Fall always strikes me as kind of a new beginning - similar in spirit to (and in some ways more potent than) the fresh start of a new calendar year. For many students, this means navigating a new educational environment, new schedules, and additional demands on time. For all of us, it means saying goodbye to the usually more fun-driven pace of summer and gearing up for winter. Now that September is gone, it’s a good time to review your routines around singing and to take a hard look at what is working and what is not working. I’d like to bring your attention to some common areas related to singing/ musical practice that may need review and to offer a few tips and recommendations! I will start this new series discussing warmup routines:
There are 5 main purposes for voice practice:
1.To warm up the voice prior to singing songs (increase blood flow and stretch/ limber muscles) 2. To condition the voice (increase strength, stamina, flexibility)
3. To improve musicianship (become familiar/ comfortable with musical patterns)
4. To learn/ master songs
5. To cool down (prevent muscle injury/ soreness after singing)
As you are planning your weekly voice practice routine, it’s important to consider these goals and evaluate, day to day, which of them you want to achieve. Given time constraints, it can be difficult to schedule a practice session that allows you to dive deep into all 5 goals outlined above. Therefore, we will start with the most important: the warmup and cooldown.
With any significant voice use (including long periods of talking or yelling at sports games!), a vocal warm up and cooldown are both important for maintaining vocal health. 5-10 minutes of gentle vocal warmups, focused on physical stretches (primarily for the muscles of the face, neck and back) and buzzes and sirens that move through your whole range, help warmup the vocal muscles by increasing blood flow to the vocal folds and other laryngeal muscles. And, just as you would stretch out your muscles after intense exercise, repeat these exercises after a practice session or period of intense or elongated voice use to help with muscle recovery. Balance the voice by singing high if you’ve been singing low or in head voice if you’ve been focused on chest voice. Structure exercises such that they start at whichever extreme of the voice your songs are set, and then gradually bring them in pitch closer to the middle of your range, thus bringing the voice “back to neutral”.
And not to leave out those folks whose primary focus is piano - the principles are the same! You may notice your fingers feeling a bit sluggish when you first sit down to practice, but find that, over the course of your practice session, your fingers feel more coordinated. Maximize your time spent working on repertoire by beginning your practice with some hand/ wrist/ arm/ shoulder/ back stretches and then 5-10 min of piano exercises, such as scales, arpeggios, or selections from your favorite exercise book! And, of course, finish your practice session with, at a minimum, those same hand, wrist, arm, shoulder, back stretches.
This aspect of your practice is non-negotiable for optimal health - to the point that even if you only have 2 minutes to practice, spend it on warmups! Finding time to practice can be tough and it’s super easy to fall into the trap of perfectionism (i.e. if I don't have a solid hour to set aside for practice I won’t do it at all). But, 5 minutes is definitely better than 0 minutes! When I am on my way to a long rehearsal, lecture (speaking counts!), or gig I will absolutely warm up in the car, shower, or kitchen while I’m feeding the cat. And pianists, take note! You can stretch one hand at a time in your car or even work on muscle tone in your fingers! (My favorite finger exercise is to pinch your thumb and index finger, then thumb and middle finger, then ring finger, then pinky finger. This warmup can be done almost anywhere and is very unobtrusive)
I recommend that you read Atomic Habits by James Clear for more strategies for making good habits accessible in our stressful and busy world. And if you have a little bit more time and are looking to dive into goals 2 & 3 of a practice session, stay tuned for next month's “Notes From the Studio”!
Comments