Styles of Vocal Warm-Ups To Sound Your Best And Protect Your Voice
By Bianca Jazmine
Warming up the voice before singing is not only important for vocal health, but also helps you sound your best and improve your voice. Here are a few ways we warm up for vocal class at Key To Music:
Stretches
Stretching is an unexpected way to prepare the body to sing. Making sure your muscles are loose and free of tension keeps the vocals relaxed and open. Start by rolling the neck and stretching it all four directions, looping the shoulders back repeatedly, and doing a gentle twist of the spine. This clears out a relaxed pathway for the voice.
Lip Buzzes
Buzzing the lips helps loosen the mouth to help pronounce words clearly and increase flexibility. Simply purse the lips and blow air through until they make a buzzing sound. You can also warm up your range by swinging the voice from low to high, and high to low while buzzing your lips.
Diaphragm Exercises
The diaphragm is the foundation of the voice. To “wake up” the diaphragm, try a deep yawn that expands your belly when inhaling. This provides a deep stretch for proper breath support.“Straw breaths” are another way to slowly open the diaphragm. Create a small “O” with the lips, as if you were drinking from a straw. Slowly inhale until you fill the diaphragm all the way, expanding the belly like a balloon. Exhale through the “O”, maintaining control on your way out.
Range Exercises
Now that the physical body has been prepared for singing, the vocal range should be warmed up to add beautiful color to your tone. This helps gently open your power without overextending and straining the voice. Vocal sirens help stretch the range. Like a siren, swoop from a very low note upward until you’ve reached a very high note, then reverse the path. Follow this with a proper scale exercise conducted by your vocal instructor to also enhance your technique and accuracy.
Vocal exercises are a great way to keep the voice healthy and beautiful. Warming up helps you work on techniques that will develop your strength, unlocking the potential of your best vocal tone.
