Do we have any Ukulele players here on ATS..?!

reply to post by CX


awesome..! thank you so so much for all your help

have been looking for a decent Uke forum to join..! am watching the video now, i just wish my new strings would hurry up - you have been ever so helpful CX, i really appreciate your input

heres my bestest boy Blake with my new Uke



p.s. slightly unrelated, but... i dont know why the pic is so big..? i had to adjust the pixel size as it was well over 500kb..!

Looking great! The Blakelele

Here's a video to help you string your uke, thats if you're doing it yourself. It's always daunting doing it first time, but it will save you lots of money, theres no rush and if it goes wrong, just start again.



If you look at that users channel, you'll see it's the uke undergrounds channel, over 300 vids that might be of use.

CX.

One last thing.....sorry to bombard you with loads of info.....

The amount of chords to learn can look quite daunting, but you'd be surprised how many are very similar to the basic ones you already know, or even easier.

For example, when you are laying around strumming a chord, take the G chord for example where you use three fingers, lifting any one of those fingers off a string will give you a different sound.....and a different chord.

Go look up what that new chord is and you've now learnt one more easy one. Add that to your practice routine, and it will be come as easy as the others. Finding songs with chords you don't know is a good thing too. I know that sounds obvious, but it's easy to sit in a comfort zone with the same few chords. Practice what you don't know as well as what you do.

Right.....i'll leave you to it now.....go practice!

CX.

Heres a couple of photos showing the cheap strap i made....like i said, it was a cheap belt from the pound shop,. a bit of suede thonging (or you can use string), and i chucked a couple of bone beads on there for effect.







Sorted.

Some people aren't fussed about straps, but i find ukes too small and fiddly, and they move around a lot for me in comparison to a heavier guitar, so having it hanging from a strap leaves my hands free to play the thing instead of keeping it still.

CX.

reply to post by CX


Thanks sooo much CX you are the bestest..!
Dont worry about bombarding me with info - i can always refer back to it
I have finally got my new strings. However i have a problem. Ukulele strings go GDEA right...? Well the strings that i have received go GCEA...!?! I am SO confused... Could you shed any light on this..?

Thanks again for all your help, you've been ace..!

Originally posted by fluff007
reply to post by CX

 

Thanks sooo much CX you are the bestest..!
Dont worry about bombarding me with info - i can always refer back to it

I have finally got my new strings. However i have a problem. Ukulele strings go GDEA right...? Well the strings that i have received go GCEA...!?! I am SO confused... Could you shed any light on this..?

Thanks again for all your help, you've been ace..!

No probs at all

Regarding your strings, it is GCEA....heres a tuning vid...



So yeah, don't be tempted to overtighten them to D. on the C string.

Tip, when you first string them, go real easy and gentle tightening them up. Not to fast, they are nylon and can snap under fast tightening.

Also, this may sound obvious, but if you are using a tuner that you clip on or sit next to the uke, i mean the tuners that register the vibration of the string, when you begin to tighten the string, you may find you get to your chosen note and the strings are still real floppy.

Take the G string for example, start tightening it, but if you find the strings are really floppy still and not tight at all, yet your tuner says you are G already, you have to keep tightening up another octave (8 notes A-G) until you hit the next G. The strings will then be tight and it will sound the same as in that video.

In fact, just tune it by listening to that video and match up the sounds by ear if you can.

Good luck.

CX.

PS: By the way, GDAE is a violins tuning, and also one of the tunings for the 4 string tenor banjo.

reply to post by CX


Update: Bad news

Hi CX

Long time no speaky..! Sadly I haven't doe much in the way of my uke as I have been diagnosed with trigger finger
So for the next 6 months I will not be able to play with my uke..

I knew I might have problems, but my hands have become very bad now, so waiting for the orthopaedics to send me a letter as to when my surgery is.. Looks like its gonna be a long wait..!

Have you got any advice of things I could learn without playing the uke..? Is there anything I could brush up on ad such..?

Thanks for helping me out before, you are great..! Hope you had a good start to the year

Hi Fluff

Sorry to hear about your finger......mind if i ask which finger is affected, or is it more than one? Six months you say? Thats a long time to rest, some medical sites say four weeks before returning to work even after surgery.

Is it your strumming hand or your fretting hand that is affected?

My fingers have been hurting a lot recently, knuckles to be exact, i used to box in the army and have all the aches and pains of fractures coming back to annoy me i think. Very annoying when you want to play stringed instruments.

When i can't play, i tend to try a backup like my harmonica that i'm learning. I guess you could learn some music theory but to be honest i think you'd be bored stupid if you couldn't try it straight out on the uke.

Are you able to even strum gently with your thumb rather than your finger? I play it like that anyway, never could use my index finger properly, it always seemed to get caught on the strings lol.

Can you fret the chords very lightly, or is it complete rest? I have an understanding of what trigger finger in, but wasn't sure of the severity of yours. Maybe you could spend a few minutes a day just going through the motions of the chord shapes with your fingers on the fretboard if thats not to much, that way you'll be teaching your hands to do it without thinking.

CX.

If you can't use your fingers to strum, but can grip gently, there are felt picks that you can use for ukes and banjos. I just got a packet, if you were closer i could send you a couple, to be honest they are a bit thick and chunky but they have a nice warm sound. You could always make your own pick out of something soft. Bit of cardboard with fabric wrapped round it or something like that.