Mariah Sands

MUED 410
Warm-Ups
10-8-2015
1. Many Mumbling Mice:
a. Text: Many mumbling mice are making merry music in the moonlight,
mighty mice (or nice). Minor keys, can be used as a round.
b. (Educational Objective) This warm up focuses on articulation, primarily
of the nasal consonant, /m/. Without exaggeration of all of the
consonants, this warm up would sound like gibberish. Thus requiring
astute attention to all of the many consonant sounds and their clear
production.
c. (Manner for use) Since it is sung in minor keys, it can be used to
introduce a sight-singing warm up that is in a minor key, or piece in a
minor mode. This warm up also helps students identify their
articulators.
d. Middle school and high school.
2. Air Zee Lay
a. Air Zee Lay Ee Bo Kah Ku Nanima Pa Un Day Kakaka Lay Ma Pu Ga Nay
Kakaka Lay Ma Pu Ga Nay (Repeat once, then go up or down by half
step)
b. Articulation is key in this warm up, and it makes use of many different
consonants unlike many warm-ups which only focus on a couple. The
melody is simple enough to be memorized and sung in rounds, thus
increasing independency and teaching students to listen across the
choir and in their sections.
c. Outlining a major triad with the first three notes, this warm-up can be
used to introduce singers to major keys. This should not be one of the
first warm-ups used, but rather it should be closer to the middle of the
warm-ups since it requires breath to be established and the tone to be
free.
d. This warm up would be great for any voicing, but should be used with
middle school and high school students, not elementary or primary
school students due to its complexity. Unpacking this warm-up makes it
appear easy, but adding all the elements together, (text, rhythms,
notes, articulations) makes it more challenging.
3. Te-ay, te-ah, te-oh-ho-ho-ho
a. This is sung over an arpeggio in major keys, helping to create flexibility
and agility within the voices. This warm-up also teaches how breath
support is needed even increasingly as the voice rises and all the way
to the end of the phrase.
b. Adding arm motions helps reach more students by creating a tactile
form of learning. The arm motions would also help to increase energy
and create physical awareness.
c. Middle school and high school.
4. We Wander through the lovely woods
a. Text: We wander through the lovely woods, we wander through the
woods. The brush and branches crackle underneath our horses
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MUED 410
Warm-Ups
10-8-2015
hooves. Stealth is not our purpose for we fear no man or beast.
Adventure is our motive as we ride into the East.
b. Since this may be sung in a round, this helps students to gain
independence and develop their ears. This warm-up is sung in the
minor mode, which is helpful when introducing pieces in minor keys.
c. Given that this warm-up is mostly stepwise, it would do well in the
beginning of the warm-ups to not only gently warm up their voices, but
also to help them increase awareness of their articulation and pitch
accuracy.
d. Middle school and high school.
5. Yoop-ti
a. Text: Yoop (1), yoop (1), yoop (1), yoop (1); yoop-ti (1 5), yoop-ti (1 5),
yoop-ti yah (1 5 5); fa-la (5 8)-lalalalalalalalala (8-1-5), fa lalala (4 333),
la la (5 8)!
b. This warm-up can be a lot of fun and also incorporate tactile learning
by adding whole-body motions. The word yoop is a great way to
address the way a Y sounds and bring that sound forward by
pronouncing the P. When saying yoop-ti it is important that both
syllables be distinct, thus making the students more aware of their
diction. The fa-las help to locate the correct pronunciation of an L by
pairing it with the fricative consonant, F.
c. Besides diction, this warm up also focuses on flexibility and breath
support since it is important to not only have enough air for the skips
and leaps, but also for the consoants.
d. Since it is really fun, I could see this warm-up being used with an older
elementary choir. However, they may not get the concepts and it may
be too hard. Middle school and high school students could definitely
handle it, even with the gestures.
6. 1-3,2-4,3-5,4-3-1 on /i-ai-a-o-u/
a. Like the warm-up above, this one focuses on agility. However, this
warm-up is slower and also focuses on relaxation and release. This
warm-up can also be used as a teaching tool for the different vowels
and their production. Students should strive to feel relaxed in their
throat and their face, simply letting the tongue move while barely
moving the jaw to produce the vowels.
b. This is a great starting warm up since it has a small range and can help
them reel in their minds and focus on the task at hand since it is not a
simple 1-2-3-4-5 warm up. This warm up is typically done in major
keys, but for an added level of difficulty, the minor keys could easily be
used.
c. Elementary, middle, and high school.
7. pst-he-ha
a. Say pst over an arpeggio (staccato), then he (also staccato), and
lastly slur ha over the arpeggio.
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MUED 410
Warm-Ups
10-8-2015
b. Saying pst doesnt engage the vocal folds or any of the muscles in
the throat; therefore, leaving the throat relaxed and released. This
gives students a feeling to reference and emulate. By singing he
over the arpeggio in a staccato manner, the students learn to engage
their abdominal muscles and connect their breath to their singing.
Connecting the arpeggio with ha at the end allows students to
combine both the release that they gained in saying pst and the
breath energy that they discovered in he into a legato line. This
warm-up helps build agility and breath support.
c. This warm-up is not very complex and could definitely be used with
both middle school and high school choirs. Students any younger than
middle school may not understand the concepts behind the three
layers.
8. Viva la musica
a. Text: Viva la musica (repeat three times). Vi(5)- va(5) la(5) mu(1)-si(5)-
ca(5); Vi(5)- va(5) la(5) mu(2)-si(5)-ca(5); Vi(5)- va(5) la(5) mu(3)-si(5-
6-5)-ca(5).
b. This warm-up helps the students hear and identify the dominant. It also
focuses on diction, breath support, and release:
i. The fricative consonant V helps to get the breath going and also
makes the students aware of the location of the vowel /i/ (also
forward). One thing to be listening for is scooping up to the mu of
musica. Also, be sure to emphasize that the breath must continue
to the end of the phrase, lest the last /a/ vowel fall back and be
under-supported.
ii. If the throat it not released, it can lead to squeezing and excess
tension, especially on the top note. As this warm-up is brought into
higher keys, help students to become aware of their tension and
their breath support by adding a sweeping arm gesture. This arm
gesture gives them something else to focus on other than how tense
they may want to become at the top, and their increasing breath
use.
c. Middle school or high school.
9. Kukukuku-ku-oh-ah
a. Kukukuku-ku-oh-ah is repeated four times, the first two being
ascending major triads, the last two descend.
b. Pairing staccato singing with legato singing and adding a stop-plosive
consonant is what makes this warm-up unique. The first four kus are
sung on the same pitch, staccato, in order to get the breath and
articulators engaged. The last ku and the oh-ah are what make up
the 1-3-5 arpeggio (sung legato).
c. This warm-up also helps to build agility and flexibility.
d. Middle and high school.
10. Who washed Washingtons
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MUED 410
Warm-Ups
10-8-2015
a. Text: Who washed Washingtons white woolen underwear when
Washingtons washer-
e e x x e e xx x xx x x xe x
x
woman went West?
x x (eighth note rest) e e(last note staccato).
b. All of the text is sung on one pitch. This tongue-twister makes students
aware of their precision to diction as well as minimizing the motion of
the jaw so as not to make more tension. This warm-up could also be
sung in thirds or triads, or in rounds to increase the difficulty.
c. Middle and high school.
11. 1, 121, 123.../do, do re do, do re mi
a. This pattern continues until reaching 8/do at the top. Then the pattern
is reversed: 8, 878, 87678/do, do ti do, do ti la ti do
b. This warm-up focuses on maintaining a steady tempo as well as
intonation. As students reach the top of the scale, they will have the
tendency to speed up and lose cents on their intonation.
c. To increase difficulty, this can be sung in rounds or in thirds or triads.
For more advanced choirs, it may be sung not only in minor keys, but
also in different modes. Tactile learning can be incorporated by using
the solfege sign language. Visual learning can be incorporated by
writing the scale in use on the board and either letting the students
use it as a passive reference, or actively pointing to the notes.
d. Middle or high school. If taken slow enough and perhaps used with
pictures or notes and words on the board to help, elementary students
could use this as well.
12. /hi/ 1 2 3 4 5 4 3 2 (staccato), /o/ 1-9-1 (legato)
a. This warm up engages the breath through the use of the staccato /hi/;
students (hopefully) then carry this breath energy over to the legato
line. Having the breath energy in the extended octave legato line helps
with flexibility since a released and energized voice has more freedom.
b. Given the larger range, this warm-up should be used later in the warm
ups with either a middle school or high school ensemble.
13. 1 1, 1 2, 1 3, 1 4, 1 5, etc. Then starting on 2: 2 1, 2 2, 2 3, 2 4
a. This warm up aims to increase the students listening capacities and
intonation by anticipating the next note in the pattern. Through
anticipation, this warm-up increases their sight reading abilities. It also
helps the students become more aware of the distance between
each of the intervals and how they feel in their voices.
b. This is definitely a brain teaser of a warm-up and should be used near
the beginning of the session to help engage them and make them
aware of their own voices.
c. High school.
14. Zip-Zip-Zah
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MUED 410
Warm-Ups
10-8-2015
a. Zip (1)- Zip (3)- Zah ah ah (5-3-1)
b. The use of the Z (a voiced fricative consonant) helps to engage the
breath while focusing on diction. Since it is voiced, students may have
a tendency to either scoop into the Z or to not voice it, making it sound
like an F. The breath energy that is created is then transferred to the
descending Zah.
c. To add a tactile element, students could act like they were popping 2
balloons, the second being closer to their forehead, with a needle for
each Zip and then open the hand to act as a forward cascading
waterfall from their head back to their side. This will help students
make the Zips short and the Zahs legato with a forward motion.
d. Elementary, middle, or high school students.
15. I love to sing
a. I (1-3-5) love (8-5) to (3) sing (1).
b. Not only does this warm-up increase the positivity of the choir, it also
increases flexibility with the use of an octave range. Diction and
pronunciation can also be addressed in this warm up since there are
lateral, fricative, and plosive consonants.
c. Sine it has a wide range, this warm up should be used near the middle
or end of the warm-up session. Middle or high school.
16. Poppy, Petunia, Poppy, Petunia, Gladiola (5-4-3-2-1)
a. Of course, this warm-up is a tongue twister! Its goal is to lightly warm
up the students voices through the use of a limited range (5-1) and to
encourage students awareness of the way they use their articulators
and how intense their consonants are. Given that the Ps and Gs are
often under-articulated while singing, this warm-up is wonderful for
bringing attention to these consonants. The multiple vowels within
syllables also calls for an awareness of the jaws movement. For if the
jaw is opening too far, this will cause vowel distortion and excess
tension.
b. This warm up could be used near the beginning of the warm-ups.
c. Elementary, middle, or high school.
17. Biddy Biddy Bum
a. Biddy Biddy Bum (12-34-5), Biddy Biddy Bum,(12-34-5) Biddy biddy
biddy biddy bum (12-34-54-32-1).
b. This warm up gently warms up the voice while posing an articulatory
challenge. Actions such as marching, tapping heels in a kick line
fashion, swinging one arm back and forth to the strong beats. This
helps students become more aware of their physical stature and helps
them to release by having their attention focused on the motions.
c. Elementary, middle, and high school.
18. Sing dem Herrn
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MUED 410
Warm-Ups
10-8-2015
a. Text: Sing dem Herrn! (Sing to the lord); Alleluia! Alleluia!; Alle lieben
Ihn. (All love him); Lobe seinen Namen. (Praise his name); Singet mit
Tambourin und Harfe (Sing with drum and harp).
b. This is another great round in a language other than English.
Personally, I love this round for the buoyancy of the melody and fact
that it is in German. This undoubtedly will take some work to
understand the pronunciations, but this is definitely a stepping stone
towards more German pieces as well as pieces in other languages than
English. With the text, it establishes some of the most frequent rules of
German diction: the /s/ sound like /z/ and when E and I are together,
only the second one is pronounced. This melody also encourages
flexibility and a good ear as there are many leaps, but also fast-paced
stepwise motion.
c. High school with either little or no exposure to foreign languages.
19. A-le-lu-ia!
a. This warm up increases flexibility and agility, and it encourages legato
singing through a range of a 9th and a continuous phrase. By holding
out the octave at the top of the arpeggio, this can encourage students
to let the tone blossom through release and increased breath energy.
b. To increase the difficulty, the choir could be split into two sections, one
a third above the other, while singing this warm up. This would help
develop the singers independence as well as their ability to listen to
their section and across the choir.
c. Middle school or high school.
20. Sing Allelu
a. Sing allelu, allelu, alleluia (x2), Sing, sing, sing allelu, Amen.
5, 345, 345-65432; 3, 123, 123-43217; 1, 7, 6-4-4-5, 5-1.
b. This warm up is great for singing in rounds! Singing in rounds helps
students build independency and helps them listen to their section.
This warm-up also reinforces the dominant-tonic motion that will help
students when sight reading.
c. This warm-up should be used towards the middle or the end of the
daily warm-ups since it has a larger range, but is stepwise. Middle and
high school.