Talk me out of (or into) a ukulele

I think what I meant to say was something about counterpoint—being able to play parallel thirds, fourths, fifths sixths, etc. and then switch between those and eventually have contrary motion, to be able to produce two lines of melody at once, which would be a little hard to do in a flute solo. But yes, intervals exist all throughout music!

r ransom wrote:I hope this will pass, but a sleepless night bread an increasingly strong desire to buy and learn to play a ukulele, or other similar string instrument.  That's all I can think about, playing music for my goose who loves song time.

I would play music like this

Only...i am not musical. Music is something I enjoy listening to,  i can tell my George formby from my queen (fun fact, it's the same ukulele).  But that's nearly my limit.

On a good day I can count to four.  In elementary school band, they put me as 3rd triangle (the one that doesn't play) and suggested I avoid music in my future.

And yet, there is a drive in me to identify the skills I am worst at in this world and test myself against them.

Ukulele are supposedly affordable, make a variety of music, and easy to learn.  Now, could I do this for under $50CAD?  Or hopefully, someone will talk me out of it?

My dad played it all the time when I was growing up, taught himself. Then played a guitar. He bought my mom an organ and then a piano 9or the other way around I forget) and taught himself to play that. For years he played by ear and then taught himself to read music.

I say go for it and relax and have fun.

A not-windstorm knocked the power out the other day.  I sort of knew it was going to be a long outage, but also, hoped it might not.  I was also feeling a bit under the weather and didn't want to get off the couch.  I had within reach my ukulele and my notebook.  I set to work on this version of the hobbits theme.  It's pretty simple, but has a few finger changes where I stumble.



The sun went down and it became too dark to read, so I tried to remember the song.  It was more difficult than I expected.

Memorizing a song engages a different part of my brain I haven't used in music learning much yet.  Actively memorizing is a lot harder.  

The thing is, I don't know how much got stuck in the long term memory.   I'm trying to make it a little diddy I can play to fill an awkward silence.   Anyway, I play it a few times a day and hope it can find a place in the long-term memory room.

I put away the Renaissance music as I cannot grasp multiple voices yet.

The graded Sor studies are lovely, but need a low G, so I've been using the guitar with a capo.  I think it's time to restring with low g....but I want to use up my current string before replacing it.  Sigh.  I'm too frugal.

Exciting progress, I can almost keep up with thos guy



And even when I falter, I can usually join back in after a few bars.

I think I've been neglecting the listening part of learning too much.  I just don't like having my gadget at my practice space for the same reason I don't buy fudge...if it's not there, I won't eat it and will opt for a healthy snack instead.

The Progressive Studies by fernando sor for classical ukulele, for low g ukulele, sound good enough in high g.  Odd at times, but not evil like I expected.

....so far.

I finally got my strings to the place where they stay in tune despite weather and time and I am not emotionally strong enough break in new strings right now.  Besides, nylon strings feel like a limited resource, I don't want to discard good ones just to learn a new song.

I just skimmed this long string and am so happy to see you not only got a uke but are also progressing quite well, it seems.

And you're also noticing things like the "feel" or the "soul" of a piece--how one person playing can seem so blah, but another can make it come alive.

Music is a language, a means of self-expression.  And like a language, you can read, write, speak/play, and listen.  You're gradually incorporating all of those facets in.

And I love imagining your geese mesmerized, listening to you.  Glad they liked it!

I've discovered it helps to start on a lower quality or "student" instrument at first, because of cost.  Once you've stuck with one for a while and can afford it, you can upgrade to a professional quality instrument.

Have you considered asking at your local music store if they have any referrals to other players in your area?  That might be a way to get some questions answered, but it might also be an avenue for you to try and maybe buy another instrument.

Musicians tend to have multiple instruments, and we often have something we no longer want and may be willing to part with it to someone serious, who will respect the instrument, rather than sell it blindly, since someone might just treat it disrespectfully.

Instruments have souls, after all...  

When we do African dancing, we must pay respects to each of the drummers and their drums when we are finished.  As a musician, I truly feel that respect, knowing firsthand how much time, money, energy, and hard work goes into playing an instrument before one gets to the point where it sounds good enough to be played in public, or as a performer or professional.

But in your case, where you're doing this for enjoyment and expression, you are listening more than you realize, because you're already changing things to what seems to sound better in your heart and ears. This is part of the progression.

And isn't it amazing?  Like a sort of magic.

For inspiration, here is Jake Shimabukuro.  One reason I enjoy his playing is he so thoroughly enjoys it.  He's been playing since he was 3, by the way.



Keep up the fantastic work!  If you get brave enough, I'd encourage you to video yourself playing a song from start to finish...or as much as you can, at various points along the way.  It will give you an outside look that can often point things out for you to improve, correct, or continue.  AND it's a fabulous way to document your progress.