Choir Warmups #2: Vocal Warm Ups for Choir (Posture Alignment)

In this blog post, I am going to teach you one of my top Choir Warm Ups.

This is called Posture Alignment and it is essential to helping your choir sound their best...

This choir warm up will help your choir:

1) Stretch out their back

2) Reduce the tension that comes from poor alignment and posture

3) Focus their mind so they are ready to pay attention

4) Find a good 'balance point' where they can stand and rest on their skeletal structure

Before I started doing this warmup with my choir, I found that they were:

1) Physically Tense (held tension)

2) Leaning to far forward, back or resting their weight on one leg too much

3) Looking a little droopy, like they had poor posture

That's why I started to use the Posture Alignment!

The foundations of this warm up is the Alexander Technique. We start to notice how our body is aligned vertically in the most natural way.  It's not that you have to straighten your spine (That's terrible!).  It's that the points of your skeletal structure are aligned vertically in the way that they were supposed to.

To do this warm up with your choir is very simple.  All you have to do is:

1) Watch the following video

2) Download the Essential Choir Warm Ups cheat sheet

3) Try this warmup with your choir the next time you see them!

4) Observe the results.  You will notice an immediate positive difference if you do it right.  Notice how your choir might look better - they are using better posture and it makes them look more confident (not that this is the goal, but it's a nice outcome).  If it didn't work the first time, check to see how you delivered the instructions and try it again.  These warmups are basically guaranteed to work!

Click below to watch the video: 

Here's a link to the video: https://youtu.be/dGjN4KD_3wQ

Ok, great job!

Now you have a great warmup to try with your choir!

The next step is to get my Essential Choir Warm Ups cheat sheet so you can keep track of the warmups we learn.

Here's a link to the playlist where I demonstrate all of the warmups I use with my choirs.  I will be posting a new choir warmup each week for at least 10 weeks!

I hope this warm up helps your choir and please comment below if it has been helpful!

Happy Singing!

Dr. Mike