are famous for producing two or three, sometimes even four, distinct pitches simultaneously. It has been compared to using the voice like a human bagpipe -- producing a low fundamental note, like a drone, while adding a higher series of harmonics.

Throat singing developed among the semi-nomadic herders in the region of Central Asia that includes Tuva, Mongolia and the Altai (map  maps.live.com). Because throat singing produces a musical sound that carries over long distances, the music became a way for shepherds, yak herders and horsemen to entertain each other and communicate across vast areas of steppes and taiga. (The taiga is a mountainous, forested area of Tuva.)

Throat singers use their voices to create the sounds of the natural world. The sounds of whistling birds, bubbling streams, howling wolves and blowing wind are often incorporated into the music. Because the horse is such an integral part of Tuvan culture, many songs are performed to a rhythm that mimics the beat of a horse cantering across the wild, open land. The music also is closely tied to Tuvan spiritual beliefs.

(also khoomei or hoomei) can refer either to Tuvan throat singing in general or to one specific style of throat singing. The basic styles of Tuvan throat singing are sygyt, xoomei, and kargyraa. Embellished styles include borbangnadyr and ezenggileer.

Style	Demonstrated by		Description
Sygyt [1:19] (sigit) [suh-gut]	Kongar-ool Ondar		A high-pitched style with a sharp, high whistling sound evoking the gentle breezes of summer or the songs of birds.
Xoomei [1:22] (khoomei, hoomei) [her-may]	Mai-ool Sedip		A middle-range style with an airy whistle, like wind swirling among rocks.
Kargyraa [1:01] Video [0:15] (kargiraa) [kar-guh-rah]	Bady-Dorzhu Ondar		A low-pitched style with a growling undertone below the fundamental pitch, as well as higher overtones. Suggests the howling winds of winter or the cries of a mother camel after losing her calf.
Borbangnadyr [1:49] (borbannadir) [bor-bong-nah-dur]	Ayan Shirizhik		A trilling or rolling sound with rapidly changing harmonics, suggesting a bubbling stream or the rolling rapids of a river.
Ezenggileer [1:36] (enzengileer) [eh-zen-ghi-lair]	Ayan-ool Sam		A pulsing style whose rhythm evokes horseback riding, a trotting horse or a whip tapping silver stirrups.

Throat singing can be performed solo or in groups. The music is sometimes simply sung, but often accompanied by traditional Tuvan instruments. A solo singer often accompanies himself with an igil (a two-stringed fiddle) or a doshpuluur (a Tuvan banjo).

The combined influences of geography and politics have allowed the Tuvans to preserve their unique musical traditions. Situated in eastern Siberia and bordering on Mongolia, Tuva (map) -- which is now the Russian Republic of Tyva -- has been part of Manchuria, Mongolia, and the Soviet Union at various times in history. The area was isolated by its remote location and Soviet-era travel restrictions. Thus, while throat singing developed and flourished for centuries in central Asia, this musical form was a well-kept secret, known only to a few devoted fans in the Western world.

That began to change in the 1980s when Nobel Laureate physicist Richard Feynman, a former stamp collector who wondered what had become of the obscure country that issued beautiful triangular stamps, started a quest to go to Tuva. Enthralled by the music, Feynman became one the best known early fans outside of Tuva. He and his friend Ralph Leighton, who founded Friends of Tuva, began to bring this unusual music to the attention of musicians in Europe and America.

More recently, an Academy-award nominated documentary, Genghis Blues, brought international attention.The documentary followed the journey of an American blues musician, the late Paul Pena, to Tuva. Pena, who was blind, had heard the music on a short-wave Russian broadcast and taught himself to throat sing, eventually traveling to Tuva to take part in a music festival.

Top Tuvan musical groups such as Huun-Huur-Tu, Alash, Chirgilchin, and Tyva Kyzy now regularly tour in Europe and the U.S. as well as throughout Russia. Tuvan music is available online through performing groups' websites and online retailers. Today, music festivals and throat singing competitions each summer bring hundreds of international musicians and fans to Tuva. Tuvan organizations such as the Tuvan Humanities Institute, the universities and Tuvan musicians and scholars are working to preserve the country's unique music form and encourage young singers to learn it. Recently, Indiana University Press published Where Rivers and Mountains Sing, by Ted Levin and Valentina Suzukei, which looks at the culture which inspired the music as well as modern groups carrying on the ancient traditions.