Date: Oct 06

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Choir Training - Posture
By David West

Every church choir director would like their choir singing to the best of their ability for the Lord. Most church choirs however, are made up of inexperienced singers who have never been taught the basics of how to sing properly, yet alone, how to read music. If we are ever to get our church choirs making a joyful noise to the Lord, it is essential to set aside some time to teach our choirs the fundamentals of singing.

Proper singing technique begins with good posture. It is the foundation on which all other techniques stand. Correct posture can be summed up in two simple words – “stand tall”.

Let’s consider the proper posture of the singer while standing.

• Head: Balanced on the spinal column.
• Jaw: Loose at the hinge.
• Chin: Imagine your chin is resting on a table, parallel to the ground.
• Shoulders: Relaxed and lowered comfortably, parallel to your chest. Raise your shoulders to your ears, and then lower them to the ground. Now take a deep breath, relax, and try to lower them an inch more.
• Chest: Raised comfortably, creating a lift throughout the middle of your body. Try raising both arms high in the air, pulling back arms, and then lowering both arms slowly until arms are at your side. Chest will be high and lifted.
• Arms: Resting at your sides, hanging in a relaxed position. Shake your hands out and let your fingers hang.
• Knees: Slightly bent so that you can feel it, but no one can see it. Wiggle your knees forward and back to feel how relaxed they are while still standing tall. Do not lock legs.
• Feet: Shoulder length apart, one foot slightly ahead of the other, weight evenly distributed and toward your toes. Rise up on your tiptoes, and lower back down slightly so your heals are barely touching the ground.

During rehearsals it is not always practical for your church choir to always sing while standing. Choir members therefore should know how to properly sit to maintain a correct posture for singing.

• Sit toward the front of your seat - without your back touching the back of the seat.
• Feet slightly apart with the weight of your body forward.
• Body tall with hips, spine, and head directly in line with one another (as if you're standing from the hips).
• Chest lifted to enhance breathing.
• Shoulders down and back.
• Arms naturally by the side of the body.
  
  Remind your choir NOT TO HOLD THE FOLDER AGAINST THEIR BODY. Holding it against their body not only inhibits their ability to breathe correctly, but it prevents them from being able to watch you as the director.