When is a good time to get sick?

Being a freelance musician means you pretty much cannot get sick ever. However, when it does happen, results can be disastrous. The latest saga from the Met's run of Tristan und Isolde was met with sickness across the board, including a run off the stage by Isolde in order to alleviate an upset stomach. There was also the now somewhat infamous story of the lip-synced opera performance at the English National Opera.

For me, March was definitely out of the question - rehearsals everyday, concerts often, Holy Week and Easter Services. Yet everywhere I looked, people were coming down with the latest pre-spring cold and flu.

I watched as it moved down the line of basses and tenors in Pro Coro, stopping just short of me (good thing I was standing on the end for this concert). It also seemed every time I called home, someone in my family was sick (At least you can't catch a virus through the phone).

I got off pretty lucky this year in general, I did get the flu shot last October, which I think stayed off many of the viruses that were around the city this year, but this one laughed at the vaccine and landed me in bed for the past three days. However, in light of what I was doing this last month, and what is to come next month - there could not have been a better three days to be sick. It certainly would be so much easier if we could just "plan" our sick days.

"Oh sorry, I can't do that gig on the second weekend of April, 2011, I'll have the flu"

Wednesday Musings

The dust has settled now on Holy Week and Easter services, rehearsals and concerts.

Every year while I'm in the furry of rehearsals and such over the week before Easter, I always ask myself "WHY! am I doing this!", and every year after the week is over, and I've had ample time to rest, the answer is made clear. "I do it, because I love it!"

The services at the church were great - from waving palms on Palm Sunday, to washing feet on Maundy Thursday, solemn meditations on the cross on Good Friday, Bell ringing at the Easter Vigil to the myriads of Alleluias on Easter Sunday. The choir was in fine form all week, and showed up in great numbers (even on the nights when I offered them the night off!)

Pro Coro's concert featuring Rachmaninoff's "All Night Vigil" was a tremendous success. I have conducted the work once before, heard it both live and on recording many times, but this was my first crack at singing it, and it was an extremely powerful experience (Thanks Richard)!

We had a great amount of Ham, Scalloped Potatoes, and carrots on Sunday with my wife's family, followed by a good post dinner game. Monday brought with it a good rest, preparation for an evening audition (with whatever voice I had left), and nice afternoon walk in the spring sunshine.

There is a bit of a lull now in the schedule, preparing for a concert with Richard Eaton Singers, which includes "The Armed Man: a Mass for Peace" by Karl Jenkins, and a new powerful work "The Houses Stand not Far Apart" by local composer John Estacio on April 12th, and then two weeks of Adjudicating in Ottawa. Eagerly anticipating that when I return home to Edmonton, the snow will have vanished, and golf courses will opening!

Happy Easter!

(Click photo to enlarge)

This is a photo of a cake that my friends' parents picked up at Dairy Queen in Vancouver last year.

It's really hard not to laugh at it - although it seems so wrong.

Happy Birthday Rachmaninoff, sort of ...

Sergei Vasilievich Rachmaninoff was born on March 20th 1873 - well, according to the Julian Calendar - it's not actually until April 1st on the Gregorian Calendar, but I figured today would be a good day to celebrate his birthday nonetheless.

I only announce this for a selfish reason. Tomorrow night, Good Friday, I'll be performing with Pro Coro Canada with Rachmaninoff's All Night Vigil.

The concert is at the Winspear Centre for Music in Edmonton. Concert time is at 7:30 PM.

If you live in the Edmonton area, I highly recommend taking in this concert.

Tickets are available at the Winspear Centre Box Office.

Preserving the Boy Choir Tradition

When it comes to talking about the Cathedral Boys Choir tradition, I have to admit that I am completely, and unapologetically, biased.

A little background. A good majority of my early music education was due to my involvement with the Cathedral choir of Men and Boys at Christ Church Cathedral, Ottawa. I joined the choir when I was eight years old, went through the various ranks of junior and senior chorister, and was Head Chorister for approximately three years (my voice not changing until I was over sixteen). Then I continued to sing as a countertenor in the choir for the next ten years. I also took organ lessons from the choirmaster, became assistant organist before I was twenty, and learned a WHOLE LOT about church choral music and Anglican liturgy. Looking at what I am doing now, and what I know now - this early education was invaluable.

So when I came across an article in the British Times Online, by way of Choralnet titled "Girls allowed, as cathedral choirs broaden their base". My immediate reaction was one concern. It's not the first time I've seen articles like this, or posts on other blogs, the one that most upset me was a post from January 4th on Chorlista (you have to scroll a ways down to get to the paragraph where the guest author rants on "the boychoir issue"). I'm over it now, and I said what I needed to in the comments of that post, and was pleased to see a partial retraction by way of reply.

The Times article is great and worth the read, and the comments to the article are also wonderful. It does raise a few of the major reasons for which I see a need to preserve this tradition, too much to talk about in one blog post, so I will only touch on one issue, which to me is the most obvious reason to allow this tradition to be preserved.

... what is the real future for boys' singing when there is now so much competition? “Well, it's disappeared, hasn't it?” says Edward Higginbottom, the formidable director of music at New College, Oxford, where the all-male tradition goes back to the 14th century. “In parish churches these choirs have gone altogether.” His concern is not just the disappearing boy trebles, but that ex-choristers who would otherwise have joined choirs as men, in the bass, tenor or alto lines, will simply not have the experience or inclination to do so.

Higginbottom has hit the nail directly on the head here. The success story which I present in my doctoral thesis on the Men and Boys choir of the Cathedral in Ottawa is evident in the number of boys who continue to sing in choirs today.

In elementary school choirs, where mixing boys and girls is common practice, there is a sure but steady decrease in the number of male singers. In the high school choirs, they are as scarce as palm trees north of the 45th parallel. This then trickles down through adult community choirs which are constantly looking to bring up the number of the male singers, and the ones that do sing are often considered the weakest of the sections, many of whom took up singing later in their life, and struggle with reading and vocal production.

It is not an issue of "politically correct" or "equality". It is a physiological issue, and a sociological issue. Trying to "fix" the problem of a lack of girls in the Cathedral Boy Choir tradition will surely end with a loss of the boys in these choirs altogether. Boys need time together, the need the ability to express themselves in a segregated environment, or they will leave it.

I am a big advocate of segregation of boys and girls in the school choir system. It is of course just a dream of mine that this would be the way all elementary school choirs would begin, however I do acknowledge that it is most unlikely - especially with the gradual reduction of music in our classrooms as it is.

Speak out Against CBC Radio Two Programming Changes

For those of non-Canadian readership, a little background information. The CBC (Canadian Broadcasting Corporation) is our government owned and operated broadcasting service, operating a few national TV stations, and a national radio broadcasting station (knows as "Radio Two") and Local and Provincial radio, mostly talk and news, (known as "Radio One"). For years, Radio Two has been the only outlet for classical musicians of our country to be heard coast to coast. The setup was not too dissimilar to that of the internationally successful BBC in Great Brittan, or other large European radio stations. Certainly, it's the only broadcasting corporation of its kind in North America.

Over the past year, the CBC has altered their programming by cutting off all "Classical" music after 6:00 PM, they cut all news programs, including "The World at Six", the most comprehensive national news radio program in Canada, and "The Arts Report" which was one of the sole ways to hear about performers, concerts and anything music related from coast to coast. It was also announced yesterday that Rick Phillips, the host of "Sound Advice" the only national music recording critique show has resigned, and the show will stop at the end of this month.

By September of this year, CBC Two has announced a complete overhaul in its weekday daytime programming, and weekend morning programming. Including axing the highly popular morning show "Music and Company" and afternoon show "Disk Drive", relegating all their classical content to five hours in the mid-day portion, and only playing what they are describing as "popular and accessible classical music". Morning and late afternoon shows will only feature light jazz, popular music and other "easy listening" favourites. Nothing official has been announced about their popular weekend shows, "Saturday Afternoon at the Opera" or "Choral Concert" at this point, but one would think that it won't be far down on the list of shows to be axed.

To read the entire CBC article, from their own web page - click here.

Here are the highlights (or rather, lowlights) of the programing changes:

The plan for weekday programming on CBC Radio Two is:

• 6-10 a.m.: A music program dedicated to a range of genres, including classical, pop, jazz and roots music.
• 10 a.m.-3 p.m.: A classical program that will emphasize the most popular and accessible classical music, including Mozart, Beethoven and other favourites.
• 3-6 p.m.: A drive-home show focusing on vocal music, including many new artists.

The format for the morning program also will continue on weekend mornings, with a different host.

There is an article from Russell Smith of The Globe and Mail, which I will reprint below, however, before I do that, I do want to make this cry to all Classical Music bloggers, or lovers of the CBC and classical music in Canada:

• Please REPOST as much of this information as you can on your blog, or link them here - encouraging like minded folk to flood the CBC with comments, emails, and protest.
• visit the CBC's insider blog at http://www.insidethecbc.com and post a comment stating your opinion
• send a fax to CBC chief Hubert Lacroix at (514) 597-5439
• Email all the following people with your thoughts:
  
• Hubert Lacroix (CBC chief)
• Jennifer McGuire (Head of CBC Radio)
• Richard Stursberg (Head of English CBC)
• Mark Steinmetz (Head of Music Programming)

• Join the CBC Facebook group which is protesting these changes, to find out more to have your voice be heard.

And now, here is the fantastic report from Russell Smith printed in Thursday's Globe and Mail:

No classical? Then kill Radio 2 and get it over with

RUSSELL SMITH

From The Globe and Mail

March 13, 2008

I am almost too depressed about the planned "overhaul" of CBC's Radio 2 to even write about it. What's the point? We've all seen the writing on the wall for some time now, and resistance is futile: The CBC no longer feels there is any point to devoting an entire radio station to the more musically and intellectually complex style of music colloquially, though entirely inappropriately, known as "classical" (more on that tendentious terminology in a moment), because, according to its mysterious studies, no one is interested in that any more.

So, come September, there will only be "classical" music (God, I hate that term!) at midday on weekdays; the rest of the air time will be taken up with light pop and jazz. Yes, that's right, explicitly light: In an interview with The Globe and Mail last week, the executive director of radio explained that the station will be playing even more Joni Mitchell and Diana Krall. The executives have also proudly expressed their interest in playing more middle-of-the-road pop such as Feist and Serena Ryder. Yes, they are proud, proud to be brave purveyors of Serena Ryder and Diana Krall, the very best culture our country has to offer.

In other words, Radio 2 will become essentially an easy-listening station. It will play, aside from four hours a day when everybody is at work, the kind of verse-chorus-verse popular music that is likely to win awards at industry-created ceremonies - the Junos, the Grammys, the Smushies, the Great Mall Music Prize.

Sometimes there will be jazz; I'm guessing it will continue to be the Holiday Inn lounge jazz they already so adore. It's also pretty safe to say there will be no underground pop music, nothing noisy or electronic - unless they keep Laurie Brown's The Signal (surely they must, they must at least keep The Signal?) - and of course that will be only late at night so it doesn't disturb the imagined audience, an audience of the mousiest, nicest, middlest of middle Canadians.

Notice how the CBC has already won half the public-relations battle through its choice of language. It is wise, if it wants to dismiss exciting and abstract music that doesn't have a 4/4 beat, to call such music "classical." That word instantly relegates it to the past. "Classical" connotes that which is established, respected, stuffy - another word for "old favourites."

"Classical" is wholly inadequate in describing an intellectual tradition that has always thrived on innovation, on radical new interpretations, on defiance of previous traditions, indeed, of iconoclasm. When Arthur Honegger sat down to write Pacific 231, when Olivier Messiaen began Quartet for the End of Time, when Edgard Varèse ordered his orchestra to play along to tape recordings from sawmills, do you think they wanted to write something "classical?"

But even this conversation is pointless; it isn't even happening. It belongs to another world. I feel, when talking about these things, like a visitor to an isolated country where everybody believes the Earth is flat and the moon is made of cheese: No one is going to listen to me because every single one of my premises, my fundamental assumptions, is different from theirs.

I assume, for example, that the point of having a government-funded radio station is not to garner the largest possible audience; if that were the goal, and that goal were attained, such a station would be commercially viable and no longer in need of government support. I also assume that art and intellectual inquiry can sometimes be challenging and demanding of intense concentration, and that they are naturally not always going to attract lucrative audiences, and that this does not make them any less valuable, which is why governments in enlightened countries support them and provide access to them.

I guess I assume, too, something even more fundamental and even more fundamentally unpopular, which is that not all art is of equal value. Art that does not tend to follow strict generic conventions (such as, for example, the verse-chorus-verse structure of 90 per cent of pop music) is deserving of extra attention. Art unbound by formula tends to indicate the area where the best, the most original talents are working.

And this is not, I assure you, about the past; it is about the future. Art unbound by formula - music that does not have to accompany words, for example - is the art that will be remembered by cultural historians and will come to define our era.

A country with no public forum for such art, with nowhere for the less privileged to gain access to it and to intelligent analysis of it, is an unsophisticated one.

And furthermore, a radio station that is indistinguishable from commercial stations - other than by its fanatical niceness - will have no reason to receive government support. Why not just shut it down already?

Last weekend of Winter - next season is Music Festival!

Adjudicators - get your stack of 0.7 mm pencils ready, start practicing your signature, and get your catch phrases of "Bravo! Musical Performance" or "A little slip here today, perhaps it was your nerves" ready - for the Kiwanians are getting their suits cleaned and their chalk boards washed for Festival Season!

This April will mark a very special music festival assignment for me. I've been asked to adjudicate at the Kiwanis Music Festival in Ottawa, Ontario, the city where I grew up, and did all my festival classes as a youngster. It will mark my first time back at the festival in many years, and my first time as an adjudicator, and not a contestant. I was asked to prepare a short letter for the program as a way of letting this year's competitors know what the festival meant for me, and why it is an important part of our musical education. I've reprinted it below.

The Music Festival has played an integral role in my musical education since I started taking music lessons nearly thirty years ago. By the time I was eight years old, I was registered in piano, voice and choral classes, and through the next twenty years I also found myself competing in ensembles, organ and trumpet. That I was able to get from one venue to the next on schedule is a miracle, and one for which I owe my parents a great deal of the credit! The month of April became known as “Festival Time”, and it became a way of life for our family. My parents made sure the appropriate letters excusing me from school so that I could compete were written and that my blazer was dry cleaned, shirt was pressed, and my red tie was knotted correctly.

As with any discipline, whether musical, athletic or academic, goal-setting is an important part of the process. I was very fortunate in having supportive parents and teachers who taught me the value of this experience. The festival was an opportunity to showcase the hard work and determination that I put into my daily practice. Not only was it a chance to perform in front of a live audience, but more importantly, it was an opportunity to perform for another teacher, and receive constructive feedback. Although it was always nice to be recognized with an award for the performances, this was always secondary to the experience and adjudication that I received, and the growth in my abilities that resulted.

I owe a great deal of my success as a professional musician to the skills I developed as a participant in the Festival. I was able to cultivate a strong stage presence, which not only increased my ability as a performer, but also as a public speaker, which is invaluable as a university lecturer and adjudicator. I was able to form friendships with other young musicians, many of which have turned into life-long relationships.

In the past ten years, I have experienced a different side of these festivals, as I’ve taken on the role of adjudicator. I receive so much joy from watching the rising stars who will shape the future of music and performance practice in Canada in the near future. And although you might think that performing for an adjudicator is reason to be nervous, just remember that every one of your adjudicators began just as you are now. Who knows? Maybe in ten or fifteen years’ time, you’ll be sitting where I am now.

Life in the Orchestra Pit

Once again, one of my favourite bloggers, Jason Heath, has posted a funny true-life story about his life in the trenches as a freelance double-bassist.

The story has all the potential of disaster:

• A "mobster look-alike" conductor who can't speak English
• A translator who knows nothing about music
• An orchestra made up of all freelance players, who don't normally play together
• The panic of wondering if the conductor is in TWO or FOUR.
• All this happening in the orchestra pit, while on stage, there is a ballet trying to happen.
  

Hilarity ensues.

Do read the full post here.

Life of the Freelance musician, Part II - Stepping in Time

One of the biggest challenges of a freelance musician is time management, in particular, knowing where you are supposed to be, when you are supposed to be there, what music you are supposed to bring with you, and sometimes, what to wear.

The next three weeks will test this to the fullest for me. As a church musician, it is the busiest time of the season. Holy Week begins on Sunday, and continues through around 1:30 pm on Easter Sunday. Between a week Thursday and Easter Sunday I have five service, a concert with Pro Coro Canada, and two major rehearsals. On top of this, I have agreed to assist the Opera Chorus with a few rehearsals for their upcoming staged version of Mozart’s Requiem … (I can’t quite visualize it, but that’s not my responsibility).

I have found a few things to be successful with regards to managing my time, and keeping myself from being double booked, and I'm happy to share them with you.

Judging from the fact that I have a blog, one might assume I rely quite heavily on my computer. Every since I lost my personal day planner for the umpteenth time, I decided that the only way to schedule myself was to use Outlook® as my sole day planner. I carry around my laptop pretty much wherever I go, so it’s easy to add things to my calendar with out too much trouble. I do however look a little overeager when I’m the only one to open it up in staff meetings etc, but it is the only way I know when I am available.

Upon discovering Google Reader as one of the best feed readers for blog, news and sports, my wife later discovered Google Calendar as a way that the two of us could negotiate our social life, knowing what each other was doing, and when. A good idea in concept, but it did mean having to keep two calendars, which could easily spell disaster when the potentially deadly double-booking crept in. However, recently my extremely smart wife also discovered there is a tool which updates both the Google calendar and Outlook®. So, every five minutes, something on my computer updates both calendars. So far, it’s working great, and I’m able to update my calendar just about anywhere there is a computer and an internet connection, which nowadays, is not hard to find.

The next challenge was to be sure we had a music organization system which enabled us on any given night to know what folder of music to take out the door with us. We keep a magazine rack at the front door now with various “active” music folders in it. Although it isn’t fool proof. We have two cars, and inevitably, folders end up in back seats of cars, and there is always the moment before a rehearsal where we have to ask “What care are we taking” and “Is my music in your car?” So far, we haven’t been caught with the wrong music at the wrong rehearsal (knock on wood).

As far as what to wear is concerned. I’ve decided I’m going to wear my tux everyday for the next three weeks – that should prevent too much embarrassment.

It's Friday - ALL DAY

Today, Tomorrow, and for the most part Sunday as well, I have no commitments outside of my regular tasks. In fact, Tomorrow (Saturday), I have NOTHING at all on my calendar. This all changes on Monday, and it doesn't let up until the Wednesday after Easter. All of it is going to be wonderful, but busy.

In light of it being Friday, I thought I would just share some interesting links:

The BBC is now accepting applications for Choir Wars (sigh)

Kenneth Woods continues his interview with composer Gordon Downie in a great post about comparing the comfortability of viewing mordern art, as opposed to listening to modern music.

Congratulations to Alex Ross, as his book "The Rest is Noise" receives a National Book Critics Circle Award for Criticism. It's a book we must all have on our resource shelf.

And not music related - but environment related, which is one of my social causes.

An article on CBC.ca on the expected effects of global warming (which are already apparent) on the future of Canada. I especially love the positive spin on the article at the end - that Canada could become one of the leading wine makers in the world thanks to the expected heat in BC and Niagara county. Well, we may not have drinking water in the future - but at least we'll be too drunk to care.

Also on CBC.ca, my home town of Ottawa is only a few feet away from breaking the record single season snow fall record set in 1971 (which was 444.1 cm, or 12 feet) They are expected to get nearly 30 cm, or close to foot of snow this weekend, bringing them within 65 cm of the record, and there is plenty more snow in the forecast.

The federal New Democratic Party, which is one of the left leaning opposition parties, not the official opposition, but a strong voice in parliament, is going to attempt to bring the minority conservative government down with a climate bill today. (The official opposition is not in a good position to start campaigning for a federal election right now, so they will allow the Conservatives' bill to pass) .

And completely unrelated - and of mild international interest.

We'll find out today if O.J. is a free man ... again.

Happy weekend to you all!

Importance of a Choral Warm-up

I've been thinking a fair bit about choral warm-ups and thought I'd share a few thoughts about them, and what aspects I feel are important. For now, I will not be including specific examples, in order to keep the post at a decent length, which I imagine will end up being long-winded as it is.

Do choirs need warm-ups?

There was a time in my life when I questioned the value of choral warm-ups, especially for someone like me who spends the better part of the week singing in choirs, and felt perpetually warmed-up. I was always especially skeptical of their use with a professional choir, where one would expect that the singers would arrive to rehearsal prepared, which would include arriving with their voice ready to go. Also, most of us use our speaking voice all day, which may not account to a full singing warm-up, but it is amazing how much easier it is to sing in the evening as a result. I often then wondered if a conductor could save ten minutes of their rehearsal by not doing a warm-up. I would also consider arriving to rehearsals late in order to miss the warm-up. I know a few conductors who from time to time go without a warm-up, and for the most part are able to have an effective rehearsal.

Once I started conducting choirs regularly, I discovered that I was gravely mistaken, and that missing a warm-up could contribute to the overall efficiency of the rehearsal. A few of the side-effects I've noticed from an un-warmed up choir include:

1. lack of focus, more talking through rehearsals
   
2. poor intonation (unaccompanied pieces which consistently go flat)
3. vocal fatigue, and general choir fatigue in the last 1/4 of the rehearsal, making the last part of rehearsal nearly useless.

Attempts to get more rehearsal time by eliminating the warm-up, usually returned a less-productive rehearsal.

So the answer to the question.

Yes - Choirs of all levels, ages and abilities NEED warm-ups

Important aspects of a choral warm-up

A good vocal warm up need not to be a long one. I find five to ten minutes to plenty of time. Any less and you haven't accomplished anything, and much longer and you've lost the focus of the group. There are some exceptions to this - especially an argument for a longer warm-up when it is the early morning session of a retreat weekend, or a pre-concert warm-up where you might spend more time acclimatising to the space, or getting the choir into a "performance mood".

Four things to achieve in your warm up:

1. Focus
2. Physical "muscular" warm up, including breathing, and heart rate!
   
3. Auditory warm-up (listening! intonation!)
   
4. Vocal warm-up and dexterity.
   

How you achieve these results will vary from conductor to conductor - and as I mentioned, I will make little attempt to address specific examples in this posting - resources are readily available for those who want them. However, I would like to comment on all four aspects.

1. Focus

The biggest frustration with most choral conductors is the apparent inability of the chorus to actually watch the conductor. In your warm-up, develop tactics which force the choir to watch you. Breathing exercises which involve hand signals only. Diaphragmatic "explosion" exercises like belting out a "PA!" "NA!" "ZAH!" or whatever on cue (and not in rhythm). Altering dynamics and articulation using only gesture, no verbal instruction (and chastising them when they are not following). Most of the time, with a good group, you don't even need to express what you want with words - gesture should be enough.

2. Physical Warm-up

One of the warm-ups I do before a concert concentrate on stretching calves and hamstring muscles. It quickly became of the favourite exercises of the choir - and many might ask what doest his have to do with singing? Just remember, as a chorister, you use every muscle in your body. Standing requires much energy, holding a folder for an hour will do horrid things to your back unless you've prepared yourself for it. The list goes on. Breathing exercises go without saying, and should not be undervalued. There are many options here. Do you have a yoga or personal trainer in your choir? Invite them to include something for the choir!

3. Auditory Warm-up

As a chorister, learning how to listen both to your own section, as well as learning to listen to the other sections is integral to learning how to tune, and blend. Exercises to deal with tuning and blend need to be addressed in your warm-up.

4. Vocal Warm-up

Probably the most obvious of all of them all, the whole reason for having a warm-up, is to activate the singing apparatus itself. Find a way to warm-up the entire range - think of warm-ups that will help the lower tessitura of the altos and basses, as well as the higher tessitura of the soprano and tenors (hint: altos and basses LOVE to sing low, and show the other sections how low they can sing - don't be afraid to stretch the boundaries, but do not encourage pushing. Don't be afraid of the vocal fry when working the low range of the bass. Some of them find it quite relaxing). I cannot stress enough the need to remind the choir not to push, and allow the lower register to be relaxed - especially when dwelling in the lower extremes. As well as a brief talk about muscle support and "spin" when working with the upper register of the Sops and Tenors.

Singing speaks louder than words

Too often, a conductor spends more time talking about warm-ups than actually warming up. I try to take the approach that every minute when a choir is not singing, is a wasted minute. Nothing is more true than in the choral warm-up. The length of time it takes to criticize and "fix" issues that arise in the warm-up will counteract the whole purpose of a warm-up. By all means, fix problems - but don't dwell on them. Simple instructions, short sentences and too the point will be more beneficial than explaining the entire vocal apparatus, muscles, and everything involved in creating the sound. Let them sing!

Use your accompanist

If you have an accompanist, use them! Be creative, use good chord progressions, musical accompaniments to the warm-ups. Tuning exercises should of course be done without the piano, but more melodious examples should have the benefit of a more melodious and helpful accompaniment. Nothing is more fun than a creative warm-up.

New vs Old

New warm-ups are necessary to keep things interesting. But if you do only new warm-ups, you'll waste time teaching them to the choir, rather than singing. I would even say that approximately 90% of your warm-up should be warm-ups they know, to allow them to sing, with the other 10% maximum being new exercises that you will bring back again over time. Some days, you may choose to only use old Warm-ups. There is nothing wrong with routine, provided it is a good one, however, variety is the spice of life, so don't be afraid to switch it up a bit once in a while.

There are my thoughts on the subject. I welcome your input and suggestions as well.