Patil then reviewed the scans to see beatboxers’ body parts in action. “My first thought was, wow, the tongue is so big!” she says. “It takes up so much space in the mouth. That was wild to me.” Reed Blaylock, a researcher in linguistics—the study of language—joined Patil in analyzing the scans. He was blown away as well. “After years of study,” he says, “I thought I knew everything the vocal tract could do. Now I realize I can never say that. I kept thinking, wait, it can do that? And that? No way!”
Looking closely, the researchers found that experienced beatboxers produced certain sounds differently than some of the beginners. For example, for a kick drum sound, advanced participants lowered their larynx, or voice box, and closed their lips. The larynx then rapidly jumped upward in the throat, building up air pressure in the mouth just before the lips released, creating a strong percussive sound. A novice beatboxer didn’t perform these larynx movements, resulting in a less punchy sound.