal study, three samples of field recordings are compared, collected by Sichardt (sample 1, 1936), Zemp (sample 2, 1979), and Wey (sample 3, 2017).2 Changes in tonal systems are inherently difficult to observe, as they progress slowly over generations and require audio recordings confined to a specific cultural area. The datasets used in this study nonetheless promise to overcome these difficulties and enable relevant findings for two reasons: First, the recordings were made in the same small community, which is harboring a distinct style of Alpine yodeling. Second, they span multiple generations, and the three samples were obtained at intervals of roughly 40 years