Khoomii, or throat singing, is a type of ancestral diphonic vocal technique that reproduces natural sounds such as flowing water, wind, mountain echoes, thunder, birdsong, and more. A diphonic chant is characterized by a vocal technique that allows the production of multiple notes simultaneously using a single vocal organ by combining various types of voices and different tongue or lip positioning. Thus, the performer uses their throat to emit a continuous and deep drone, while using their tongue to control the flow of air, they manage to modulate the resonance into higher harmonics.

The jaw harp is often used as a reference point—a small instrument that also produces different "voices": the drone, the song, and the counter-song.

A diphonic throat singer must thoroughly understand and precisely use the different organs necessary for singing: pharynx, vocal cords, oral cavity, tongue, lips, and nasal cavity. Skilled khoomii singers are capable of modifying their frequencies by adjusting their resonators, the volume of the oral cavity, the mouth opening, and the position of the lips.

Diphonic chants have long been practiced in numerous traditional music styles across the world. It is primarily in High Asia that it is found among Mongols, Tuvans, Khakasses, Bashkirs, Altaians, and Tibetans, but also more discreetly among the Sardinians of Italy, the Rajasthanis of India, and the Xhosas of South Africa.

It has been noted that a third voice could be produced with Tuvan techniques in particular, though it has so far been impossible to determine whether it could be controlled. This third voice would therefore be more akin to the counter-song of the jaw harp. Khoomii is thus a type of diphonic chant found in Mongolia. However, it is itself divided into six sub-genres, the distinction being made at the level of the technique used: xamryn xöömi (nasal khoomii), bagalzuuryn xöömi (pharyngeal khoomii), tseedznii xöömi (thoracic khoomii), kevliin xöömi (abdominal khoomii), xarkiraa xöömi (narrative khoomii with a very deep fundamental), and isgerex (the dental flute voice). This chant is said to originate from the Hovd region in the Altai Mountains, in western Mongolia, where one of the most famous khoomii singers, Sundui Jajaa, was born. However, the chant has spread to other regions, sometimes quite distant ones.

Four of the most famous throat singers in Mongolia: Sundui Jajaa, Tserendorj, Ganbold, and Odsuren, all originally from Khovd aimag. Ganbold was notably the sound engineer who created the soundtrack for the famous Mongolian epic film, "Chinggis Khaan and Queen Manduhai."

Khoomii, and diphonic singing in general, is also believed to have therapeutic value. Theories and experiments conducted by doctors and musicians have often shown that there is a relationship between music and mental or physical health. When used for therapeutic purposes, khoomii aims primarily to restore concentration and psychological balance. This objective is of course quite close to certain shamanic practices and Tibetan chants. This type of singing is said to have concrete effects on, for example, stuttering, sensations of throat blockage, confidence in one's voice, inhibition, respiratory disorders, anxiety, fatigue, reducing physical pain during childbirth, and so on—however, no study confirms the effectiveness of this practice. And these effects would not only affect humans but also animals!