Resource File

Vocal Technique Resources

Robinson, R. & Althouse, J. Complete Choral Warm-up Book.
Alfred Publishing: Van Nuys, 1995.
This is a wonderful resource for any choir director to have. It
contains exercises for almost any situation that could arise in the
classroom. This book is divided into eight different sections, and I really
like that there is so much variety found in this book. It has traditional
warm ups, jazz/swing style warm-up, even warm-ups specific to church
choirs! This is a really great resource to have on hand in all music
classrooms. The exercises in this book can be applied to any age group
and any ability level. There is such a wide range of levels, and it covers
a broad spectrum of abilities. It also includes explanations of the
exercise, which can be helpful when trying to find an exercise to
address a specific need or problem area.
Telfer, N. Successful Warmups, Book Two. Neil A. Kjos Music
Company: San Diego, 1995.
This book addresses issues that would be more prevalent in more
advanced choirs. Again, this book has such a wide variety of concepts
and ideas. I really like that there are different colors in the book. It
makes it more visually appealing, and it calls your attention to things
that will help the exercise be more successful with the choir. I also
think it is helpful that the book is divided into sections based on
difficulty. This can help with pacing, but it can also allow me to mix it
up a little to see how my students are improving by giving them a
couple of harder exercises to try. It is also great to have as a resource
because of the amount of exercises contained in this book. It can be
very useful to switch up the exercises, so that students are not doing
the same vocal technique exercises every single day.
Music Literacy Resources
Telfer, Nancy. Successful Sight Singing. Neil A. Kjos Music
Company: San Diego, 1992.
This book comes across like a method book. It teaches students
how to sight-read, starting with the very basics and progressing
throughout the book. Like its counterpart for choral warm-ups, I really
like the different colors in the book. It really helps draw your attention
to things that students need to recognize and remember for them to

sight-read successfully. When using this book, I would have my

students read the rhythms using Takadimi syllables instead if dah as
presented in the book. Takadimi is more effective, and I want my warmups to be synthesized with what I am teaching in class. I would also like
to see more solfege in a sight-singing book. The book includes a lot of
nonsense syllables, and I would want my students singing more solfege
in class. This has the potential to be a good resource, but I would
change the rhythm and tonal systems, and adjust the sequencing a
little.
Ester, Don P. Sound Connections: A Comprehensive Approach.
2010.
This book is based entirely off of the authors premise of sound
before sight. Everything that is suggested in the book is backed up by
extensive research and experience. The rhythm and tonal systems
proposed by the author are excellent, and have been proven to be able
to apply to almost any musical situation. Both of these systems are
used as a way to achieve music literacy, which is something that the
author highly values. This book has countless ideas and methods of
how to increase music literacy in students. The resource binder is also
very useful. It is synthesized with the book, so every example has
extensive research and reasoning behind it. It is organized well, and it
will be easy to access different exercises depending on the needs of
the classroom. This is a great resource, and I would highly recommend
it to any music educator.