Beginner

Two Chord Songs for Beginners

C major and G major When we first start playing our ukulele it is common to learn just a couple chords, and usually those first two chords are C and G. In this article we are going to provide some great examples of songs you can play with a limited number of chords. That way from the very beginning you have something to show for each step on your ukulele journey! We are going to stick to one of the common keys and in this case the Key of C. Most new ukulele players immediately learn C major and G major so let’s find some music that can be played with just those two chords. In western music the easiest and best sounding interval is the root and the fifth, that’s why it is so simple to write songs using only the chords C major (root) and G major (fifth).[…]

Ukuleles are rather popular these days so it isn’t too difficult to purchase one regardless of where you live. 10-15 years ago you could walk into a music store and likely find only a couple on the wall, but now they have entire rooms dedicated to them. One of the biggest problems now is simply sifting through all the different brands out there! Whether you buy one of the ukuleles mentioned in this article or you continue shopping there are a few pointers to remember when buying a ukulele; Have an idea of what size you may want. Ukuleles come in soprano, concert, tenor, baritone, and now even more variations. For most beginners it is best to stick with a soprano or concert, I often recommend concert size for adult beginners or soprano size for kids. If you are an adult and you are worried about your finger size than[…]

One of the most important aspects of the ukulele is having the right strings. Good strings can make all the difference in sound, even making a cheap ukulele sound bright and awesome. Unless a ukulele comes with a quality string already on it, it is always wise to change the strings on a new instrument. Just remember as a beginner to follow certain guidelines on string makeup and tuning. It can be very easy to damage a ukulele with the wrong strings or by attempting to tune a string higher than it will go. Ukulele Sizes and Tunings Pocket or Sopranissimo With a length of 16 inches and scale of 11 inches these tiny ukuleles are often tuned DGBE. Similar to Baritone tuning just two octaves higher. Soprano The most well known ukulele size with a length of 21 inches and a scale of 13 inches. Most often tuned GCEA,[…]

The most common tuning for a ukulele is G-C-E-A,when each string is played starting at the G it gives us the famous “My dog has fleas!” My (G) Dog (C) Has (E) Fleas (A), a popular method of singing this tuning. These notes (GCEA) make up a C6 chord, The C is the root and bass note, the E is the 3rd, G is the 5th, and the A is the 6th making it a C6 chord. Because the uke only has four strings this C6 is also known as A minor 7 or Am7, but that is a discussion for another time. C6 tuning is also used for lap steel guitars, it is the tuning that gives instruments that “Hawaiian feel.” Most often when you here music that has an island mood to it, C6 is used. It was also common in old country music of Hank Williams and[…]

Take a Breather This goes for any activity, not just playing the ukulele. Sit up straight with the best posture that you can muster and breathe. Deep breaths counting in to 10 and out to 10. Spend 5 minutes just relaxing and breathing, there is no exact science to it, after all we aren’t attempting transcendental meditation or astral projection. Whatever breathing exercise helps you relax and chill out will work. I think we all would be happier people if we just took some time every day to focus on our breathing! Warm Your Hands Literally warm your hands, using warm water or friction, get those muscles ready for some stretches. While you are at it use your hands and body heat to warm your ukulele a little. The wood sounds better and your fingers work better when they are warm! Finger Stretches Not only should you stretch your fingers[…]

One of the best aspects of playing the ukulele, is getting to write your own songs. Of course we all begin by learning some of the more popular Uke tunes, but as time progresses most players want to pen their own unique tunes. To do that we need to learn a little about chord progressions. I’m going to let you in on a little secret, writing songs is really not that difficult. There are specific formulas that nearly every songwriter uses and progressions that have stood the test of time, yes of course a great songwriter knows when to bend the rules, but the basics are nearly always followed. In fact, by the end of this article you will realize just how many songs share the same chord progressions! A quick legal note: it is perfectly acceptable to use common chord progressions, they cannot be copyrighted. It is the melody[…]

OK, so we already discussed some basic practice techniques in a previous article. Great advice about keeping your ukulele tuned, setting aside time to practice, playing slowly at first, using a metronome, and playing along to songs you like. After a few weeks and months of this we start to advance, but instead of a peak we find a plateau! Often when folks pick up a musical instrument, they try it for awhile and then get frustrated and slowly practice less and less. Trust me, I give music lessons, and it’s quite common for folks to peter out in the beginning. However, there are those dedicated few who keep with it, they follow the beginner advice and they practice, but then they get to a point where they have trouble moving further up. While a plateau is common with every skill, I’m going to give you a few pointers on[…]

Whether we have been playing ukulele for a few months or perhaps just started there is always a good chance that we will run into some basic problems. Sometimes the problems are minor and easy to fix, other times they might be major issues (which may mean a particular ukulele is not playable). When it comes to troubleshooting any instrument, or anything at all, the key is to always start with the basics and check off any potential problems. IT employees who fix computers will often say that folks always forget the simplest stuff first… like plugging in or turning a machine on in the first place! Below is a guide to some basic ukulele headaches and how to potentially fix them. Tuning This is the number one beginners issue; in fact, this may be one of the most serious issues for all instruments! If what you are playing is[…]

In a recent article we discussed advancing our scale routines using specific fingers for each string on the uke, that way we could start peppering our chord progressions with notes. The basic and beginning way to play the ukulele is to use the index finger or thumb (or both) to simply strum up and down, however once we start adding in notes we get into the fun world of fingerpicking. Below we will discuss some basics on fingerpicking, however there is nothing wrong with just doing whatever works for you. One of the keys to fingerpicking is actually having memorized your chords and being able to switch quickly back and forth in a progression. If you are still having trouble with that you may want to hold off on fingerpicking for awhile, otherwise it is difficult to be focusing on both hands at the same time. Grab your Uke and[…]

Want to change you ukulele Strings? That’s a good idea, because one of the most important parts of your stringed instrument… is the strings! =) Don’t skimp on good strings, the better they are the better your Uke will sound. Another important factor is how the strings are put on, you need to make sure they are put in the right place and in a clean manner. Haphazardly tying the string all around itself looks terrible in the long run. The first step is buying yourself some new strings, I have always preferred Aquila NylGut strings. If you have others you would like to try that is fine, but remember that the more you pay the better they likely will be. I often buy strings for all my instruments at one time from a site called JustStrings, they offer good prices and all the brands I could want. Do not[…]

Two Chord Songs for Beginners

Top 5 Ukuleles for Beginners

Ukulele Strings

Different types of Uke Tunings

Ukulele Warm-Ups

Common Chord Progressions

Advanced Ukulele Practice

Ukulele Troubleshooting

Fingerpicking Basics

How to Restring your Ukulele?