Description
Modal Flute Warmup – Revised 2026 by Laura Lentz, performing flutist, composer, and educator, presents a mode-based approach to warming up that cultivates curiosity, awareness, and expressive discovery as foundations of artistic growth. Designed for flutists at the high school level and beyond, the book encourages thoughtful exploration of sound, emotion, and embodied awareness through reflective, engaging warmup practices.
Not long ago, Laura began wondering whether her warmup allowed her to explore the full range of color and emotion she was seeking in her playing—and whether it could bring her joy in the process. Inspired by a five-note, modal exercise called “Each Motif One Fast Puff of Air” (attributed to Sam Baron), she began incorporating modal improvisation into her routine, developing a warmup that invites reflection, attention, and playful experimentation.
Selected for inclusion in the 2025 National Flute Association Selected Flute Repertoire and Studies Guide, Modal Flute Warmup has been recognized as “an important contribution to the work of flutists who explore outside of the strictly tonal realm.”
Rooted in the expressive possibilities of modes, the book is organized around six sequential, thoughtfully designed mode-based warmup exercises that engage the flutist’s attention, imagination, and listening skills. Lentz encourages inquiry, reflection, and self-observation—helping flutists notice what they hear, feel, and experience, creating space for questions, discoveries, and musical insight.
Chapter 1: Start to Discover
The book begins with nine Start to Discover sections, guiding flutists to approach practice with awareness and curiosity:
- Introduction
- Body Awareness
- Breathing
- Embouchure
- Tone
- Technique
- Articulation
- Expressive Elements
- Practicing & Your Flute
These sections provide a foundation for mindful exploration of sound and technique, offering prompts and reflections that can be applied throughout the exercises. By bringing an air of discovery to practice, flutists engage fully with what they hear, feel, and experience—sparking “aha” moments and deepening understanding of their own playing.
Chapter 2: 6-Part Modal Warmup
The heart of the book is the six-part sequential modal warmup:
- Part 1: Modal Airy Sounds
- Part 2: Modal Harmonics
- Part 3: Modal Patterns
- Part 4: Modal Root Patterns
- Part 5: Modal Noodles (with improvisation prompts)
- Part 6: Modal Melodic Patterns
In the new version: Part 6 now includes a duet part, allowing flutists to warm up together side by side—perfect for teachers and students, studio partners, or colleagues.
Through all these exercises, flutists encounter new sounds, fingering combinations, and emotional qualities. Prompts encourage reflection, listening, and creative improvisation, allowing players to explore tone color, phrasing, and expressive ideas.
Chapter 3: Modal Flute Duets & Other Expanded Features
The expanded version introduces seven newly composed Modal Flute Duets, designed for equal collaboration:
- Shaping phrasing, color, and dialogue while exploring modal playing
- Incorporating extended techniques, ensemble listening, and improvisation
- Ideal for teachers, students, friends, or colleagues
- Drones and recordings for these duets are available on Bandcamp: Modal Flute Warmup Duets
Additionally, newly composed drones by Rochester composer Sean William Calhoun are now available to support the six-part warmup:
- Provide a stable pitch center to support intonation and modal gravitation
- Create an inspiring soundscape for the six-part warmup
- These drones can be found at YouTube: Modal Flute Warmup Drones
The expanded version also includes Discovery Flute Cards, developed by Laura Lentz and Anastasia Mousouli:
- 80 short prompts organized into four themes: Noticing, Imagining, Experimenting, and Expressing
- Designed for warmups, practice, lessons, rehearsals, or creative breaks
- Encourage reflection, improvisation, and creative engagement with breath, sound, emotion, and artistic voice
Modal Flute Warmup is an essential resource for flutists and teachers seeking a warmup approach that supports curiosity, reflection, and joyful discovery—whether practicing alone, exploring duets, or engaging in improvisatory exercises.
Discovery Flute Cards
Created in collaboration with flutist and educator Anastasia Mousouli, Discovery Flute Cards is a set of 80 thoughtfully designed prompts that build on the philosophy of discovery central to Modal Flute Warmup. These cards are crafted to inspire and support students, teachers, and performers at all levels in cultivating awareness, mindfulness, and expressive connection in their playing.
Organized into four thematic categories—Noticing, Imagining, Experimenting, and Expressing—each containing 20 prompts, the cards guide musicians in exploring breath, tone, emotion, and artistic voice. Noticing encourages reflection and awareness of body, breath, and sound, moving toward habits, mindset, and interpretation. Imagining fosters creative visualization and emotional connection, from internal sensations to outward projection of energy and sound. Experimenting invites playful curiosity, exploring physicality, tone, improvisation, and collaborative interaction. Expressing deepens artistry, guiding players to connect emotion, personal voice, and interpretive intention with expressive technique.
Designed to be versatile, the cards can be used to structure lessons, inspire warmups, prompt improvisation, or encourage reflective practice. They can be drawn at random, chosen deliberately, or incorporated into interactive activities—such as “paper fortune tellers”—as a playful way to let chance determine the card choice.
A blank page at the end of the set encourages creating custom prompts, allowing the set to grow with your practice and creative ideas.
Whether for individual practice, studio teaching, or ensemble work, Discovery Flute Cards cultivate the habit of tuning in—paying attention to oneself, one’s instrument, and the moment—helping players connect more deeply with their sound, imagination, and expressive voice.
Expansion Packet for Modal Flute Warmup
The Expansion Packet for the second version of Modal Flute Warmup introduces a wealth of new tools, duets, and creative exercises to deepen your practice and exploration. Designed for flutists of all levels, this material emphasizes collaboration, curiosity, and expressive freedom while expanding on the original warmup exercises.
A duet part has been added to the original Modal Melodic Patterns (Part 6), allowing teachers, students, or friends to warm up together side by side.
In addition, seven newly composed duets provide opportunities for equal partnership, encouraging dialogue, phrasing exploration, tonal color development, ensemble listening, and improvisation, all while introducing modal concepts and extended techniques.
The Discovery Flute Cards are included as part of this expansion, offering short prompts grouped into Noticing, Imagining, Experimenting, and Expressing. These prompts spark curiosity, enhance awareness, and support expressive exploration, making them ideal for practice, warmups, lessons, or creative breaks.
To further support practice and collaborative work, new drone recordings are available for all six parts of the warmup, as well as for the duets. Drones for the warmup can be found on YouTube, and drones and duet recordings are available on Bandcamp, providing flexible tools for practice, improvisation, and ensemble development.
The Expansion Packet enriches the Modal Flute Warmup experience by creating new opportunities and space for questions, discoveries, and musical insight.
