Blog Posts

Vocal Warmups

Denise Gagne

Voice Care for Music Teachers

It's back to school all across Canada and the US, and one of the first questions I received in my email inbox came from a teacher who had already strained her voice. There are many voice care suggestions online and most of us know the basics:

Drink plenty of water - avoid caffeine, chocolate, milk products. Don't smoke or drink alcohol excessively.
Don't clear your throat - relax your throat by doing abdominal breathing. Swallow or sip water instead.
Don't yell, cheer or scream. Don't use your voice in noisy places. Don't talk at all if your voice feels strained or harsh.
Don't push your voice. Instead speak face to face, use a softer tone and if in a classroom, use a microphone.
Avoid speaking on insufficient breath.
Stay relaxed. Don't raise the shoulders or tighten neck muscles. Keep your teeth separated allowing the jaw to remain passive as you speak.
Don't speak or sing out of your natural register.

In the Music Classroom, here are some additional tips:

Develop many non-verbal cues so you don't have to say instructions For example:
- When you want kids to make a circle, draw a "circle" with your pointer fingers.
- palms up when you want kids to stand up - palms down when you want kids to sit down
- teach kids the conductors downbeat so you don't need to sing "1 2 Ready Go"
- if you want kids to clap a rhythm, point to it and give the downbeat. You'll be teaching them to be better musicians while you rest your voice.
Talk less - sounds so simple, but we need to be aware of how much we use our speaking voices, and work at minimizing what we say
Use an FM system. This is a must - not a luxury. One sub day in Alberta can cost $300. If you're off work for a week with no voice, it would cost the district $1500 - a good FM system is $1000 or less. I have a little Chattervox that I use when an FM system is not available. You can order them online.
Sing for the kids, not with them. This makes you a better teacher! When you sing with the kids, you're not listening to hear if they are accurate. You'll be a better listener when you demonstrate and they echo.
Use the recorder or a keyboard to give starting pitches. If you're teaching a song by rote, play the melody on the instrument. Find the strongest singer in your class and ask them if they can echo sing the pitches that you play on the keyboard. If you can have a child model, you'll not only save your voice, but you'll help to develop the kids ears.
Use CDs to rote teach. Play a phrase on the CD and pause it. Have the class echo. Resist the temptation to sing with them. Yes, it's preferable to model with them, but when you need to rest your voice, use a CD. (That's when you really appreciate that Musicplay has recordings for every song!)
do warmups every day. Lots of lip trills going up and down. This places the voice where it should be and it's really good for the kids too. I use the app, Vocal warmups for singers or choir - when I warm up carefully, my voice is good.

I have a voice/yoga therapist in Edmonton who has given me some wonderful stretches that I need to do much more often. If you do yoga, one of the best poses is the Cat Twist. David Wilson is making a DVD that I hope will be done soon, so you can work through the exercises with him.

One of the many bad habits that I have developed over 35 years, is holding my breath. He's taught me to take a full breath and then release. It releases some of the tension that I have in my jaw and neck. If time would allow, I'd be seeing him every week or two weeks, but life is crazy busy!

Hope everyone is having a great fall and your voices are working well!