Yes, it’s now spring. And yes, temperatures are going up – it’s starting to get warm. The question is – are you?

Every morning, when I head out for a walk or run, I start slow. Work out the kinks. Settle into my body.  Paying attention to my body. Feeling my feet hit the ground and roll up again.

Do you take the time to warm up when you play? No matter if you’re practicing for 15 minutes or preparing for a 3 hour background gig, you should should take a little time to warm up. Why?

Really?

Oh yes – you need to warm up! One of my favorite sayings is that musicians are the athletes of the small muscles. This is central, not only because it equates us with athletes – who are more far more respected in modern society – but also because it focuses on the corporal elements of making music, rather than on how “pretty” our music is!

While we may not spend hours in the gym (not that getting additional exercise would be bad), you can still keep in mind that you’re about to do physical work. Caring for those muscles will allow you to do more.

Why is warming up so important? Well, for at least four reasons:

• Gently moving lets those muscles gradually make ready to work. While significantly experienced humans (read: older) probably appreciate this, it is important begin to warm up long before you even actually feel the need to do it. And if you are a growing human (read: not yet out of adolescence) you have the opportunity to build the habit long before you need it.
• Warming up is work – it’s “pre-work” so it is a legitimate part of your practicing time.
• Warming up is actually about warming up – you want to warm up those hands that they will be more limber and flexible.
• Warming up is a great time to check in on yourself – to really focus on how you feel and if you are ready to play.

But, you don’t just warmup for the fun of warming up! Doing some warmups will allow you achieve flexibility to play better. Warmer hands will result in better technique because your hands will be better able to move – keeping your thumbs up maybe? will be easier if your hands are limbered up. Loads of crossovers for scales? certainly easier if your whole hand is warmed up and working together. And of course, it’s not just your hands – you should warm up your arms and shoulders at a minimum.

What should you do to warmup? Here are a couple of ideas:

• Wash your hands in warm water with nice soap – be luxuriant. Massage your hands while you’re at it.
• Simple stretching. Stretch. Go slowly. Raise your arms overhead and reach for the ceiling. Stretch through your fingers. Wiggle your fingers. It’s not a race and it should be like when you wake up. Don’t overstretch.
• Palm taps – you probably learned this in your first lesson. Tap your palm with each of your fingers to mimic closing.
• Shoulder rolls – this is an iconic stretch – do rolls both forward and back.

Then move to your harp and begin there – you already know this but remember – you’re warming up, so go slowly! There are loads of warmups but here are a couple of easy ideas for use at the harp:

• Scales. No, not the “how quickly can I get these over with” scales – slow, careful, accurate, gentle, fully closing. Check your posture. Go up and down all of the harp. Yup. All of the way up and all the way down. A few times – remember you’re warming up.
• After that, it’s up to you.  You want your warm up to reflect what you’re going to be doing. So, that means you could make part of what you’ll be working on into a warmup! Take it slowly – you’re warming up, so maybe the rhythm doesn’t matter as much as the placement certainly does.

Remember this is warming up – not exercises. Yes, you can do the same stuff, but the focus is different. Warmup scales are slower and quieter, while exercise scales may be focused on intonation, speed, articulation, or something else.

When you’re warmed up, you’re ready to play or practice and to get more from it. It only takes a moment and the benefits will become readily apparent. Do you warm up already? If so, what do you do? If you haven’t been, are you going to try any of this? Let me know in the comments what’s working for you (or what totally doesn’t!).

PS – per request of a reader, I have increased the text size – please leave a comment and let me know what you think.  Thanks!