2017-8-17 Vocal Warm Up Exercises - NYEE

ContactUs/Careers/PlanYourVisit/PayYourBill/Giving/IcahnSchoolofMedicine/MountSinaiHealthSystem

Search
FindaDoctor AboutUs PatientCare HealthProfessionals Education Research

Home>VoiceandSwallowingCenter>VoiceTherapy>VocalWarmUps

VoiceandSwallowingCenter VocalWarmUps ContactUs

AbouttheCenter
DisordersthatCauseVoice
Problems
SpecialTopicsinVoiceDisorders
GrabscheidVoiceand
Warmingupthevoiceisimportantandhelpfulforprofessionalvoiceusers
SwallowingCenterofMount
(singers,actors,andbroadcastpersonalities),foroccupationalvoiceusers
Sinai
(teachers,salespeople,forexample),forthosewithinjuredvoices,andfor
anyonewhoispreparingtogiveapresentationorwantstomakeagood Tel:2122419425

SwallowingDisorders(Dysphagia) impressionwiththeirvoice.Allowapproximately20minutestoperforma
completewarmup.Ideally,thesewarmupsshouldbeperformedleisurely,but Address
NeurologicalVoiceDisorders withgoodmentalfocusandattentiontodetail.Makesureyouarewell NewYorkEyeandEarInfirmaryof
Program MountSinai
hydrateddrinklotsofwaterbeforeandduringyourwarmupexercises.Pay
VoiceTherapy attentiontoyourposturewhileyoudotheseexercises.Good(butrelaxed) 310East14thStreet
VoiceTherapyFAQs postureisimportantforfullandeasyrangeofmotionofthemusclesandfull NorthBuilding,6thFloor
breathsupport. NewYork,NY10003
VoiceTherapyTechniques

VoiceTherapyGoals
Whatisthepurposeofvocalwarmups?
Address
VocalSelfAwareness Therearemanybeliefsandaccepted"truth'aboutvocalwarmups,butvery
TheMountSinaiHospital
littlescientificdatatosupportorrefutethesebeliefs.Whatwe"know"about
VocalWarmUps 5East98thStreet,8thFloor
vocalwarmupsisreallybaseduponcollectivepersonalexperienceofmany
NewYork,NY10029
VocalHygiene singers,singingteachers,voicetherapists,voicescientists,athletes,athletic
coaches,sportsphysiologists,andstudents.Warmingupthebodyisusedin
VoicePresentationSkills
athleticsaswellasartisticperformances.Somewhatsurprisingly,thereisnota
Address
IndividualsatRiskforVoice lotofresearchinsportsphysiologytodescribetheeffectsofwarmups.The
Disorders MountSinaiBethIsrael
voiceproductionsystemhassomeuniquecharacteristicsthatmakeit
10UnionSquareE,Ste4J
RehabilitationafterHeadandNeck somewhatdifficulttotransferconclusionsfromstudiesinotherpartsofthe
NewYork,NY10003
Cancer bodytothelarynx.

WhatisaVoiceDisorder?
VocalExercisesandTips
Doctors
Thewarmupsmayincreasebloodflowtomusclesandothertissues,thinout
thicksecretions,anddecreaseuseofexcessivemusculartension,butof Address
coursewearenotpositive.Perhapstherearecertainpatternsofcoordinated ColumbusCirclePractice
motoractivitythataremostoptimalforperformingaspecificvocaltask,and 200West57thStreet,Suite1410
perhapsthevocalwarmupsallowusto"access"thosepatterns.Andagain, NewYork,NY10019
wearenotcertain.Soweareleft,atthemoment,withcarefullyconsidering
hypothesesandsubjectiveexperience.Withthatcaution,webelievethatwarm Viewalllocations
upsimprovetheperformanceoftheindividualmusclesofthethorax(chest),
larynxanduppervocaltract(throat,mouth),aswellasthecoordination
betweenthesubsystemsofvoiceproduction,namelythelungs,larynx,and FindaDoctor
upperairwayarticulators.Everywarmuproutinecontainsanumberof
differentexercisestofocusupondifferentmusclesanddifferentmovements. bySpecialty byName
Warmupsarehypothesizedtoimproveperformanceandtocontributetothe
preventionofinjury. First Name
Isitharmfultowarmupfortoolong? Last Name
Itisprobablymoreimportanttoknowwhysomeoneiswarmingupforlonger Find A Doctor
thanusual,ratherthantheactuallyeffectsofalengthywarmup.Therearetwo
warningsignsrelatedtowarmupsthatmayindicateavoiceproblem: RequestaReferral

Needingprogressivelylonger,moreextensivevocalwarmupperiods
inordertoachieveaclearvoice

Decreasingthedurationofthevocalwarmuproutineinorderto
"preserve"thevoicefearingthatafullvocalwarmupwilltirethe
voice.

Ifyouareexperiencingeitherofthesephenomenafrequentlyandyoudon't
haveacoldortheflu,youmaybeintheearlystagesofavoiceproblem.We
suggestthatyouscheduleavisittotheVoiceandSwallowingInstitutefor
evaluation.

Afewnotesaboutvocalwarmupsforperformers

Someartistsfindithelpfultoperformgentlewarmupseachmorning,in
additiontofullwarmupsbeforealesson,rehearsalorperformance.Thisis
especiallyimportantifyouareexperiencingvocalproblemsduetorefluxor
vocalfatigue.Someartistsperformtheseexercisesinasteamybathroomto
takeadvantageofthewarmmoisture.Manyartistsfindthatpracticingvocal
warmupsalsoprovidesamentalwarmup,increasingawarenessof
kinestheticfeedback.Don'tconfusevocalwarmupswithvocalizes.Performing
vocalizesistheprocessofacquiringaspecificvocalskill(orsetofvocalskills)
suchasarticulatoryprecision,smoothnessofregistertransition,vowel

http://www.nyee.edu/patient-care/otolaryngology/voice-swallowing/therapy/vocal-warm-ups 1/5
2017-8-17 Vocal Warm Up Exercises - NYEE
balancing,singingwideintervals,increasingaccuracyofvocalonsetwith
maintenanceoftone,andcorrectingtechnicalfaults.Vocalizesshouldbe
practicedafterthevoiceiswarmedup.Eachartistwilldevelophisorherown
routineofwarmups,whichmaybevarieddependinguponthenatureofthe
role.Ifyouareaperformercurrentlystudyingvocaltechnique,itislikelythat
yourteacherhashisorherownopinionsaboutpreferredwarmups.Some
advisestartingfairlylowinthepitchrangeandextendingupward,movingfrom
limitedrangeexercisestowiderranges.Otherteacherspreferstartingatthe
higherendoftherangeandmovingdownwardtoavoidcarryingthechest
voiceuptohighbeforebecomingfullywarmedup.Someteachersprefer
exercisesthatdonotexceedafifth,othersfavoranoctaveoratwelfth.These
areissuestodiscusswithyourteacherandexplorewithyourownvoice!

AwordaboutVocalWarmDowns

Manyprofessionalvoiceusersroutinelyusevocalwarmdownsafter
rehearsalsandperformances.Thoughnotascommonlyusedaswarmups,
someperformersfindithelpfultoperformashortroutineofgentlevocalizing,
suchasrelaxedhumming,massageoftheneck,throat,andlowerface,easily
"cooing"the/u/vowel(asincoo).Itmaybethatwarmdownshelprelease
someofexcessivemuscletensionthatmayaccumulateduringrehearsalor
performance,especiallyvocallydemandingroles.Someperformerswhosing
primarilyinaheavy"chest"register,or"belt",findthatitishelpfultowarm
downthevoicebysinginglightlyina"head"(falsetto)voice.Aswithwarmups,
thereisnoscientificdatatosupportorrefutetheutilityofwarmdowns.The
analogytoathletesisused,inwhichmusclecrampingandstraincanoccur
afterdemandingactivitiesifthemusclesarenotstretchedinacooldown
routine.While"cramping"ofthelaryngealandoralmuscleshasrarelybeen
observedinhealthyindividuals,certainlyitmaybehelpfulforperformersto
disengagefromdemandingvocalperformancesbyperformingwarmdown
exercises.

Anoteforindividualswithinjuredvoices

Ifyouhaveavoicedisorder,vocalwarmupsmaybeanimportantpartofyour
voicetherapyprogram.Althoughwehavenoproofthatvocalwarmupsare
helpfulincasesofvocalfoldandvoicedisorders,wethinkthat,inadditionto
thebenefitsexplainedabove,theymayhelpinotherwaystoo,byrefocusing
thepatientonhealthyvoiceusepatterns,andrelaxingthemusclestoprevent
useofexcessivemusclecontractionDiscusswarmupswithyourvoicecare
teambeforeinitiatingaregularwarmupprogram.

WholeBodyWarmUps

Professionalvoiceuserssingers,actors,radiopersonalities,andother
performershaveknownforalongtimethatahealthyandbeautifulvoice
requiresexcellentwholebodypositioning.Goodpostureisanimportant
component,butproperalignmentandbalanced,smoothmovementarealso
essentialforgoodvocalperformance.Nobodystandsstillasastatuewhen
theyusetheirvoice,inroutineorinperformance.Fitnessworkouts,Hatha
yoga,AlexanderTechnique,Pilates,TaiChi,FeldenkraisMethodarejusta
fewofthemanydisciplinesthatcanbestudiedtoimprovewholebody
positioning.Fortheseriousvocalperformer,andforthevoicepatientworking
tohealandimprovethevoice,incorporatingwholebodywarmupsintothe
vocalwarmuproutinemaybehelpfultopreventanddecreaseexcessive
musculartensionandoptimizevocalquality.

Avoicespecialist*canhelpimproveyourwarmuproutine.He
orshecan:

1.Provideasuggestedoptimalorderofwarmups.Notallwarmup
exerciseshaveanequallevelofdifficultyofperformance.Itmaybebest
toproceedfromeasiertoharderexercises.

2.Provideabroadrangeofwarmups.Differentwarmupexercisesfocus
upondifferentcomponentsofthevoiceproductionsystem.Itmaybebest
toincorporateexercisesintoyourroutinethatfocusondifferentareasof
thevocaltractandvocaltechnique.

3.Tailorasetofroutinesforyourparticularneeds.Aswithanytypeof
exercise,youmaybenefitfromfocusinguponspecificareasofthevocal
tractorvocaltechniqueforyourpersonalneeds.

4.Providefeedbackondoingitcorrectly.Readingaboutexercisesand
doingthemcorrectlycanbetwoverydifferentthings!Asmalladjustment
invoiceorbodypositioncanmakeacriticaldifferenceinhowmuch
benefityoureceivefromaparticularwarmupexercise.Anddoingthem
wrongcansometimesbeharmfultoyourvoice.

*Voicespecialistcanrefertodifferentprofessionals,dependinguponyour
specificneeds.Theseincludethevoicetherapist(statelicensedspeech
languagepathologistwithexpertiseinvoicetherapy),singingteacher,choir
director,orvoicecoach.

http://www.nyee.edu/patient-care/otolaryngology/voice-swallowing/therapy/vocal-warm-ups 2/5
2017-8-17 Vocal Warm Up Exercises - NYEE
Isthereoneidealsetofvocalwarmups?

thereisnosinglecorrectwaytospeakorsing.Sometimes,awarmuproutine
canbecometraditionalitisusedbysomanyvoiceprofessionalsthatit
becomesastandard.Ifitworks,great.Ifnot,don'tuseit.Novocalwarmup
routineissacred!Everyonehastheirfavoritesetofwarmupsandjustlikeany
exercise,there'sacertainamountofpersonalpreferencetodoingwarmups.

Somewarmupexercisesmayworkbetterforyouthanothers.Someofthe
warmupsrequiremorevocalskillandexperiencethanothers.Ingeneral,
warmupsprogressfromgentlesoundproductioninthemiddleofthepitchand
dynamicrange,andslowlyprogresstowardstheextremes.Aswithallskilled
routines,thesearebestlearnedundertheguidanceofateacher.Workingwith
ateacherorvoicetherapistprovidesthebestfeedbacktomakesureyouare
gettingthemostoutofthesewarmups.Therearemany(strong!)opinions
aboutwhichwarmupexercisesarebetterthanothers,andtheorderinwhich
theyshouldbeperformedanothergoodreasontoobtainguidancefroma
voiceprofessionaltodevelopone'sownpersonalizedsetofvocalwarmup
routines!Lookthroughthesewarmupexercises.Allarecommonroutinesthat
manypeopleuseinonevariationoranother.Exploresomeofthemandseeif
theyarerightforyou.Forallofthesewarmups,sitorstandinarelaxedand
balancedposition,moistenyourmouthandlipswithafewsipsofwaterand
inhaleslowlyonayawnorthroughdeepbutrelaxedinhalationthroughyour
nose.Keepyourshoulderslowandrelaxed.

YawnSigh

Inhaleslowlyonayawn.Feeltheairinthebackofyourthroat.Keep
yourjawhangingrelaxedandyourtonguerelaxedonthefloorof
yourmouth.Makesureyourshouldersarelowandrelaxed.

Exhaleslowly.Keepyourheadandshouldersstillbutrelaxed,not
stiff.

Repeattheinhaledyawnvocalizeasyouexhale.Repeatagain
andvarythepitchasyouvocalize.

Repeatagain,andcountfrom1to5asyouexhale,varyingthepitch
asyoucount.

UsingtheHMMMMMMM

Produceagentlehmmmmonanexhalationatapitchthatis
comfortablypositionedinthelowerrange.Repeatandchangethe
hmmtoahhhhalfwaythroughtheexhaledbreath.Trytochange
nothingbuttheopeningofthemouth.Maintainthesamefacialbuzz
withtheahhthatwasachievedwiththehmmm.

Experimentwiththepitch.Producewhilesweepingthepitchfrom
hightolowandthenlowtohigh.

StrawVocalizing

Afterinhalingslowlyonayawn,exhalebyblowingthroughastraw
gently

Repeattheinhaledyawn(notthroughthestraw!)andvocalizeas
youblowoutthroughthestraw.

Repeatagain,andvarythepitchasyouvocalizethroughthestraw.

WorkingtheBreathSupportSystemwithHUH!

Afteraslowdeepinhalation,expelsharplybycontractingthe
abdominalmuscleshardwithaloudHUH!Thelarynxandthroat
shouldstayrelaxedandopen.Thisisadifficultexerciseand
excellentfocusmustbemaintainedonseparatingthecontractionsof
theabdominalswiththemaintenanceofrelaxedupperairway

Asyouimproveyourabilitytoperformthiscorrectly,increasethe
speedandrepetitionsoftheexpelledHUH!

LipBuzzing

Putyoulipslooselytogetherandexhalebyvibratingyourlipslikea
motorboat.

Makesuretokeepyourtonguerelaxedasyouexhale.

Repeattheinhaledyawn,andvocalizeasyoutrillyourlips.

Repeatagain,andsweepupinpitchthenbackdown.Ifthisbegins
totickleyourlipsandnose,thenyouredoingitcorrectly.

LowFlowHAHAHA

Whilemonitoringyourposturetomaintaincorrectpositionandlow,
relaxedshoulder,inhaleslowlyanddeeply(butbecarefulNOTto

http://www.nyee.edu/patient-care/otolaryngology/voice-swallowing/therapy/vocal-warm-ups 3/5
2017-8-17 Vocal Warm Up Exercises - NYEE
lockyourshouldersatthetopoftheinhalation).

Ontheexhaledbreath,repeatHAHAHAslowly.Thereshouldbe
littleexpelledairwitheachHA.Placeyourpalminfrontofyourlips
tomonitortheairflow.Youshouldnotfeelmuchofabreeze!

Experimentwithvaryingthepitchasyourepeattheexercise.

TongueTrills

Lightlyplaceyourtonguetipbehindyourupperteethandexhale
whilevibratingyourtonguetipinatrill.

Repeattheinhaledyawn,andvocalizeasyoutrillyourtongue.

Repeatagain,andvarythepitchasyoutrill.

LooseningtheJaw

Monitoryourposturetomaintaineasybalanceandlow,relaxed
shoulders,readyforfulllungexpansion.

Placeyourpalmsonthesidesofyourfaceandslowlymassagethe
jawandcheekmuscleswithslowsmallcircularmotions.

Continuetomassageandnowlowerandraiseyourjaw.

Addsoundmamamamamammawithaverylightlipcontactfor
them.

Changetowawawawawawithverylightliproundforaslightly
distortedw.

TwoOctavePitchGlide

Inhaleslowlyonayawn.Keepyourshoulderslowandrelaxed.

Vocalizegentlyandmoderatelysoftlyusingtheeevowelfrom
moderatelyhighchestvoicetolowchestvoice,andthenfromhead
voicedownthroughchest.

Repeatafewtimesandthenreversedirection,goingfromchestto
head.

Repeatusingothervowels.

TheLessacCall

Keepingyourjawloose,callHello,payingattentiontothefeelof
thesoundinyourheadandface.Changethewordtomoreof
Hlloooooo.Placethebackofyourhandafewinchesfromyour
mouthtofeeltheairflow.Youshouldnotfeelmuchairflowingpast
yourhand.

Donottrytocontrolthepitch.Donotforcethebreathtocomeout.

Experimentwithchangingthepitchhigherorlowerasyourepeatthe
exercise.

Repeatusinghello,forme,today,bequiet,mynameis..

ArticulationFlexibilityandBuzz

RepeatMumulaMumulaMumulaMumulaMumulaMumulaMumula
Mumula

Focusuponthebuzzinthefrontoftheface.Asyourepeattheword,
changeyourfocusfirsttothefeelofyourlipstogether,thenaftera
fewrepetitions,focusuponyourtonguetouchingthefrontpalatefor
thelsound,thenafteranotherfewrepetitions,refocustotheeasy
jawopeningoftheendingahsound.

Keeptheairflowingeasyexperimentwithchangingthepitchhigher
orlowerasyourepeattheexercise

UsingTongueTwistersforArticulationFlexibility

Therearemanydifferenttonguetwistersthataregood(andfun)topractice.
Thegoalistoproducethesephraseswithoutextratensioninthearticulators
(tongue,lips,jaw)orthethroat.Allshouldbeproducedwithgoodpostureand
fullbreathsupport.Startslowly,butmakesureyouarenotusingexcessive
muscletension.Initially,donottrytocontrolyourpitch,butalsomakesureyou
donotgetlockedintoanarrowpitchrange.Asyouwarmup,experiment
withvaryingthepitch.Experimentwithdifferentfocuspointsconcentrating
forafewrepetitionsonthetongue,thenthelips,thenthemovementofthe
jaw.

PeterPiperpickedapeckofpickledpeppersUniqueNewYork
Thetipofthetongue,thelips,theteethReallyrural
Thebig,blackbackedbumblebeeRedletter,yellowletter
SallysellsseashellsbytheseashoreTeachingghoststosing

http://www.nyee.edu/patient-care/otolaryngology/voice-swallowing/therapy/vocal-warm-ups 4/5
2017-8-17 Vocal Warm Up Exercises - NYEE
ExtendingBreathSupportandControlwithacaveat!

Airflowmustbecontrolledwellbyusingtheinspiratoryandexpiratorymuscles
aswell
asthemusclesthatcontrolvalvingoftheairflowatthelevelofthevocalfolds.
Apopularexercisetoimprovethiscontrolisproductionofprogressivelylonger
phrasesononebreath.Whilethisisanexcellentwaytodevelopbreath
control,theexercisecaneasilybeperformedincorrectly,leadingtohabituation
ofimproperbreathmanagementtechnique.Acommonerrorinperforming
theseexercisesistolockthemusclesoftheabdomen,chestandthroatinan
efforttolimittheairflow.Whilethisstrategymayenablethespeakerto
increasethenumberofphrasesproducedononebreath,itwillmostcertainly
traintheuseofexcessivemusclecontractionandtensionthroughouttheentire
voiceproductionsystem.Theresultwillbeavoicewithpoorresonanceand
ultimately,vocalfatigueandimpairedvocalstaminaagoodreasontousea
singingteacher,voicecoachorvoicetherapisttohelpyoulearntoperform
vocalwarmupscorrectly!

NewYorkEyeandEarInfirmaryofMountSinai(NYEE) Awards IcahnSchoolofMedicineat

310East14thStreet,NewYork,NY10003 JointCommissionPublicNotice
MainNumber:2129794000 News
PhysicianReferralLine:2129794472 PatientPortal
HIPAAPrivacyPolicies
PrivacyPolicies
Terms&ConditionsofUse
InsuranceandPaymentInformation
StaffPortal
Vendors
2017IcahnSchoolofMedicineatMountSinai.Allrightsreserved.
MountSinai
MountSinaiHealthSystem
HospitalCampuses
MountSinaiBethIsrael
MountSinaiBrooklyn
TheMountSinaiHospital
MountSinaiQueens
MountSinaiSt.Luke's
MountSinaiWest(formerlyMount
SinaiRoosevelt)
NewYorkEyeandEarInfirmaryof
MountSinai

http://www.nyee.edu/patient-care/otolaryngology/voice-swallowing/therapy/vocal-warm-ups 5/5