Warming Up Without Resources

There are some situations were printing, preparing, and reading through warmups is just not feasible. I have listed here some things I've done to great success to address the following fundamentals with your bands. All you will need is a way to keep time (Metronome, two drum sticks, particularly calloused hands to clap with...).

I. TONE: 4-8-12-16

Working on Tone is the NUMBER one thing I focus on with bands. If we don't have a beautiful sound, nothing we do will sound beautiful. Here is a very simple Tone exercise to have students focus their embouchures, their air, and develop their sound.

On a Concert F (if brass are struggling on this partial, have them play a Concert C until they can build their embouchures up) have students play and sustain for 4 beats, 8 beats, 12 beats, and 16 beats. I typically break it down like this:

Flutes, Oboes, Bassoons, Clarinets, Trumpets, Altos, Trombones, Euphoniums, Tubas
 Sustain a Concert F

Tenors, Horns, (weaker brass)
 Sustain a Concert C (this puts Tenors and Horns on the same fingerings as Altos and other brass)

Mallet Percussion
 Mallets double stop F and C 4-8-12-16 quarter notes focusing on even mallet heights and consistent volume. 

Snare Drum/Stick Percussion
 I dictate various sticking patterns: Alternating Right lead, Alternating Left lead, Double Right lead, Double Left lead, Four of a kind Right lead, Four of a kind Left lead, Paradiddle Right lead, Paradiddle Left lead, Double Sticking, etc... sometimes with buzzes or flams as necessary in quarter notes 4-8-12-16

Have students hold instruments at a playing position before starting, count/click/metronome 4 and have students breathe 1 or 2 beats before starting. Sustain for 4 beats. Rest 4. Sustain for 8 beats. Rest 4. Sustain for 12 beats. Rest 4. Sustain for 12 beats. Freeze for 2 beats. 

The additional stillness will help with attacks and releases. This exercise can help students focus on sarting their notes with appropriate tonguing, release with a round sound, and practice visual silence for a more professional look and sound. This exercise can eventually include listening to players around and listening down to larger instruments to practice Blend and Balance, too.

II. TIMING: The Big 8

Even if we have a beautiful sound, notes at the wrong time are wrong notes. Building a flexible vocabulary of sound and silence can make reading rhythms - 90% of our errors - much more accessible. There are 8 essential rhythmic patterns in groupings of 4. The numbers can represent any relative values (Quarter, Half, Whole; Eighth, Quarter, Half; Sixteenth, Eighth, Quarter; etc.)

1 1 1 1 2 - 2 -

1 1 2 - 3 - - 1

1 2 - 1 1 3 - -

2 - 1 1 4 - - -

Simply having students play these values (often using the same pitch as the 4-8-12-16) can help alleviate rhythmic vocabulary issues. You can say "2 Quarters and a Half" or "4 Ones" or whatever method of counting your prefer, have the students count it back to you, speak it on your preferred articulation, and then play it. You can also switch any value for its corresponding rest. This is a great way to introduce Eight - Quarter - Eighth syncopation by starting with 1 2 - 1 in Quarter and Half and then doubling the speed. 

This exercise also helps reinforce and prepare for the next, articulation. You can have percussion roll on notes longer than 1 or focus on clarity and precision of timing alone.

III. Tonguing: Not Baby Owls

Activating and using appropriate tonguing can be a challenge for young musicians, regardless of age group, I've used the following to great.

Using Concert pitch reference, Solfege, or demonstrating on your own instrument, ask students to play the following in Quarter - Quarter - Staccato Quarter (just play it short):

Do - Re - Fa

Take time to ensure students get the right pitches. I typically use Concert Bb to start and will move keys into the music we're studying with older students.

Allow tonguing mistakes to go as students grasp the pitches. Once students have the pitches solid, demonstrate the following:

Do - Re - Fa - Fa - Fa- Fa- Fa- Fa- Fa
To the rhythm of "Baby Shark"

Students will most likely recognize the song immediately. Ask them to demonstrate. Here I address tonguing issues. I ask the students to sing the lyrics "Ba-by Shark, Do-Do-Do-Do-Do-Do". We will do this once or twice. I then ask them to sing the whole song on "Do" alone. I then ask them to whisper "Do" for what we've played so far. I tell them "This is how we tongue" and we play it again. 

Most importantly, I take a moment to have them do it INCORRECTLY by asking them to sing "Ba-by Owl, Who-Who-Who-Who-Who-Who" and remind them constantly that we do not want owls in our band.

The pattern repeats for the whole song by playing the primary melody 3 times and ending with:

Fa-Fa-Mi

Once this is learned, return to it often to review tonguing. You can add a technical responsibility by changing keys as it's a great finger pattern to learn, too.

I typically have all percussion try to be on mallets for this, but will allow additional percussion instruments to match the rhythm.

IV. TUNING - No Derpy Dolphins

Intonation is a skill that has to be developed and maintained constantly with young musicians. I start by demonstrating Out-of-Tune first.

Have 2 clarinet players or 2 trumpet players play the same pitch (I tend to use Concert F). 

Before they play, shift the barrel/tuning slide of one player significantly out and make sure the other is entirely pushed in. While they play their note, ask students to listen to the crazy vibration. These waves are Out-of-Tune; what I call "Derpy Dolphins leaping out of the water and bumping into each other". 

We want to get the dolphins leaping out of the water in sync, same height, same speed, same time.

Correct the barrels/slides of your players and have them play again. 

The immediate difference I explain as closer to "In-Tune". Explain to the students that our goal is to keep the sound waves under control, keep the Dolphins from Derping out.

I will take time to go section-by-section on a note that is ideal and have them attempt to make small changes, or sometimes I will have them play against a drone if its available. What's most important is that students have an understanding of what not to sound like and what to sound like. Over time, I begin teaching how to make small changes to adjust, but it takes consistent experience before students can do this on their own. 

V. Technique - Play by Numbers

Regardless of the amount of notes a band knows, this exercise can be used. If a band can play several scales, it can be expanded. If a band can only play 7 notes, it can be a valuable tool to fighting finger discomfort.

Here's how I've done it with a band that can play Low Ti (concert A) to La (concert G).

Once students know the numbers I'll be using, we go through in half notes, resting where and if necessary.

After students have confidence I will call "1-1-2" in Quarter Quarter Half pattern, students play back. I begin building patterns as follow:

... and continue through familiar patterns. Rhythms are dictated by the strength of the band, most of it will be in quarter notes or perhaps slow eighths. The goal is to get tongues and fingers to align. 

I will often have students sing the pattern back while fingering. If students are grasping the concept quickly, we will sing on articulation syllables and play with slurs through out as dictated by how we sing it.