The Arts Unit Creative Teachers
Focus on consonants
Exercises that focus on consonants will help warm up the lips, the tongue and the face, and develop habits of singing with good clarity and diction.
These don't have to be sung.
They can be rhythmic patterns of sound or spoken tongue twisters.
Focus on consonants examples
The following 4 videos have been provided as examples of breathing exercises you can do with your choir.
- Echo 4-beat patterns
Duration: 00:59
2. Chester Cheetah chewed a chunk of cheap
cheddar cheese
cheddar cheese
Duration: 03:18
3. The cat wore a hat
Duration: 04:16
4. Unique New York
Duration: 03:34
Tongue twisters
B
Betty Botter bought some butter.
'But,' she said, 'this butter’s bitter.
If I put it in my batter, it will make my batter bitter,
but a bit of better butter will make my batter better.'
So ‘twas better Betty Botter bought a bit of better butter.
A big bug bit a little beetle, but the little beetle bit the big bug back.
Brave, bleeding boys battle bald, biting babies.
A box of biscuits,
A box of mixed biscuits and
A biscuit mixer.
C
Cooks cook cupcakes quickly.
F
The fast thief flash-fried thick fish.
Fred fed Ted bread, and Ted fed Fred bread.
L
The lips, the teeth, the tip of the tongue,
The tip of the tongue, the teeth, the lips.
M
My mother made me mash my mini M&Ms on a Monday morning. Mm!
P
Peter Piper picked a peck of pickled peppers.
A peck of pickled peppers Peter Piper picked.
If Peter Piper picked a peck of pickled peppers,
Where’s the peck of pickled peppers Peter Piper picked?
A proper cup of coffee in a copper coffee pot.
R
Round and round the rugged rock the ragged rascal ran.
Red leather, yellow leather (x3)
S
She sells seashells by the seashore.
The shells she sells are seashells, I’m sure.
Six sticky skeletons
U
You know New York, you need New York,
You know you need unique New York.
W
I wish to wash my Irish wristwatch.
You may like to download and print out Tongue Twisters (PDF 72 KB) to keep as a resource in your choir folder.
Festival of Choral Music 2017, Sydney Opera House, photo: Anna Warr