Tom Thum: The orchestra in my mouth | TED

Introduction

Tom Thum Introduces His Unique Skill

• Tom introduces himself and his unique skill of using his mouth to create various sounds.

“I’m here today to show you what I do to make a living.”

Beatboxing in Unconventional Places

• Tom explains that he typically performs his beatboxing in bars and on street corners, which may not be the conventional environments for such performances.

“Usually I do this in bars in the center of the city or on street corners, so this may not be the right environment, but I want to demonstrate what I do.”

• Tom demonstrates his beatboxing skills with a catchy rhythm.

(Beatboxing) (Rhythm)

Returning to Classics

• Tom expresses his desire to go back to the classics for his next performance.

“For the next performance, I want to go back to the classics.”

• Tom incorporates rocking motions into his beatboxing to imitate playing the drums.

(Rocking motions)

Beatboxing “Billie Jean”

• Tom performs “Billie Jean” by Michael Jackson using only his voice.

(Beatboxing “Billie Jean”)

• Tom sings a few lyrics from “Billie Jean” to engage the audience.

“Billie Jean is not my lover ♫ ♫ She’s just a girl who claims that I am the one ♫ ♫ But the kid is not my son ♫”

Tom’s Identity and Passion

• Tom introduces himself as Tom Thum, a beatboxer who is able to produce all the sounds using only his voice.

“If you don’t already know, my name is Tom Thum, and I’m a beatboxer, which means all the sounds you just heard were created using only my voice.”

• Tom emphasizes the lack of any effects in his microphone, assuring the audience that all the sounds are produced solely by his voice.

“And I assure you that there are absolutely no effects of any kind on this microphone.”

• Tom expresses his happiness and excitement for being present at TEDx.

“And I’m very, very excited — (Rocking motions) You’re beatboxing for everything. It’s amazing.”

• Tom acknowledges his journey to TEDx and the opportunities it has given him to explore incredible places around the world.

“I’m very, very glad to be here today and to represent my family and all those who haven’t been able to make a career out of making weird noises. It’s a small market and there’s not much work, especially where I come from. I’m from Brisbane, which is an amazing city to live in.”

Tom’s Journey and International Experiences

• Tom explains that he mostly works outside of Brisbane and even outside of Australia, allowing him to see wonderful places in the world.

“I do the majority of my work outside of Brisbane and outside of Australia, which means pursuing my crazy passion has allowed me to see many amazing places in the world.”

• Tom humorously emphasizes that while Brisbane is a wonderful city to live in, it is not the cultural center for the Southern Hemisphere.

“I’m from Brizzy, which is an amazing city to live in, but let’s be honest — it’s not the cultural center for the Southern Hemisphere.”

• Tom expresses his gratitude for the opportunity to share his experiences and take the audience on a journey through continents and the power of voice.

“So I want to share with you, if I may, my experiences. Ladies and gentlemen, I want to take you on a journey across continents and through voice itself.”

Performing Around the World

• Tom uses his mouth to mimic the sound of a didgeridoo to represent the Australian outback.

(Didgeridoo)

• Tom incorporates beatboxing with sound imitations like an airplane to represent his visit to India.

(Airplane) (Beatboxing)

• Tom imitates the sound of a sitar to represent his experience in China.

(Sitar)

• Tom continues to incorporate beatboxing while imitating the sound of a guzheng to represent China.

(Guzheng)

• Tom incorporates beatboxing with sound imitations to represent Germany.

(Beatboxing)

• Tom emphasizes the celebratory nature of his performances.

“Party, party!!”

Transforming the Sydney Opera House

• Tom introduces a technology called Kaoss Pads, which allows him to manipulate sounds using his voice.

“Before we reach our final destination, ladies and gentlemen, I want to show you a technology I brought from the blooming metropolis of Brisbane. These things are called Kaoss Pads and they allow me to do different things with my voice.”

• Tom demonstrates how Kaoss Pads can be used to create different effects, such as imitating a trumpet sound.

“For example, this one on the left allows me to repeat my voice, creating this — (Trumpet)”

• Tom showcases the versatility of Kaoss Pads by creating a looping effect with his voice.

“And finally, but not least, this one on the right allows me to loop, loop, loop, loop, loop, loop, loop my voice.”

Conclusion

Tom Expresses Gratitude and Finishes with a Beatbox

• Tom expresses gratitude and thanks the audience.

“Thank you. Thank you very much.”

• Tom ends his talk with a final beatbox performance.

(Beatboxing)