Oom-pah,Oompah,Ooumpah orUmpapa is an onomatopoeic term describing the rhythmic sound of a deepbrass instrument in combination with the response of other instruments or registers in aband, a form of backgroundostinato.[1][2]
The oom-pah sound is usually made by thetuba alternating between the root of thechord and the 5th — this sound is said to be theoom. Thepah is played on the off-beats by higher-pitched instruments such as theclarinet,accordion ortrombone. Oompah is often associated withVolkstümliche Musik, a form of popular German music, and withpolka. Intriple time genres such as thewaltz it is oom-pah-pah.
The musicalOliver! contains a song named "Oom-Pah-Pah", which is named after the oom-pah.
A more modern variation is the playing of contemporary pop and rock songs in an Oompah style, by bands such asGlobal Kryner (Austria), Oompah Brass (UK) (who dubbed the style "Oompop"),[3] and Brumpah (UK, West Midlands).[4] The Americanjam bandPhish features the oom-pah-pah in their song "Harpua".[citation needed]
 | Thismusic theory article is astub. You can help Wikipedia byexpanding it. |