What’s your strategy when it comes to recorder playing? Do you arrive at your rehearsal with seconds to spare, throw together your music stand and just get on with it? Or maybe you arrive early and spend some time mentally and physically preparing for the music to come? I’m sure we’ve all employed both these strategies at times, but I think the whole concept of preparing and warming up is one we frequently should take more seriously.
Why warm up?
Picture for a moment the athletes we see competing at the Olympics. Do they pitch up at the stadium and immediately line up for the 100m sprint? Of course not! They know from years of training, that their bodies work better when they’ve warmed up. A warm up prepares you physically and mentally, and means you’re much less likely to injure yourself.
Now picture yourself when you’re practising at home, or during rehearsals. Do you consider yourself an athlete? No? You really should do! Like sportsmen and women we do the same repetitive task over and over again. Yes, we may often do this sitting down, but we’re still making heavy demands of our bodies over long periods of time.
There are different ways to warm up
Let’s look at the different types of warm up you might consider…
Physically preparing for work
Like an athlete, it’s a good idea to do some stretches, to prepare your muscles for the work ahead of them. These needn’t take a long while, but a few simple exercises before playing (and during breaks too if you wish) can be enormously beneficial. Warm muscles will be more relaxed and less prone to injury too. If there’s one thing that’ll stop you playing it’s pain from an injury or overworked muscles and joints. Anything you can do to prevent this is good.
When we’re young we feel invincible and take it for granted that our bodies will bounce back if we overwork or neglect them. As we age we recover less quickly and develop more aches and pains. This is something I’ve become more aware of myself in recent years, with more frequent pains in my hands. No doubt there’s a little arthritis in some of my finger joints (not uncommon in any joint you use repetitively for years) but I help mitigate that by using some simple exercises given to me by my physio. I now better understand how my hands and arms work together. Doing some stretches and a little self massage of the muscles in my forearms before and after playing make a huge difference to my comfort and recovery time.
These are two stretches I find particularly useful, which aren’t included in the other resources below:
The British Association for Performing Arts Medicine have created a handy sheet of warm ups for musicians, which I’ve shared before. It’s available to download in your Members’ Area or by clicking here.
If you prefer to see a real human being demonstrating exercises like these, so you can join in with them, I also recommend this video by Sarah Jeffery. Sarah’s amazing Team Recorder YouTube channel is an excellent resource and if you don’t already subscribe to it I recommend you go and explore her videos - they’re an absolute treasure trove!
Mental preparation
Don’t underestimate the benefit of thinking about your music before you begin. It’s easy to be impatient, leaping straight in to play. Instead, take time to look at your music and think it through first. Imagine how it’ll feel to play the long notes, with a relaxed, open sound. Then mentally play through the fast passages, focusing on the speed you’ll play and how you can make it easier by keeping fingers and tongue relaxed. A few moments of preparation will immediately give you a better chance of playing the music well.
Breathe well
Before you play, take a few moments to concentrate on your breathing.
We take breathing for granted as it happens instinctively, but playing the recorder makes greater demands than everyday life. Air is the life blood of our tone – without a well controlled breathing technique we compromise the quality of our sound.
Take a few moments to close your eyes and breathe in deeply. Not a quick gulp, but a leisurely, relaxed inhalation where you can really feel your stomach and ribcage expanding to accommodate the incoming air. Breathe in and out in this relaxed way for a minute or so. Then repeat again with pursed lips so you have some resistance to exhale against. This more closely replicates the resistance you feel from your recorder’s windway. As you do this, count slowly to four on each inhalation and exhalation to help you control your speed. This simple exercise will make you more aware of how you breathe. As this technique becomes instinctive it’ll help you develop your tone. There’s lots more information about breathing well in my blog post about developing your tone.
Now pick up a recorder and play some long notes, breathing in the same way. Focus on making a full, well supported tone, keeping the same quality of sound throughout the entire length of the note. Try playing your long notes with a metronome set to 60 and keep a record of how many beats you can maintain that beautiful tone in different parts of the instrument. With regular practice you’ll gradually be able to extend your long notes as you gain better control of your lungs and diaphragm.
Another useful exercise is to play slow scales to help you develop your tone and breathing throughout the recorder’s range. Once again, set your metronome to 60 and play four beats on every note, focusing on breathing and tone. Speed is not required here, so the metronome will help you control things, especially if you’re naturally one of those people who’s prone to rushing! Most importantly, breathe as often as you need to rather than compromising your tone by running out of air.
Sit well
We spend a lot of time seated when we play so it’s important to cultivate a good posture. Adopting a balanced posture will help you play better and combat tension. Remember, tension has a habit of spreading. If your back is uncomfortable you’ll gradually find your shoulders tense up and before you know it your tone becomes tight and thin.
While you’re doing your breathing warm up, take the time to find a really good seated position. I’ve written about the art of finding the ideal playing posture in more detail here.
Warm up your fingers
As with other warm ups, begin slowly, focusing on the quality of your finger movements. Working in front of a mirror is really helpful because you can objectively check if your fingers are working well.
Start with pairs of notes, maybe using your metronome set to 60 to control your speed. Really watch what your fingers are doing. Their movements should be small – no flapping! No matter how slow the music, fingers should always move quickly to create clean transitions. Aim to remain as relaxed as possible and use your mirror to check that when you’re moving several fingers at once, they move exactly together.
Now try this exercise, working your way up gradually from the bottom of your instrument. Don’t be afraid to use your metronome to regulate your tempo if that helps. Begin with an easy key, but perhaps also try it with a scale with three sharps or flats. The keys of E flat and A major require more cross fingerings (B flat and G sharp for instance) and this’ll help you improve the clarity of your finger movements when you’re moving several of them at the same time.
Warming up for speed
Once you’ve got your fingers moving efficiently at slow speeds, it’s time to get them moving more quickly. The following exercise will work your right and left hand fingers, with small groups of notes to keep things simple. Begin at a speed where you can maintain complete control and evenness while slurring and then gradually increase your tempo. Again, a metronome can be a really powerful tool here.
You can use a similar pattern to cover an entire scale, gradually working your way upwards or downwards. Start slowly and steadily increase your speed, always keeping the finger movements even and efficient.
Awaken your tongue!
Articulation is the voice of our instrument, creating light and shade in our playing. The tongue is a muscle too, so it also needs warming up! Begin smoothly with some of your scale patterns, making a full tone and using a gentle ‘doo’ tonguing to create a connected line of notes.
Now try the same thing with staccato notes. Listen critically to the shortness of your notes. Are they truly detached (but not accented!) and all exactly the same length? Remember, your tongue must remain as relaxed for staccato as for legato articulation – don’t let it become like a pile driver!
Finally, mix things up and combine legato and staccato. Here are some patterns you could try using the same five note pattern:
Do remember, all the warm ups I’ve shared here are just ideas to get you started. Don’t be afraid to make up your own warm ups, especially for fingers and tongue – be creative and have fun!
Five quick tips
Begin gently. Don’t leap in to practise your most challenging piece of music first. Instead, begin with something simple which allows you spare mental capacity to focus on awareness of your body and the basics of technique.
Be in harmony with your instrument. Use a thumb rest or sling (especially with larger recorders) to provide support or your instrument and reduce strain on your body. Set yourself up with a good posture and then make the recorder come to you, rather than the opposite, and you’ll remain relaxed for longer.
Don’t underestimate the stresses travel puts on your body. Sitting in the car in one position for a long while, hands gripping the steering wheel, can create tension in your arms and fingers. If you travel by train or bus you may be limited in how much you can move about and relax, and you may be carrying heavy bags and instrument cases. Be sure to stretch and relax after you’ve finished travelling and before you begin playing.
Don’t arrive at the last minute in a panic! Instead, aim to get to your rehearsal venue early so you can spend a few minutes breathing deeply and doing some stretches. You’ll feel the benefit in terms of relaxation and concentration levels. You could do these warm ups together as a group.
Listen to your body and never ignore pain. Discomfort and pain is your body’s way of telling you something is wrong. Rather than playing through the pain, stop for a few minutes. Take a stroll, gently stretch the muscles and regain your focus and relaxation. If the pain persists don’t be afraid to seek advice from a doctor or physiotherapist. I’ve built up a good relationship with a local physiotherapist over the years who’s helped me understand my body better. The knowledge I’ve gained helps me avoid injuries by using my muscles more effectively. If and when things do go wrong I seek help swiftly and one treatment usually sorts me out again!
Do you need to do everything?
After reading all of this you’re probably thinking, '“How am I going to fit in my practice when I need to do all these warm ups?!”
All of the ideas I’ve shared here are intended as a basis for healthy practising and rehearsal. You don’t need to do all of them every time you play - after all, there are only so many hours in a day! I would always recommend doing a few minutes of stretches before you play, simply to warm up your muscles for the work ahead. Beyond that, you can tailor the rest to the work you plan to do in that particular session.
Playing a slow melody? Then focus your warming up on efficient breathing and beautiful tone production. Likewise, if you’re embarking on a whizzy piece of Vivaldi, some finger warm ups might be more appropriate. Be selective and do what works for you, and don’t be afraid to change things up from time to time. Boredom can be the enemy of learning, especially if you end up doing things by rote and not really paying attention to your actions. A change of routine every now and then is always a good thing, if only to keep you concentrating!
Do you have some favourite warm ups?
We all develop our own strategies over the years and I’d love to hear what sort of things you do to prepare for playing. Please do share a comment below so we can pool our ideas and create a killer warm up routine!