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| Basic Layout of Ukulele Strings |
So far, I have learned the tuning, the hold, and the basic chords of the ukulele. In this week, I have put in about 3-4 hours of work onto the ukulele, already 1/2500 of the way to my 10,000 hour mastery! Despite this, I think that if I progress at the rate at which I have, I will be able to play a few songs in a matter of weeks.
The reason that I chose to delve into the art of the ukulele, for the most part, is because I love the sound and feel that the ukulele displays. Also, for nearly ten years there has been a ukulele lying around in my room, just collecting dust. When the opportunity to use this instrument arose, I jumped at the chance.
Hopefully, by the end of my adventure, I can learn how to play a few songs with ease. This will be shown in the "Ted Talk" at the end, where I will attempt to play a song in front of the class. My playing will be done whether I succeed or not, which will act as incentive for me to master the song(s). Most likely, the way that I will perform will be to have the singing of "Somewhere over the Rainbow" playing, while I play the ukulele. So far, my learning has been very structured, however as I get to more in depth learning I hope to take a much more relaxed, "Hawaiian" style of learning.
Throughout, I will mark my progress by how much I have felt that I have mastered. Halfway through, I expect myself to be able to play one song, most likely with a music sheet. My learning has been driven by websites such as this, and this, and will continue to be the main source of my learning. These give a step by step explanation to starting the ukulele, and can provide many video tutorials to help my learning. The videos will act as a great supplement to my practice, giving me a much more interactive way of learning. So far, I have also been having some issues with switching between chords quickly, which has sometimes hurt the sound of the song. This is the type of problem that I want to fix as early as possible, as I am going for a learning style in which I fix problems that arise in my practice.
So far, I have found this project to be very fun and informational. Pursuing the ukulele was something that I had wanted to do for a while, I just never had the excuse or the incentive to do it. I hope to continue the progress that I have made in the ukulele, and I am happy to have a new creative outlet in my life.
By the way, if there are any ukulele players in the gifted classes, what are your techniques to switching between two chords on the ukulele smoothly and easily?
Aloha,
Lukas Uke
Works Cited
Esaki, Ryan. "Learn to Play the Ukulele." Ukulele Underground. N.p., n.d. Web. 21 Feb. 2013.
Gererlo, Aldrine. "How to Play the Ukulele in 5 Mi." YouTube. YouTube, 21 June 2011. Web. 21 Feb. 2013.
Gray, Peter. "Learn How To Play The Ukulele." Ukulele Lessons from Uke School. N.p., n.d. Web. 21 Feb. 2013.
"Ukulele Tuner." Ukulele Tricks. N.p., n.d. Web. 21 Feb. 2013.
4 comments:
I found your project very interesting, for the ukulele is an instrument I would also like to learn. I liked the fact that you stated how your 1/2500 of the way there, and how your ukulele has been lying around your room, collecting dust. A question I have is: Are there any specific things you will be working on each week? For example, on week 4 you work on transitions and on week 5 you learn how to read the music. Overall, I find this project very interesting and you have many good resources that you are going to be using.
@ Susan
Thanks for the comment! I am no expert at the ukulele, so my approach to the project is to work up in general to learning a song by the fourth week. As said in my first post, I have learned some of the basics, now I must work on learning other basic chords. Once that is done, I should be close to the point where I can play a song, which should bring me to my fourth week. After that point, my project will mostly consist of learning other, more complicated songs, hopefully nearing the point of mastery.
Hi Lukas,
So far it seems that you are making great progress on learning the ukulele. I am sure you are aware that we are partaking in similar project ideas. I am learning the banjo and things that work well for me are just playing any opportunity you can get. Even if you are not using structured chords, just put fingers where you want and try to make a cool sounding chords or finger positions that you enjoy. It makes your playing much more original and personalized. Also I would love to help you out with playing ukulele and be "your expert" for this process!
See you soon, Ben
Lukas,
Sounds like you're really learning fast! I picked up the ukulele as a grad present last year. It's very simple and easy to pick up, don't get discouraged! Good luck! Regarding the changing chords part:
if there are 4 chords to a song practice 1 to 2 multiple times back and forth until you have it then go 2 to 3, etc.
That's how I learned. I would love to jam with you one period. Let me know
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