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Singing Tips
***Always use a singer’s posture, good low-breathing, and an energized body.
Useful Warm-ups
- Focus on a feeling of lightness and brightness in the head.
- Open the vocal tracts by yawns and high sighs.
- Begin steady hums while keeping some movement in the body-promote a flexible body.
- Make angry and funny faces, loosening the muscles of the face. (Don’t do this while driving in DallasJ).
Vowels and Consonants
- Vowels should be tall and round, dropping the jaw.
- Make sure consonants are heard, yet still appropriate for the dynamic and not unnaturally overdone.
- The final consonant goes on the next beat.
Flexibility of Tone
- Jump intervals with steady tone on each side of the jump (DRDMDFDS, etc.).
- Sing DRMFSFMRD on an “eee”. Start slowly, and then speed up. Always be accurate and fluid. Keep a flexible face, neck and body.
Energy
- Even the softest, slowest music needs energy to keep it alive. Consider the concept of “spinning the tone” and keeping the energy alive in every phrase.
Dynamics
- Practice pianissimo to develop intensity and control and to develop blend with the rest of the choir. When you have reached the desired texture (rich, full, not flabby) at pianissimo, and then gradually crescendo.
Text
- Mark points of emphasis or significance in the text.
- Sing an English text as if it were being spoken by a good reader/actor.
- Dwell on the more powerful words and pass over the weaker words.
- Relish and extend the softer, liquid consonants (l, ll, w, v, nd, mp, nt, etc.)
Communication/Expression
- It is the individual responsibility of each choir member to communicate using facial expressions.
- Eyes are most important.
Sight-reading
- Never quit, no matter what. Keep going.
- Work to be able to move your eyes up and down (between music and the director) while reading music.
- Sing loudly and confidently, then go back and add various dynamics as indicated.
- Use hand signs until music is learned well.
- Think intervals—distances between pitches. Keep rhythms accurate and the beat steady.
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