Music Teacher's Helper Blog

I’m always on the lookout for new vocalizes to use with my beginning to intermediate voice students, but little did I know that a valuable resource was right under my nose! While singing with the St. Olaf Choir I was introduced to a wonderful vocalize book entitled Sing Legato by Dr. Kenneth Jennings,

conductor of the St. Olaf Choir. Sing Legato was written to develop good vocal production, breath control, dynamic contrast, flexibility and interval training.

Typically for my intermediate to advanced students, I will assign either the Vaccai or Marchesi vocal methods. However, for younger students who have less experience with etudes, and Italian for that matter, Sing Legato teaches a student musical ideas through catchy melodies that are easy to learn in just a few minutes. This book was originally written for choir, but because many of the exercises deal solely with vocal articulation, the soloist can also use it. The first half of the book involves musical terms (legato, crescendo, tone, etc.) set to a written etude that highlights each element. The second half of the book goes through various exercises, which train interval recognition and intonation. Exercises covered include:

• Sing Legato
• Staccato Is Short
• Marcato Is Strong
• Rich Tone
• Sing A Little Louder
• Sigh the Tone
• Flexibility
• Whole Step, Half Step
• The Third Comes in Two Sizes
• Fourths and Fifths Go Up and Down
• Gliding Along (Sixths)
• Seconds and Sevenths
• The Octave Leap

A separate accompaniment book is available for the teacher to support the singer, keep things interesting, and expand the vocal range with smooth transpositions. For under $4, this small book teaches great exercises for voice students of all ages and voice ranges, and is a wonderful resource in any voice studio!