Kerry Christensen
Encyclopedia
Kerry Christensen is an American
yodeler (born October 6, 1954, in Grace
, Idaho
). He yodels in both western and Alpine styles. He also plays the accordion
, the zither
and the alphorn
and is very good at imitating chicken
s.
Christensen was born in 1954 and was raised on a potato farm in Grace, Idaho. A performer from the age of three, he has sung everything from western ballads to barbershop
music. While living in Austria
from 1974 to 1976, he discovered the folk music that would be his life.
Kerry's first yodeling performance was in 1977, at a Brigham Young University
orientation assembly where he received a standing ovation from 15,000 students. In 1984, Disney World in Orlando
, Florida
hired him to work at the German Pavilion of the Epcot Center in 1984. He was the Disney World Yodeler from 1984 to 1990 and the leader of the night band for the last four of those years.
In 1990, Christensen became a freelance yodeler and performs worldwide. He has recorded 12 albums, including U 2 Can Yodel, a course for people wanting to learn yodeling techniques.
Kerry was recently signed to yodel for the surrealist cartoon Living Evil, written and directed by Dadaist and Surrealist artists the Hive of Dukes. Yanni Osmond, co-founder of the Hive, is an avid music historian and professed "weird music fan", and when he saw Kerry yodeling on YouTube
, he found his phone number and hired Christensen on the spot.
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
yodeler (born October 6, 1954, in Grace
Grace, Idaho
Grace is a city in Caribou County, Idaho, in the United States. The population was 990 at the 2000 census.-History:The area of Grace was once inhabited by the Shoshone Indians. White settlement dates back to the mid-to-late 19th century. The Oregon Trail passed within of Grace...
, Idaho
Idaho
Idaho is a state in the Rocky Mountain area of the United States. The state's largest city and capital is Boise. Residents are called "Idahoans". Idaho was admitted to the Union on July 3, 1890, as the 43rd state....
). He yodels in both western and Alpine styles. He also plays the accordion
Accordion
The accordion is a box-shaped musical instrument of the bellows-driven free-reed aerophone family, sometimes referred to as a squeezebox. A person who plays the accordion is called an accordionist....
, the zither
Zither
The zither is a musical string instrument, most commonly found in Slovenia, Austria, Hungary citera, northwestern Croatia, the southern regions of Germany, alpine Europe and East Asian cultures, including China...
and the alphorn
Alphorn
The alphorn or alpenhorn or alpine horn is a labrophone, consisting of a natural wooden horn of conical bore, having a wooden cup-shaped mouthpiece, used by mountain dwellers in Switzerland and elsewhere...
and is very good at imitating chicken
Chicken
The chicken is a domesticated fowl, a subspecies of the Red Junglefowl. As one of the most common and widespread domestic animals, and with a population of more than 24 billion in 2003, there are more chickens in the world than any other species of bird...
s.
Christensen was born in 1954 and was raised on a potato farm in Grace, Idaho. A performer from the age of three, he has sung everything from western ballads to barbershop
Barbershop music
Barbershop vocal harmony, as codified during the barbershop revival era , is a style of a cappella, or unaccompanied vocal music characterized by consonant four-part chords for every melody note in a predominantly homophonic texture...
music. While living in Austria
Austria
Austria , officially the Republic of Austria , is a landlocked country of roughly 8.4 million people in Central Europe. It is bordered by the Czech Republic and Germany to the north, Slovakia and Hungary to the east, Slovenia and Italy to the south, and Switzerland and Liechtenstein to the...
from 1974 to 1976, he discovered the folk music that would be his life.
Kerry's first yodeling performance was in 1977, at a Brigham Young University
Brigham Young University
Brigham Young University is a private university located in Provo, Utah. It is owned and operated by The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints , and is the United States' largest religious university and third-largest private university.Approximately 98% of the university's 34,000 students...
orientation assembly where he received a standing ovation from 15,000 students. In 1984, Disney World in Orlando
Orlando, Florida
Orlando is a city in the central region of the U.S. state of Florida. It is the county seat of Orange County, and the center of the Greater Orlando metropolitan area. According to the 2010 US Census, the city had a population of 238,300, making Orlando the 79th largest city in the United States...
, Florida
Florida
Florida is a state in the southeastern United States, located on the nation's Atlantic and Gulf coasts. It is bordered to the west by the Gulf of Mexico, to the north by Alabama and Georgia and to the east by the Atlantic Ocean. With a population of 18,801,310 as measured by the 2010 census, it...
hired him to work at the German Pavilion of the Epcot Center in 1984. He was the Disney World Yodeler from 1984 to 1990 and the leader of the night band for the last four of those years.
In 1990, Christensen became a freelance yodeler and performs worldwide. He has recorded 12 albums, including U 2 Can Yodel, a course for people wanting to learn yodeling techniques.
Kerry was recently signed to yodel for the surrealist cartoon Living Evil, written and directed by Dadaist and Surrealist artists the Hive of Dukes. Yanni Osmond, co-founder of the Hive, is an avid music historian and professed "weird music fan", and when he saw Kerry yodeling on YouTube
YouTube
YouTube is a video-sharing website, created by three former PayPal employees in February 2005, on which users can upload, view and share videos....
, he found his phone number and hired Christensen on the spot.