Davids Chapter 16 & Williams Chapter 6

Two A-HA moments I took away from the readings were:

   1)   One thing I enjoyed about Chapter 16 (Davids) was the thorough explanation of how warming up with your choir is important. The chapter explains that even though you may have a choir of professional singers, you should never assume they are already warmed up. I particularly liked how he explained what we need to cover in our warm-ups, what each segment of the warm up accomplishes, and some examples of exercises. Here is a list the book gives of what we should include in our warm-ups:

·      Stretching

·      Breathing

·      Resonance

·      Range

·      Linking of Registers

·      Articulation, rep. specific exercises

   2)   The Williams book goes through each of the segments of a warm up, lists the “theory” behind it and how to apply it with your students. I found this especially helpful because as a non (trained) singer I always don’t understand why we do what we do in warm-ups. For example, under the “Explore Resonance” section it explains the theory behind it. Theory: “This covers voice qualities dependent on the set-up of the vocal tract, such as voice projection, larynx/raising, soft palate raising and pharyngeal widening/narrowing…” It then goes on to explain how to practice this. Practice: “Play with witchy noises and quacking, making sure that you are deconstructing. Then try this sensation with the resonance in the mouth and not the nose…”

Two questions I decided upon were:

   1)   I recently attended a choir practice at a school where there was a short warm-up, but nothing extensive. They did one exercise, and then they went on to singing. If they are not singing challenging repertoire, can a short warm-up damage their voices? At the beginning of each choir practice, is it necessary to include all of these areas (stretching, breathing, resonance, range…) in our warm-ups?

   2)   I recently had a student that thought her belly moved in when she breathed. When I explained to her that the lower abdomen/belly region moved out when inhaling, she did not believe me! I then asked her to lean over in her chair and breathe in. I asked what had happened? She responded with “I rose up.” She then discovered that her belly should expand when inhaling. After this, I could tell that whenever she was breathing in, she would push her belly out (drastically) unnaturally just to show me that she was doing what I told her was correct. What do you do in these types of situations with younger students when they aren’t really understanding? 

Works Cited

   Davids, Julia, and Stephen A. LaTour. Vocal Technique: A Guide for Conductors, Teachers, and Singers. Long Grove: Waveland, 2012. Print.

   Williams, Jenevora. Teaching Singing to Children and Young Adults. Oxford: Compton Pub., 2013. Print.