| Warming up and cooling down before and after | | | | |
| singing is crucial in preserving a healthy | | | | All well trained singers develop their own |
| singing voice. If you don't warm up and cool | | | | distinctive warming up routines best suited |
| down your voice, you risk damaging your vocal | | | | to their own personal requirements. The |
| cords and sometimes permanently so. | | | | routines may vary with changes in physical, |
| | | | mental and also emotional state. |
| All athletes know that an effective warm up | | | | |
| is essential for optimal athletic | | | | Most good singers begin by warming up their |
| performance. But you say, singers are not | | | | body first with light physical exercises. |
| athletes, so why should singers warm up their | | | | This is done to reduce the muscular tension |
| singing voices? | | | | so that the singing voice will not sound |
| | | | strained or tensed. Furthermore, light |
| Singers who are dinner guests are often asked | | | | exercises helps to stimulate deep breathing |
| to perform impromptu entertainment by their | | | | which is essential for good voice support. |
| host after the dinner to entertain other | | | | |
| guests. The wise singer will politely decline | | | | It is vital to start vocalizing in your |
| the request rather than singing raw which is | | | | comfortable vocal range so as not to strain |
| further complicated by a bloated tummy. | | | | your vocal cords when it is cold. You can |
| | | | then gradually move on to the higher and |
| A proper warming up before a singing | | | | lower extreme notes. Some recent |
| performance lets the singer to get in touch | | | | biomechanical research have shown that |
| with the singer's inner self physically and | | | | singing at the extremity of both the higher |
| psychologically since self awareness is the | | | | and lower notes of the vocal range can strain |
| foundation of good vocal techniques. | | | | the laryngeal muscles, and can result harmful |
| | | | patterns of muscle tension. It goes on to say |
| All good singers know that there is a | | | | that thus it is good common sense to avoid |
| co-ordination of many muscles parts and | | | | the extreme pitches whether they are high or |
| therefore warming up before singing should be | | | | low notes until your voice is warmed up |
| an unhurried and a leisurely self-exploration | | | | appropriately. Most singer's warm up is |
| that allows enough time for the loosening and | | | | devoted to the goals of obtaining a beautiful |
| coordination of the muscles that assist voice | | | | voice timbre through the use of various vocal |
| production. Warming up your voice should be | | | | exercises. |
| an enjoyable experience because as you warm | | | | |
| up, your voice begins to sound better, | | | | After a singing session, the singer should |
| effortless and a sense singing freely is | | | | cool down the voice with exercises that |
| felt. | | | | soothe the vocal cords such as soft |
| | | | descending scales on the "oo" or the "ee" |
| Unfortunately, most of the time, the singer | | | | vowel. If the singer does not cool down after |
| is warming up while rushing to a rehearsal or | | | | a sing session, the vocal tension will stay |
| as a last minute preparation before taking | | | | and the vocal cords remain tensed and this |
| the stage. The pressure of a hurried warming | | | | will lead to further voice complications. So, |
| up may cause physical and mental tension and | | | | to maintain and preserve a healthy singing |
| as such, the warming up may prove to be | | | | voice, adequate warm up and cool down is a |
| ineffective or worse, counter-productive. | | | | must in any singer's inventory. |