I sent this the first time without the latest response. Here is an
amended version. Thanks! ~Christina

Thanks to all who sent ideas.

Original post:

Hi Listers,

I've been reading through the archives and haven't found anything
specific to what I want to find so far, so thought I'd ask my
question then compile the answers I get.

The community choir I co-direct has a very wide range of ages in it--
from tiny tykes up to a retiree. This past fall, the other directors
and I worked hard on improving the sound of the choir and
successfully introducing singing in parts. We had amazing results
for our winter concert, but have lost a contingency of our smallest
members to the hallway outside the rehearsal room, as they were
bored. What we are planning to do to try to engage these youngest
kids is to make the warm-ups and first fifteen minutes of the hour-
long rehearsal more fun. After that, if they end up outside the
room, so be it, but we want to try to include them again. We have
lots of music game ideas, but I am hoping you will be able to provide
me with some unusual or kid-friendly warm-ups with which to begin our
rehearsals.

Thanks much,
Christina Kennedy
fiddler42ATcomcastDOTnet
The All Together Now Family Chorus
Littleton, MA USA

Responses:

Try the following:

Many mumbling mice, making mighty music in the moonlight, mighty nice!
C C C C C C C C C C C C C C C GF ED C


The pitches are shown below...feel free to start on a higher key. You
can proceed up or down as you wish, but speed up slightly with each new
key. At the end, go as fast as you can, and still make the words
understandable! The adults will laugh as much as the kids!

Good luck!

Mark Downey

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Try singing "den-tal floss is ve-ry good for teeth" while moving up
and down from do to sol to do.

Create silly word combinations to use while doing triads or single
note warmups, like "double bubble gum" or "quadruple double bubble
gum," etc.

Have them THINK the pitches of a triad, then have them sing every
other note.

Have each section solfege the scale, starting at different times,
then on the descent have your sop/top voices stay on the tonic, and
the others stop at the 6th, 4th, and 2nd respectively, not resolving
the chord until cued by you.

Basically do anything to catch their attention while still teaching
good vocal technique.


David Springstead
Contemporary Worship Leader
Community UMC
Virginia Beach, VA
Tevye1955AThotmailDOTcom

"He who is willing to sacrifice liberty for a little temporary
safety, deserves neither liberty, nor safety." - Benjamin Franklin

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Two books:
The Complete Choral Warm-up Book by Russell Robinson
The Choral Warm-up Collection-Sally Albrecht

Both have some fun warm-ups and offer advice on overall vocal
training. I would
suggestion a lot of movement for the kids. Possibly, provide a big
space for
them
to move about, and give them something specfic to do....move waving
their arms,
crawl, jump, walk and then on cadences have them make a pose. Find
simple things
for them to do that are related to the music, tossing ball (gently) to a
partner,
clapping games, folk dances and even drawing. They will pop in and
out, and
sometimes with younger children the more the hear it the better!

Hope this helps,

Allyn Phelps

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Rounds can teach technique, develop part singing and be tons of fun!
Mike Wade

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Start by having everyone hiss for 16 seconds. You count down from 16
to one - but instead of saying "one" you say "How many made it [raise
your hand]? Great! Can you do it from 20? Remember: relax, take a
deep breath, and save your air at the beginning - start quietly!"
Then give them a chance to take a deep breath, start, and count down
from 20 to four, then say "louder, louder, louder" for the last three
seconds. Go immediately into the next exercise: Soo-soh-sah-seh-see
on do-mi-so-mi-do, moving up by half-steps.

Sing the alphabet quickly, using a 5-note scale up and down three
times, ending do - si - do on x - y- z. Start slowly and at a low
pitch (the goal is tongue quickness and distinct consonants, not
range extension). Sing in the front half-inch of the face (use the
tip of the tongue, not the middle).

Sing to the enunciators: "Lips, Teeth, Tip-of-the-tongue" so - la -
fa-fa-fa-fa, fa - so - mi-mi-mi-mi, mi - fa - re-re-re-re, re - mi -
do-do-do-do.

Do about four exercises that are exciting like these at the beginning
to establish your command, then do a couple "boring" ones - which are
probably for intonation, so don't go very long on them. Also, do not
pause even for a second between exercises. Give the instructions
immediately, practice it once, let them get a good breath, and go!

Good luck!

-john hoffacker
Music Director, Church of the Epiphany, Plymouth MN

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Try:

1. Controlled body movement with pulse including: breaths over a
number of counts, with hand/arm movements which facilitate breath.
"Swinging" from the middle, like a bell.

2. "Many mumbling mice, making midnight music in the moonlight:
mighty nice." Kids like this, and is triadic.
Vary mode major/minor.
Emphasize the voiced quality of the /m/.
Pitch: 1,1,1,1,1 - / 5,5,5,5,5,5,5,5,5,5- / 5,3,1 //
Rhythm: 4/4: eeeeh / sssssssseq. / qqh // [add precise rests for
breath]

Numbers = scale degrees
Letters: q = quarter note, e = 8th, s = 16th, dot = augmentation
dot, / = barline.

3. "r,p,t,k" and "r, b, d, g"

Practice articulating this consonants in any practical rhythm: (roll
r vigorously)
Emphasize the differences and similarities between the voiced and
unvoiced versions of the same articulation.
Emphasize the silly fun part with them, but also let everyone know
the practical application with diction.

Paul Meers