The Next Level Warm-Up Routine

Welcome back to a new school year! Many of you know I talk about warm-ups a LOT, so this year I wanted to start the school year with something that will set you all up for success: a structured and reliable warm-up routine.

I’m calling it the Next Level Warm-Up Routine, and it’s divided into eight different categories of exercises that warm up not only the voice, but also the body and mind—elements that are often overlooked in a warm-up. Now, you might say, “Oh Jon, I don’t have time for eight exercises!!” Stay with me. This routine is flexible and can work for rehearsals of all lengths by combining some of these categories. As you read on and discover what each category focuses on, you’ll see that you can combine Steps 3 & 4, or Steps 4 & 5, for example, if you’re tight for time.

This routine has been tried and tested through years of teaching and performing as a professional touring singer myself (and works for both ensembles and solo gigs). Using this method will help your students in many ways: they’ll come to expect a consistent routine, they’ll learn more about the voice, and, if done properly, they’ll become better vocalists and musicians themselves. So, without further ado, here is the Next Level Warm-Up Routine.

Step 1: Physical Warm-Up

As singers, our bodies are our instruments, and it’s super important to be aware of what our bodies are doing. These physical exercises can include stretching, rhythmic movement, or some simple mindful movements to get the blood flowing—especially during an early morning rehearsal.

Warming up physically helps release tension in the neck, shoulders, and torso, which in turn supports better breath control and vocal freedom. Even just a few minutes of gentle movement can make your voice feel more open and ready to sing which is why it’s always great to start with this!

Step 2: Breathing

Before we begin singing, it’s important to make sure we’re connected to our breath and using it consciously and efficiently. While we breathe all day without thinking about it, this is a great opportunity to focus on it through mindful breathing exercises.

Mindful breathing helps you engage your diaphragm, control airflow, and support your voice more effectively. This step can include simple low-breath awareness exercises, breath-management drills, or diaphragm-activation techniques to wake up the core and prepare for singing.

Step 3: SOVT (Semi-Occluded Vocal Tract)

This is our first bit of singing, and we start with SOVT exercises because they provide a low-risk way to begin using the voice at the start of the day. These exercises create gentle back pressure, which helps with vocal coordination and encourages the vocal folds to come together more efficiently.

The most popular example of an SOVT exercise is the lip trill, but there are many others, including straw phonation, tongue trills, voiced fricatives (v, z, zh), and even humming.

Step 4: Sirens & Glides

Think of this group of exercises as stretching the way an athlete would before a run or match. Here, we gently stretch our voices, using more of our range and navigating register transitions over the passaggio.

The most common version starts at the very top of your range and slides all the way down to the bottom. I’ve seen countless groups go through the motions without understanding the actual purpose of these exercises. Make sure to explain to your students that the goal is to avoid voice cracks and to slow down around the passaggio, paying attention to what adjustments are needed to navigate it smoothly.

For the individual singer, this is also a great time to check in with your voice. When sliding from the top of your range to the bottom, you might notice parts of your voice feel a little weaker due to fatigue, diet, time of day, or other factors. Use these exercises to identify areas that need a bit more attention in your warm-up before moving on.

Step 5: Scales & Intonation

We’re about halfway through the warm-up, so it’s time to warm up the mind and bring focus back, as some students may have started to lose attention. This is where we focus on accuracy of pitch, which is crucial to address in warm-ups. If your group sings warm-ups out of tune, chances are their repertoire will be out of tune as well.

I often see groups doing the typical “Bumble Bee, Bumble Bee” in ascending thirds or the ever-popular “1, 1-2-1, 1-2-3-2-1 (and so forth),” with most members just going through the motions and singing with poor intonation. To keep things engaging and effective, I switch the exercise up every day so students must pay attention to a new pattern of pitches.

My favorite routine is a 5-note major, minor, and whole-tone scale, which challenges the group to really focus and nail each note. It might not succeed immediately, but with practice—bringing it back once every other week or so—they’ll improve and experience a real sense of achievement. Here's a video example of this exercise.

PRO TIP: It’s perfectly okay to adjust or coach your students to help them achieve better intonation in these exercises! Doing so encourages them to focus more during warm-ups and can immensely improve their ear over time.

Step 6: Register Focus

This series of exercises focuses on the use of head voice/falsetto and chest voice. Young singers will likely feel more comfortable in one register than the other, so it’s important to target both areas to help strengthen them in all students.

I often use play and primal sounds to help them achieve the right tone in each register. For example, for a falsetto sound, I might ask students to “hoot like an owl” and then build a 5-note descending exercise from that. For a chest sound, I might use speech-level activation or primal shouts. If focusing on mixed voice, character voices or exaggerated emotional expressions—like a child whining, “I don’t WANNA”—can help develop a chest-dominant mixed sound.

Step 7: Range Extremities

Even if you’ve combined some of the previous steps, range extremities should come late in your warm-up. Trying to do these early is like a runner not stretching before a sprint or a marathon. This is where we really focus on the highest and lowest parts of the vocal range.

Consider your repertoire during this portion. There’s usually no need to go more than a whole step above or below what your repertoire demands. Stretching too far can turn into a “show-off” contest among students, which may result in fatigue or injury. Remind them to stay connected to the breath through these exercises, and let them know it’s perfectly okay to stop early if a note is outside their comfortable range.

A simple way to manage this is to remove certain voice parts while ascending or descending. For example, if the notes get too high for altos and basses, you can say, “Sopranos and Tenors only!”

One more tip: young basses will often lower their neck when trying to reach low notes. They have the right idea—they’re trying to lower the larynx—but lowering the neck actually counteracts the goal. Encourage them to feel a “yawn space”, which helps lower the larynx safely and produces a fuller, easier tone in the lower register.

Step 8: Ensemble/Blend Exercises

If you’re an individual singer, you can skip this step. For an a cappella group or choir, this brings us back to the mental warm-up stage to round off the routine. Here, the focus is on listening—not only to ourselves, as during scales and intonation, but across the entire ensemble.

These exercises can include chord-building drills for balance, blend exercises that focus on vowels and tone, or even a song in harmony, where we pay attention to phrasing and articulation as well.

Encourage your students to actively adjust their volume, vowel shape, and tone for awareness. Many might assume, “The problem isn’t me,” and not make any changes to their sound. By encouraging everyone to play, adjust, and hear firsthand how it affects the overall sound, they will develop much greater ensemble awareness.

That’s it! All 8 steps of The Next Level Warm-Up Routine. Your students will start to develop favorite exercises in each step, so you can use those as rewards or treats on days when they need extra energy. Just make sure to switch up the exercises in each category to keep them engaged. The best directors start to see how these exercises link to their repertoire and use warm-ups to focus on what they might be working on that day in rehearsal.These exercises aren’t just warm-ups—they’re the foundation for developing a strong, versatile, and highly musical ensemble.

Check out our Instagram and TikTok for loads of examples of these exercises. If you want more expert advice that will bring your a cappella program to the Next Level, consider applying for our year-long mentorship program here.