02/01/2012 - 03/01/2012

28 Feb 2012

The Museo Del Timple

In a little while I will be taking a short break in the Canary Islands - Lanzarote to be precise. Imagine then my delight to find that their native folk instrument shares a lot in common with the ukulele!


canarian timple

The Canaries are home to a traditional instrument called the Timple - (and before you get in touch to tell me I have the spelling wrong, there is also a very similar instrument called the Tiple, but in the Canaries, it is spelled with an M).  You may have read my piece on Ukulele History which explains that whilst Hawaii is most famous for the uke, it was introduced to the islands by Spanish and Portuguese settlers.  Those sailors brought with them a range of small stringed instruments including the Tiple, the Machete and this one, the Canarian Timple.  The stringed instrument had been introduced to Spain and Portugal by the invading Moors from North Africa, leading to those countries become famous for developing a range of instruments, most notably the Spanish Guitar.

On the Spanish Canaries, they developed the Timple - A very similar instrument to the ukulele but most normally made with five strings (tuned GCEAD, in other words the same as the uke but with an added high D string).  It is also easily identified by its distinctive very arched back.  Like the uke it is mainly strummed (though can be picked) and is a staple of traditional Canarian folk music.

In recent years, in the old Lanzarote capital, Teguise, (the town on the island most noted for the Timple), they opened a museum dedicated to the instrument.  You can check their website HERE (apologies if you don't follow Spanish, but you will get the gist).  What really made me smile is that the museum has a room called "Retrato de familia" in which a host of other instruments to which the Timple is connected are on display, including Cuatros, Charangos and, of course, the Ukulele!

I fully intend to visit and give my readers a full report on my return. Who knows, I may even come back with a new instrument to add to my reviews page - who knows!

And finally - what do they sound like? - well, quite beautiful as you will see by watching the video below.




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27 Feb 2012

Ukulele Tips on strumming

The brilliant Aldrine Guerrero of Ukulele Underground has put up a great video for beginners teaching how to get a clean strumming action





Loads more tips and lessons on the main Ukulele Underground site
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26 Feb 2012

Ukulele News - 26 February 2012

Another round up of ukulele news from around the world.



In Hull (UK) - full marks to the resident who chose teaching the ukulele as her contribution to the Timebank skills exchange.

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BONSAI GUITARS??????????????  Grrrrrrrr.

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Nice short piece about the wonderful Heather Ellison.

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Great review of Jakes gig in California, plus some awesome photos of a maestro at work.

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Ricky Martin strums ukes? Need to find a photo for my Famous Ukulele Players section.

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Nice article about how Julia Nunes got her break

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RIP Ken Goodwin - Comedian and ukulele player.




More news next week!


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24 Feb 2012

First off the press, new paperback arrives

Always nice to get your first paperback copy! More Of What Ukulele Players Really Want To Know!













Available now from Amazons publisher Createspace and on the main Amazon site



- Posted using BlogPress from my iPad
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23 Feb 2012

Famous Ukulele Players - Part 23

Continuing my series of famous ukers that might actually surprise you. This one really made my day, as the man is something of a hero of mine - Willie Nelson!

(Image courtesy of uBass appreciation society) - it is a Kala uBass ukulele he is playing, but I've heard tell he plays acoustic too!

willie nelson playing bass ukulele


Read earlier editions of the Famous Ukulele Players series on the links below!


Famous ukers part 15

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22 Feb 2012

Paperback launches


Delighted to say that my new ukulele handbook, More Of What Ukulele Players Really Want To Know has launched in paperback!





You can now grab a copy from Createspace and in the next few weeks copies will start to be stocked in Amazon and Barnes and Noble.




- Posted using BlogPress from my iPad
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21 Feb 2012

New Got A Ukulele Page

In an amazing display of courage (or stupidity) I have set up a brand new page on Got A Ukulele to give a home to the videos I sporadically put up on YouTube.

youtube ukulele logo


As you will see, I am hardly the performer of the century, but it's a lot of fun, and I do tell beginners to try it out as much as they can.  As such, I hope to put a few more up and keep the page updated.

You can access the new page on the top menu, or by clicking http://www.youtube.com/user/GotAUkulele/videos

Enjoy!
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When I Fall in Love - Julia Nunes

I'm always a sucker for a Julia Nunes ukulele video, and this one is just lovely.  Plus, at the end of the track a nice update from Julia, about her album, and tour dates too.

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20 Feb 2012

Plastic ukuleles? Really?

As you get in to the world of ukuleles you will probably find yourself looking at some vintage models, and before long you will come across a range of ukuleles that are made of plastic.  Plastic you say? Surely they are just toys? Well, yes and no. There was certainly a blitz of "toy guitars' made from shiny brittle bright plastic from the 50's through to the 70's, but there were some serious contenders too. In fact, there still are.



maccaferri islander ukulele
Image Credit - Ukenique.com




Back in the 1950's the use of the new wonder material plastic was everywhere - no matter what the object, some manufacturers wanted to use it.  In the ukulele world, it was no different, and a whole range of injection moulded plastic ukes hit the music store shelves and mail order catalogs.  Makers had dabbled with the use of plastics before, particularly on moulded fingerboards such as those marketed by the Harmony brand before the 1950's but it  was post-war that things took off.  Perhaps the most famous of those was made by the jazz guitar maker Maccaferri, who introduced the Islander ukulele to huge commercial success with reports that they sold more than half a million instruments in the 1950' selling at about $3 a go. Those same instruments, in good condition, are highly sought after today for the simple reason that they were well made and designed, and actually sounded pretty good!

Another maker, Emenee, introduced the similar looking Flamingo plastic ukulele which also became extremely popular as it was endorsed by one of the music hall ukulele stars of the day Arthur Godfrey.

emenee flamingo ukulele
Image credit - Ukenique.com


Both instruments came with their own version of a beginners tool that clipped over the fretboard and allowed you to press buttons to form chords with one finger. Called the 'Chord Master' by Maccaferri and the 'Uke Player' by Emenee, this ingenious device worked with by a variety of levers being activated by pressing a button which depressed pads or 'fingers' down on to the strings to hold the chord patterns. A clever, if lazy, invention which allowed the uke to be played quickly with little effort. Vintage instruments today that come complete with the device are worth considerably more.

From the 1950's through to the 70's both brands and many others continued to churn out a dizzying array of plastic ukes of varying quality, some still highly collectible like the TV Pal range, and those made to assist in marketing of bands such as the Beatles or Disney Films.  There is a great set of links and photos to such ukuleles on the Chordmaster site. Check your attics - do you own one??

tv pal ukulele
Image credit - Ukenique.com


So what happened next - well the ukulele went into a bit of a lull in popularity and the models dried up due to lack of demand. But as you know, the ukulele never went away, it just went for a snooze and is now back in the big time. At the start of the current uke boom were the new entries by Jim Beloff at the Magic Fluke Company. In 1992 Jim picked up a uke at a junk sale and immediately clicked with it. He went home and started writing ukulele songbooks. By 1999 Jim and his wife Liz launched the Fluke ukulele and a little while later the Flea to huge success. Both instruments featured a wooden top, but a plastic moulded one piece back and, in a hark back to the early days, a moulded fingerboard with the frets in the moulding meaning zero setup issues. Both instruments had great volume and tone and are played today by some very famous folk including Bette Midler, William H Macy and Loudon Wainwright III.


fluke ukulele
Image - Gotaukulele.com


In a similar way, my favourite bargain ukulele for beginners, the Makala Dolphin, is now manufactured with a plastic back.  Whilst it was, no doubt, done to save money, many players who have played both the original all wood Dolphin and the newer version claim that the plastic backed instrument has bags more volume and tone!

Most recently the Takumi Ukulele Company, the brand behind the extremely highly regarded Kiwaya ukulele line have released three totally plastic ukes that hark back to those 1950's instruments. Each one is themed (Paradise, Peace and Ukulelia) and despite being branded in what they call their novelty section they are reported to sound great and retail for a non toy price of over £100.

Image - Takumi



So where does it go from here? Well new ukes are hitting the shelves all the time as the ukulele boom continues and with plastic a cheap and cheerful way to make ukes, I'd expect to see more appearing in the future. I'd also add, I'd prefer beginners to play a decent plastic uke, than an unplayable bargain basement wooden model.

For now though, I'll end on a video demo from YouTuber 'plastic ukuleles' playing and Islander and showing what a nice sound they create.



Thanks also to Ukenique for their kind permission for use of the Islander and Flamingo photos - they are dealers in vintage ukes and well worth a look!



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19 Feb 2012

Ukulele News - 19 February 2012

Another look at ukuleles in the news around the world in the last week.


I don't seem able to do a news roundup without finding a story about how the uke is growing in popularity from somewhere in the world. This one is from Sacramento, and is in pictures.

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And another from Down Under complete with ill advised photo opportunity.

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Worlds smallest ukulele banjo?

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Fun with four strings.

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More success for Jessica Latshaw




More news next week!
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16 Feb 2012

What is a PROPER ukulele shop

In a lot of advice I give on this blog, and on forums, I urge ukulele beginners buying their first ukulele to buy from a 'real and proper' shop. But what do I mean by that?


ukulele shop

Firstly, like most things in the modern age, you can buy pretty much anything you like online.  That means convenience and in many cases a price reduction. I can't argue with that.  In addition, as we are in a ukulele boom, that means lots and lots of cheap instruments flooding the market from the Far East - THAT I have more concern with.

I know that at the present time, money is tight for many people, and naturally you (and I) will want to grab the very best bargain that they can. When buying a  musical instrument though, I would urge some caution unless you know what you are doing or the risks.

At the cheaper end of the ukulele range, you are going to find a whole host of instruments that have been put together pretty shoddily. That isn't to say there are not some gems amongst them, or ukes that can be rescued, but generally speaking the majority will require a once over. So, you are sat at your PC without a music store nearby and you search around for the absolute cheapest uke you can find and click buy.  When it arrives, unless you are extremely lucky you will find a uke that needs attention, perhaps a high action (or an action so low it buzzes) with cheap strings and perhaps some more serious issues.  If that happens it means you bought from a box shipper like Amazon who simply take your order off the shelf unopened and ship it to you, or you bought from a terrible dealer.   With a bit of digging around you CAN do better.

I would say at the outset to any new player - if you have the opportunity to buy your first uke from a real shop (i.e. a shop you can walk through the door to and have a play before you buy) then that is without a doubt the surest way you will avoid tears. Have a strum and look over every single inch of the instrument. Compare it to others in your price range and ask for advice. How do they sound to your ears? Which feels better? Spend some time with them. If you find one you like - great - now ask the salesman to give it a professional once over to check the intonation and the action. If he refuses, I'd avoid the shop as that is really poor service - its a quick job for an experienced tech and he should be happy you asked and to check.  You might also see if he stocks better quality strings and ask pretty please if he will fit those too.  By going that route you are likely to get some good results.

But back to the real world. Many of us don't live in cities with a music shop on every corner, and you may be finding travelling expensive so its natural to rely on the internet - I know I do.  This is fine too though, so long as you try to avoid the faceless dealers who are not really instrument people, just warehouses selling boxes.

Most good music shops in your country will have their own website, or at the very least you can telephone them.  Do you research beforehand and settle on a few ukes you like and start calling them.  Don't just click the BUY button, actually call them and talk to them.  Ask them for their opinion on your choice and listen to their views. If they are unhelpful, reject them.  If you like what they say, make sure you ask them to give the uke a quick once over to check the same things as above, intonation and action before shipping.  You might also want them to upgrade the strings, and Aquila strings are the obvious choice for the beginner with a cheap uke.  Expect to pay for those strings (of course) but they should be happy to fit them in my opinion.  Again, any store who says 'no' to a check on setup should be avoided.  I've bought many this way, and you get to know the shops that give a damn and those that don't..

That isn't to say you shouldn't buy blind - either from that big wholesaler, or from sites like ebay where the seller can't warrant what they are offering - just make sure you ONLY do that if you know what you MAY be letting yourself into, and have people (like me!!) to turn to for advice  if it arrives with setup issues.  Many ukes CAN be improved if there are tuning problems, and bear in mind, even high end ukes can be shipped this way!

So, take care, and make sure you can ask or play if you possibly can - let us not forget, there was a time not that long ago where the internet didn't exist, and to buy a ukulele you had no choice but to go into a real shop or at least phone one!

Good luck!
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15 Feb 2012

Amanda Palmer - Lua on ukulele

Regular readers of Got A Ukulele will know that I have a "thing" for Amanda Palmer, and in particular her love of the ukulele.

Therefore thrilled with this song choice (Lua, by Bright Eyes) and a superbly atmospheric video too. Bliss.




- Posted using BlogPress from my iPad
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14 Feb 2012

Ukulele Jam report

After a short break, it was good to get together with friends again last Sunday for another ukulele jam.


I haven't posted details of one of our sessions for a while, but you can read others by clicking the 'Gig Report' tag at the end of this post.  I've put them up as a means to provide inspiration on songs you can think about playing.

This week, as well as the staple favourites we play that you will read on the other entries, we tried a few new songs that worked rather well. Why not have a go at these?

Running To Stand Still - U2 - starting off slow with fingerpicking and into a heartier strum for the passionate last verse.

Tomorrow Is A Long Time  - Dylan - just fabulous fingerpicked on the uke!

Walk Right Back - Everly Brothers

I Got Stripes - Johnny Cash

In more depressing news, I still didn't make it all the way through Thunder Road by Bruce Springsteen.... More practice Mr Maz!





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13 Feb 2012

Ukulele tune for Valentines Day

Love is in the air, so here's something for you to play to the special someone in your life. Another great video from the Jive Aces (and a song favourite of mine).






- Posted using BlogPress from my iPad
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Ukulele News - 13 February 2012

Another round up of ukulele news from around the world.


The now regular news report of the "ukulele craze" hits Gloucestershire (I hate the term Craze....)

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And over in North Jersey, the ukulele is now "hip" (it's better than "craze" I suppose)

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Glyn Chan of Singapores Ukulele Movement is interviewed about, erm... alcohol?

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Law and Order star Laura Benanti plays the uke

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Well, in this Poll in the Seattle Times, the readers thought Eddie Vedder should win the Grammy.  He didn't though..

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Zooey Deschanel playing ukulele on Saturday Night Live (second vid down)

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New Gretsch ukulele models.

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Homeless street children busking for survival on the streets of Jakarta

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Interview with Jessica Latshaw who was interviewed on Got A Ukulele a couple of weeks ago.



More news next week!
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My new ebook, one week on!

Well it's only been launched for just over a week, but my follow up to the first ukulele handbook, More Of What Ukulele Players Really Want To Know has done rather well!


more of what ukulele players really want to know

Within only a couple of days it had made it into the bestseller charts, reaching number 2 in the Amazon UK music reference book chart and top ten stateside. Pretty humbling really!  It will also shortly be launching on iTunes and Barnes and Noble, and the paperback should go live in a few days, so pretty exciting.

I hope you like it!

You can take a look on the links below




A HUGE thank you to anyone who grabbed a copy - it is very much appreciated.

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12 Feb 2012

Ebook competition - the winners!

Hi all - the competition closed on Friday and thank you to you all for sending through some great pictures.  I've run through them and like these five best! Congratulations to you as you've won a copy of my book (check your email for details!)


First up - the joys of a plastic ukulele, thanks to Cyril Keller




Thanks to Robert Hultman for the next one - I haven't got a clue what the outfits are about but I love the pic!




Cherie Cel Santos sent the next one - a future guitar hero if ever there was one (it's not a guitar it's a guitarlele before you write in!)




For the competition I asked for pictures that would make me smile, this next winner from Alicia Cummings isn't "funny" but is sure made me smile because it's so uplifting!



And finally, this one from Jennifer Allen, which made me laugh because of the caption she sent with it saying, "Does this ukulele make me look fat?"




Congratulations to the winners, and keep your eye on Got A Ukulele for more competitions soon!



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10 Feb 2012

Gus and Fin - Cretin Hop

I always like a Gus and Fin (GUGUG) ukulele video, and meant to post this one earlier this year - Cretin Hop by the Ramones.  Try not tapping your foot to this.

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9 Feb 2012

The Got A Ukulele Twitter list

Some of you may know (if you follow Twitter) that there is a kind of event that happens every Friday called Follow Friday. On that day, people who use twitter list the names of others that they recommend you follow by name including the hashtag #FF. I don't follow friday myself, but I do run something else - Ukulele Saturday!

On that day I send a number of tweets listing the Ukulele people that I enjoy following with the tag #ukulelesaturday. That got me thinking, and because I run this site I can go one better.

So, if you are on twitter, and are starting out with the ukulele, I present below a list of Tweeters that you really should click and follow if you want to get involved in the ukulele community. All either play, make, or just appreciate ukes and all are jolly nice people.

(nb - I am BOUND to miss somebody and upset them. Not intentional, as I am following hundreds but this list represents the most uke-centric! - in any case, let me know if you want adding and I may do that.  Keep this page bookmarked as it will be updated. Oh, and these are in no particular order!!)

So here you have it - the world of ukulele on Twitter just a click away.  Make sure you say hello and mention the uke!


@skifflefella
@MissUkulady
@claz0r
@Timato_
@gutnahofski
@leestuartevans
@HershMusic
@MandolinChick
@hey_ukeguys
@Wigan_George
@Laughing_Gravy
@paulgrog
@VictoriaVox
@byjimini
@cursleyukuleles
@ukuleleboy
@winklesbloke
@2StrumsUp
@krabbers
@ivyarch
@stewkulele
@AndyBeal
@velofille
@mrsbazmaz
@rawlo64
@ukes4fun
@sminsoc
@idle_git
@chrisfantana
@mistysj
@MsJoeyBug
@jennifera11en
@apollostowel
@WIOU
@woscotukers
@lalalen
@gemancipation
@thehappyukulele
@moonmonkey71
@TonyCasey64
@garyjugert
@Lorraine_Bow
@tricityvogue
@amycrehore
@Torasan04
@JamjarMc
@UkeHunt
@scot_nature_boy
@BalhamUkeSoc
@ukegnome
@amiwhoa
@kendrauke
@Mr_Ogrizovich
@piratemagpie
@salwaazar
@PeteBrissenden


Oh, and of course, you can follow me at @bazmaz_ukulele

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7 Feb 2012

Ukulele Theory - The Circle Of Fifths

A minor theory lesson on Got A Ukulele with something that you may find useful - the Circle Of Fifths. An incredibly helpful chart for any musical instrument player, not just ukulele players.

Below you will see a Circle of fifths chart that you can print off and keep in your ukulele songbook. It's called a 'Circle Of Fifths', because going clockwise around the circle from the 12 o clock position are all twelve musical pitches, going up by a fifth each time. Anti-clockwise they go down by a 4th..  More on that in a moment.  Laying the pitches out like this allows you to work out lots of cool things. Basically, the circle of fifths organises keys into groups that relate to each other musically. In fact, to sound more evangelical - it's a diagram that basically explains how a significant part of music WORKS.

Firstly, you can use the Circle as is to immediately tell you what chords go well together in any specific Key.  Take the key of G Major for example - locate the G on the outer wheel.  The Circle tells you that any chord that touches that G box will work "well" in a song in the key of G, i.e. C, D and Em. The next closest but not touching chords (The Am and Bm) may work also, and the further you move from that G box, the harder it will be for the chords to work in that song. It's not a firm and fast rule, but a good general rule of thumb that is underpinned by so much music that has been written.  The relationship works as moving clockwise from any Key you move to the Dominant (the V) of the previous key. Moving counterclockwise you move to the Fourth (IV) of the previous key. You would be amazed at just how much of popular music rotates around those note relations (i.e. I, IV, V) - and they do that because they sound naturally pleasing to the ears. The most common songs on the planet use this progression, such as Happy Birthday - but so many others. For more on that topic - take a look at this video which explains more - THE I I IV CHORD SEQUENCE FOR UKULELE

(Just a quick side note here for beginners - you may be reading this thinking 'what on EARTH is a fifth?? - simple - a perfect musical fifth is five notes in a standard diatonic scale - or seven semitones. It's part of a very pleasing sequence of music that works well on the ear - try this. Sing the song 'Twinkle Twinkle Little Star in your head. Whatever note you start on for the first 'twinkle', the second twinkle will be one fifth above it... What is a semitone? Well picture a piano keyboard and remember the old rhyme 'half steps are from key to key with no keys inbetween..'  So basically it's the 'full' notes as it were on a piano. If you run up a piano keyboard hitting each white AND black key you play all the half steps or 'semitones'. Basically it includs the sharps / flats)

You can also use the Circle as a transposing tool - that is to say a guide for changing the chords in a song up or down in keys to suit your voice or other players.  Print off two copies of the Circle, but make one copy smaller. Cut out both circles and separate the inner from the outer ring. Putting the smaller of the outer ring copies inside the larger, you can now line up the change in key you want and automatically work out what all the other chords change to. For example, say you have a song in the key of G, but want to play it in the key of C, lay out the larger ring with the G at the top. Put the smaller ring in so the C chord is lined up with the G.  Now you can use that smaller inner ring to read off what new chord you would need to play for any of the original chords (Still following me....?)

You can do this without the cutting and copying - just make a note of the chords you want to transpose from and where you want to go and the other chords will slot in place - for example - if you have a song that goes from F, to Am to Em - and you want to move it so it starts in D - using the same 'pattern' in the boxes, you can see that D to F#m to C#m will be the same progression - just in a different key.

There's much more to the Circle - like using it to build scales but for starters, this guide should set you on the path to using it for the most useful.  So, anyway - here's your diagram - click on it to open a bigger version and either print direct or right click and save it to your computer. Enjoy!




circle of fifths ukulele


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Beautiful playing

Had to share this - yet another wonderful cover by Alastair Wood of http://ukulelehunt.com/



Great playing and a wonderful uke.
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6 Feb 2012

Famous Ukulele Players - Part 22

Another round up of famous people who you may not know play the ukulele!

Chris Leslie, Ric Sanders, Dave Pegg (Fairport Convention)


Prince Charles!


Ryan Gosling


Winston Marshall (Mumford and Sons)



James Franco


Fozzie Bear



And you can check out previous editions of Famous Ukulele Players below



Famous ukers part 15





Read More »

Sample my new book!

For those without a Kindle (or those without access to theirs at the moment), take a look at the whizzy Amazon widget to grab a sample of my ukulele ebook, More Of What Ukulele Players Really Want To Know


Day one since launch was rather crazy and saw the book go to number 2 in the Amazon UK Music Reference chart! Thanks to all those who ordered it!
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5 Feb 2012

Magic Ukulele

Well, it made me smile...

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Ukulele News - 5 February 2012

More ukulele news from around the world.


Plinkety Plink???

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Noodle McDoodle talks ukulele in Charleston

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Gary Oldman tells us that he is learning the uke, inspired by Eddie Vedder.

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And, talking of Eddie Vedder, he is off on tour with his uke, following it being nominated for a Grammy!

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John Bloor of the Wirral Ukulele Orchestra talks to the Liverpool Daily Post about ukes

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More news next week!
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4 Feb 2012

My NEW ukulele book launches!

Well it only took me a year, but after much nudging from friends and Got A Ukulele readers, I have put out a follow up to my bestselling ebook - More Of What Ukulele Players Really Want To Know.


This book goes a little further than the last, dealing with more advanced questions, and with a definite slant on encouragement and trying to get beginners out there playing. Still very much in the style of the first book though!

For now it's available on the following links (and Amazon Spain, France, Germany and Italy) but in due course it will be available in paperback, and on iTunes / Barnes and Noble etc.

I hope you like it! Links below

Amazon UK
Amazon.com
Smashwords (for Sony, Nook, pdf formats amongst others.


Baz


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1 Feb 2012

INTERVIEW - Jessica Latshaw

Occasionally Social Media in the ukulele community does that thing where it alerts you to something really special.

You know it's going to be cool when your Twitter, RSS or Facebook feeds are showing the same thing from lots of friends. Sometimes its just an amusing picture, sometimes a thought provoking news story, or in this case, a video. And it was certainly a video that did the rounds - an impromptu song being performed on the ukulele on the NYC Subway and the brilliant, appreciative reactions of the fellow passengers. If you didn't catch it, I blogged it here and it's a real treat.

That uke player is Jessica Latshaw and I am delighted that she agreed to be quizzed by Got A Ukulele.

jessica latshaw ukulele
Photo Credit - Jessica Latshaw


Jessica describes herself as an artist, a daughter, a sister, a friend and an Aunt. She's been a dancer for just about forever and has been writing music since she was a young teenager. She has performed on stages in Korea, Japan, Canada and all over the USA, but was most recently captured performing that uke song, Ain't My Friend, on the subway. To her surprise that video has since been viewed by over 1.5 million people, she has been asked to perform the song on TV and on more stages and has released the track on iTunes. Way to go!

I caught up with her recently to discuss music, the success of the song and the ukulele.


You are clearly a talented musician and singer - how did that all start for you? 

Some of my earliest memories are walking outside, on my parents land in Pennsylvania, and making up my own songs to sing out our animals. I guess that's kind of how it got started. Eventually my parents noticed that could really sing, so started to encourage it. Then I started piano lessons, singing in church and writing music...and, well, here I am.


Some kids don't get on with music lessons - was it something you took to naturally? 

Ha ha! Yes and no. I started with piano lessons and pretending to learn how to read the music. Actually I just memorised my Moms (who can play the piano) finger positions on the notes. When my teacher finally discovered my cheating, she made me go back to primer books. And then I quit because I was very frustrated by starting at the beginning again. However, I started piano again at 14, this time because I really wanted to learn - the right way. I had started to play by ear and decided that I needed to learn theory too. That was the right decision. I went on to study piano at collage as well. I also LOVE voice lessons, have always loved them. If I could afford it I would take them regularly.


It's always impressive to see somebody who writes their own songs - when did you write the song Ain't My Friend, and what's the inspiration? 

I wrote that in the summer of 2011. The inspiration stemmed from a friendship that became more than friends at one point, and then, for his reasons, he decided to just become friends again. It's a hard, sometimes painful transition to go backwards in a relationship, and I experienced just that.


That video has now been viewed over a million times - how has that changed things for you? 

Well I am now working with a manager who has managed Jennifer Lopez and Tori Amos (amongst others). I also have a publicist now. Plus, people are paying me money to play my songs. It's pretty crazy and exciting.


Well, considering your musical background, was this always the goal - did you sense that success was out there waiting to be grabbed? 

People have always told me there is something "special" about my performances - whether it was dancing, acting or music. I listened to them gratefully, but also understood that there are many special artists who never get a big break, and that doesn't make them any less talented. Also, the term "success" is viewed differently by different people. There are artists who have sold millions of records and have lived unkind lives or messed up very important relationships through bad choices. I would say that's not successful living. I guess I'd like both - to sell albums AND to love people well and make good choices. That sounds just about as successful as one can be.


Tell me how you got into playing the ukulele, and what models do you play?

Actually, I am a pianist first. I only picked up a uke in the early fall of 2011. Mostly because it's too heavy to tote a keyboard around in the city when I am just going to an open mic and playing two songs, max. So a ukulele was nice and light and I thought it would be fun to write music on a different instrument. I have now had two Cordoba brand ukes. The first one is a little smaller with no pickup. The one I am currently playing is a concert size with a pickup. AWESOME!


What do you say to people who laugh at the uke and think it's just a toy instrument?

Well, they're entitled to their opinion, of course. But I enjoy it, so I do. End of story!


And what else do you play? 

As I say above, I play piano, but also, a little guitar.


So, what are your plans for the future, musically speaking? 

Making albums, whether that be with a big label, an indie label or independently. Also, playing lots of gigs. More collaborations with musicians to back me up. I recently started working with an incredible percussionist which I am excited about.


I tell my readers many times that playing in front of other people, or with others is about the best way to improve your craft - is that something you agree with? 

YES! Just like anything else in life, you don't grow and get better unless you do it - repeatedly. That's the only way to get better. There's no shortcut; there's just practice and repeat and learn from mistakes and grow.


Do you have any tips for beginners just starting out with the ukulele? 

Yes - make sure you get something that holds it's tuning. My friend picked up a uke, but it's so cheap that it's intonation is off and so she is too frustrated with the sound of it to really practice. Invest in something that has the ability to make you inspired to play music and learn the instrument.


Finally, I HAVE to ask this. Did you stay in touch with the guy who played the congas with you on the subway video? 

I have. Quoom 1 (along with MC Boogie - the guy making the announcements on the subway) actually played 'Ain't My Friend' with me at the Local 269 on the Lower East Side a few weeks ago. It was a nice little reunion and people really dug it!



Thanks so much to Jessica for agreeing to talk to Got A Ukulele. I would urge that you check out her Youtube channel and her Facebook page. She also writes a Blog.

Most importantly of all you can get a copy of the track, Ain't My Friend on iTunes Here.

Best of luck with your future Jess!

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