Marianne Thayer

Warm-Up Lesson Plan

Physical Stretching:
1. Head Rolls- slow head rolls in clockwise and counter-clockwise motions
o If tension is found, rest weight in that area for a few moments,
2. Shoulder Rolls-
o begin with isolated shoulder rolls (one side at a time), arms dropped to the side.
o After this, add mobility in the elbows by lifting bent arms parallel to the ground,
moving the elbows one by one in a circular fashion.
o Finally, full arm circles to get a deeper stretch in the shoulder area.
3. Energy Release- Gently shake out the arms and legs, and bounce lightly on the toes.
Breath:
1. Inhale through the nose-
o In four counts, deep inhale through the nose, then exhale through the mouth with an
“oo” mouth shape (Cold Air) for four beats. Crescendo with air on exhale. (x2)
o Same exercise with four beat pauses in between. Inhale through nose for four, hold
for four, exhale for four, hold for four. (x2)
o BIG SIGH
2. Lip Trills-
o Beginning on C3, ascending
o 1-5-1, sliding, not separated.
o Lots of air flow through the lips. More than you think you need.
Resonance:
1. Shoo-ee-oo-ee-oo-ee
o Beginning on C4, descending
o 5-4-3-2-1
o Bright, forward, nasal tonality- the “oo” syllable has a bit more of an “ew” sound
to it. Placement in the mask and sinuses, showing teeth throughout the exercise.
Legato.
2. Myap Myap-
o Beginning on A4, descending
o REALLY nasal tonality- very sinus-y.
o Short, controlled sound
Range:
1. Vi-Voh-Vi
o Beginning on B3, ascending
o 1-2-1 1/3-5/3-1 1/3/5/8/5/3/1
o Rich sound, hefty. Each note should have enough separation between it to
distinguish it from the rest of the warm up. Legato/staccato altering.
2. Thah-Thaw-
o Beginning on C3, Ascending
o 1 1-2-3 3-4-5-6-7-8-9 9-8-7 7-6-5-4-3-2-1
o Forward vowel for the “thah”, raised vowel for the “thaw”
Flexibility:
1. Foo-ee-
o Beginning on E5, descending
o 8 5 1-2-3-4-5-4-3-2-1
o Yawn-like first syllable “oo”, forward “ee”, placed in the mask