In order to warm up your voice, there are several exercises you can carry out. While there is no one right way to warm up your voice, there are numerous common exercises that most singers and performers can rely on to ensure that they are completely ready before belting out that tune. Here are a few of them:
1. Lip Trills
Lip trills are a fantastic exercise that helps you warm up your lips, tongue and also the muscles surrounding your vocal folds. To begin, simply close your mouth and vibrate your lips together in a consistent manner. Lip trills will make a humming sound, and while doing so, attempt to extend your range either higher or lower to expand the exercise’s benefits.
2. Humming
Humming is a similar exercise to lip trills BUT this time, instead of vibrating your lips, you will keep them closed, then toot and hum simultaneously. When humming, you should aim to keep the muscles in the back of your throat relaxed and not tense up any of the muscles in your face so that you can get the full advantages of the exercise.
3. Scales
Scales are one of the most standard warm-up exercises for a reason. They are simple yet unbelievably effective in helping you work on your vocal range. Utilizing piano scales as a guide, begin to sing ascending and descending patterns at a comfortable pace to warm up your voice. As you get used to this exercise, you can begin to up the ante and increase the pace of the scales, which should help to push your voice even further.
4. Breathing Exercises
Effective breathing is fundamental to singing beautifully and protecting your voice from injury. A great breathing exercise is extending your inhale period and exhale period, taking a couple of deep breaths, and then exhaling out forcefully to empty your lungs completely. The important thing is to control your breathing and inhale as deeply as possible before releasing all that air forcefully. After doing this a few times, your respiratory muscles should feel considerably looser and more relaxed.
5. Yawning
Yawning is an excellent exercise for your voice because of the spaciousness it creates in the back of your throat. To do this warming up exercise, simply yawn big and wide then make a sound that is slightly higher than your speaking voice. This exercise is perfect for helping you find your head voice range and can even help alleviate tension in your throat muscles.
In conclusion, warming up your voice is absolutely crucial if you want to give an outstanding performance. Keeping your voice in good health is vital to being an effective performer, so remember to dedicate some time to these exercises before taking to the stage. By practicing these exercises, your voice will be in the best possible condition it can be, leaving you to give your performance your all!