Kinesthetics & Vocal Warm-Ups

Vocal and physical exercises are both equally important to an adolescents vocal
singing, as movement is merely a reaction to music. Alperson describes two
responses to music:

1. The Felt experience: The experiences ones body feels during the process of
making music; Dickenson relates this experience to the right hemisphere of
the brain (the creative side.)
2. The Symbolic level: This allows one to conceptualize, analyze, and develop
perceptual awareness of the felt experience; Dickenson relates this to the
left hemisphere of the brain (the critical thinking/logic side.)

With this mindset, kinesthetic activity in vocal warm-ups can be effective for
efficient and creative body-mind responses to music.

Stretching Exercises

1. Reach for the sky: Stand on the balls of your feet as you stretch up slowly
with both arms, and gradually bring them down.
a. Do this again but this time inhale as your arms go up and exhale as
you go down.
2. Arm Stretching: Wrap left arm under your right elbow, pull towards you,
and rotate to the left as you do this. Switch arms and rotate accordingly.

Body Relaxation Activities

1. Shake your hands. Shake your legs. Shake your everything.

2. Roll your head slowly around your neck, going in one direction and then
reversing.
3. Deep breaths.
4. Light jogging.

Bending

1. Touch Your Toes: Bend forward from the hips, legs straight, arms and head
just hangin. Gradually come back up.
a. Do this again, but with inhalation/exhaling. Have everyone check their
torso involvement in the breathing motion (i.e. abdominals, back
muscle, rib cage, etc.)

Brain/Body Coordination

1. Shake arms/legs in various combinations.

2. Body percussion call-and-response.

Facial Warm-Ups

1. Massage your temple, cheeks, jaw, neck, tongue base, etc.

 2. Make funny faces.

Vocalises

They can improve:

-Tone quality -Resonance -Intervallic Agility -Dynamic Control

-Rhythmic Flexibility -Register transitions -Range

Physical movement can be incorporated to enhance the bodys response to the

music by using gestures that bring focus to the design, direction, and density of the
music/vocalises. For example:

Hand motions can depict the contour of a melodic line.

Guided movement/Choreography can grant insight to the spatial dimensions
of a piece.
Pushing and pulling motions can indicate varying degrees of intensity within a
meter.

Principles of Vocalises

1. All vocalises should be carefully explained and applied.

2. Utilize composite unison range at first, beginning between Bb3-C4. Perform
sustained vowels on one pitch and then move to ascending/descending four-
note scalar patterns.
3. Mix staccato/agility exercises with sustained exercises in each rehearsal.
4. Emphasis should be placed on full body involvement, kinesthetics, and the
basics of good posture and breathing.
5. Find the optimum sound for the full choir and each section. The tone
should be energetic, projected, and vibrant, without being pushed or forced.
6. Utilize exercises which release the voice, and encourage mf/f levels at first.
7. Be consistent and spend adequate time each day with these exercises.
8. Be creative and devise new vocalises each day.

Tessituras
Tone Quality and Resonance

Go up half-steps accordingly. Movement pairings:

1. Sway left/right to the beat.

2. Circular hand motions that move to the beat.

Energizing Tone

-And so on. Try using bah or vah. Flick your fingers to the rhythm while
conducting.

-Use hand motions to indicate when the vowel is sounding.

-Conduct with staccato motions.

Improving Vowel Consistency and Resonance

-Afterwards, sing in intervals either going up or down. Or use too, tay, tah, toh,
too.

-Use smooth horizontal gestures. For the too excerpt use staccato beats.

-Use a standard four-beat pattern.

Balance in Articulation/Air Pressure

-Staccato single notes on hah, proceed onto do-sol hah.

-Then use fah. All while doing light staccato patterns.

Building Intervallic/Dynamic/Rhythmic Flexibility

-Use bub-ble as another sound. Try going in the order, do-do-me-me-re-re-fa-fa-

me-me-re-re-do-do,

-Use vertical gestures, short downward thrusts, light hand movements.

Dynamic Control
-Try other syllables like: noh, noo, nee, nay.
-Sing do-sol while crescendo-ing and descending while decrescendo-ing.
-Conduct smoothly.

Rhythmic Flexibility

-Apply light, staccato gestures on the quarter note.

Register Transitions

-Descend down a triad from the high do on hah or noo; move down in half steps.
Try going the other way from the low do.
-Use a lot of arpeggios.
-Use circular conducting gestures.

When Selecting Appropriate Music for Changing Voices

1. Notes can be changed and alternate parts written with the consent of the
publisher/copyright holder.
2. Voice parts may be assigned to different octaves.
3. Voices may be assigned to different parts.
4. Voices may be assigned to sing only limited sections of the score where
ranges are accessible.
5. However, find music that closely matches the abilities of your singers.

Some Considerations

1. Avoid music demanding numerous register changes and transitions.

2. Try to find music which will allow students to consolidate the most
comfortable area of their singing range first. After, range extensions may be
attempted.
3. Be aware of agility requirements. Especially Baritones.
4. Be aware of long phrases and their demands.
5. Choose music to meet the breath control capabilities of young adolescents.
6. Give singers a variety of music.
7. Give choral arranging a shot.
Some More Guidelines

1. Select a limited range melody (6th to an octave).

2. Carefully select the key to keep the melody in the range of changing voices.
3. Give the melody to the changing voices.
4. Assess the musicianship of each voice part in the choir and tailor the part to
help them feel successful.
5. Keep it simple.
6. Be organized, prepared, and flexible.