The Basic Idea

In Toast & Jam classes we use this as a warm-up for the entire group. Participants stand clustered together all facing one person who will be "conducting" them. It's important to stand close enough to hear each other well and staggered enough for everyone to see the conductor clearly. The conductor uses hand movement, facial expressions, whole body positions and movement in a seamless stream-of-consciousness way. Meanwhile, every single movement, position or facial expression made by the conductor is matched with sound from the clusteres "orchestra". Sometimes I wonder if this should be called "Wacky Orchestra", but maybe that's one of those questions like 'which came first, the chicken or the egg?'

For Individual Singers

I've been using this exercise for individual warm-ups and find it quite useful. Simply stand in a comfortable position and begin with your hands. Hands are very expressive creatures, so just take a 'preparing to sing' breath and then follow your hands. It can get uncomfortable to be trying to follow your own movements with your voice, for instance, if you've ended up crouched in a tiny ball, it's going to be hard to sing, but maybe that's a place you want to go for effect, and then sing and move yourself out of there into a more open position. Experiment and explore! Start simple. Start with just one finger of one hand moving in shapes and circles, fast and slow. Follow that one hand with your voice and slowly get more sudden, more drastic with those gestures; add the other hand, add some simple swaying, add tension, flow, tight, loose, etc.

For Groups of Two or More Singers

Follow the outline in the opening paragraph of this exercise. I like to have two or three different conductors in a row and then hold the rest for another day, otherwise the orchestra might get a little weary. It's important to keep this exercise fresh by not overdoing it. The fancy description for this exercise is "an all-group collaborative interpreting improv working from a single prompt" which means, simply, everybody's interpreting the same thing and coming up with a collaborative way to express it. It's best to start simple and let everyone relax. Singers: sing vocables or open vowel sounds or words to express the conductor's gestures; listening to each other and forming a 'united approach'. This requires initiating your own unique interpretation and finding ways to blend it with those around you.

For the conductor: Try simple arm movements that trade themes, such as Smooth vs. Choppy, or Small vs. Big and then use your whole body. It's also intriguing to use just your face, or just one foot. Have FUN. This is not charades, nobody's out there to GUESS, your orchestra is simply interpreting your directions into sounds: a group sound to follow your runaway train of thought. Yes? Remember, when using this as a warm-up, let your movements and gestures portray soft and smooth ideas, then gradually work in the choppy and louder inspirations. You want to bring your orchestra along with you, not force them into a state of frenzy right off the bat!

Do let me know how it's going: susanne@vocalimprov.com