Book Reviews: Choral Warm-ups

Socks, coffee, and choir warm-ups: three things which, in my opinion, are too personal to let other people choose for you. My drawers at home can vouch for the first two, and choir warm-ups are something I would put in the same category. Years of choir-surfing have left me with a metaphorical drawer full of unwanted and unloved warm-ups which rarely ‘fit’ all groups.

Tina Reibl prefaces her collection with a wonderful quote from Bel Canto maestro Lamperti: ‘The fundamentals [of singing] are three: control of breath, trueness of tone and distinct, correct diction’. She then organises this compendium in three sections, noting that while there are plenty of books which cover tone production, resources for breath control and diction are more scarce. Reibl has obviously given considerable thought not only to the exercises included, but also their target audience. Body warm-ups range from the child-friendly (‘Morning Ride’) to mindful (‘Qi Gong’), with something to cater for every need and group personality.

The Body Warm-Up section contains a plentiful selection of Brain Gym exercises. As a convert to Educational Kinesiology (as my college professor insisted on calling it!), I was excited to see a number of warm-ups which are new to me, together with familiar cross-lateral movements. For anyone new to this area, it is well worth exploring. It also makes a contemplative counterpart to the Clapping and Action Games section which follows.

The extensive collection of breathing exercises which make up section two continues this trend. Having been long accustomed to the familiar breathing out to a count, or to a long-held fricative, I was particularly impressed by the range and imagination of the ideas contained here. There is a useful balance of fast-twitch and slow-twitch exercises, separate to a comprehensive range of diaphragm exercises.

The final section maintains the same balance of audience appeal. Far from the usual collection of tongue twisters, there are a range of exercises exploring the links between dynamics and diction, breath and vocal production.

We are perhaps all guilty of getting stuck in a rut with warm-ups. Reibl provides a useful anthology of familiar and novel ways of working, and in doing so, challenges us to rethink the purpose of our warm-up sessions.