This tutorial made me go and get my ukulele back from the trash I threw it into after trying to learn it for 2 months and still not being able play anything apart from some chords( the very same chords that make almost every beginner go all yoooohoooo INITIALLY on being able to play a few songs)
Hi Angela, That's something I started out with briefly, it was a common tuning in the UK and Europe (and still is in Canada, I believe). The only difference is that you're chord/note names will be two semitones higher than me, otherwise all of the principles will work for you. All of the D major chords I talk about will be E major for you, with the note E, G#, and B.
Thank you very much. Your explanations and illustrations are clear and easy to understand. I have been playing guitar and ukulele for 40 years (!) but now I want to understand what I am doing.
I m sorry to repeat myself, but this lesson is invaluable for overall musicianship. I ve come back to it twice to internalize the material covered. After decades of guitar and dismissing the ukulele as kids' stuff, I now see the error of my ways. Boy, was I stupid! Gracias, maestro Phil!
Very Intresting… like… I am not great at theory…I would like to learn more..in practise… and.. I think that ukulele might help me….hmmm…like… do I get this right that..on the uke..you use ..or you ”have to use” these ”reversed” chords? ~Matleena~
You don't have to use them, but often when playing chord melody it's good to be able to find a chord or partial chord on a place where you can make the melody note the highest. The uke is great for learning chord theory on, it was only when I got a uke that I seriously started working on understanding what was going on.
Thanks Phil. This all well and good, and a lot to understand. However, the bottom line is that you can't be thinking about triads, and where they are located. You have to know finger positions automatically just as when learning basic chords upon first learning how to play. I suppose chord theory is good to know, but practice where these chords are located, and sound, is even more important. You would blow Roy Smeck's mind with this dissertation! I doubt if he knew what a triad is...
I agree, and those 3 shapes are things that are really good to have in muscle memory, and the knowledge of which note in the shape changes it from major to min. I do tend to think in chord tones when I'm playing, though (it didn't come easy, and took a lot of practise time!), and it really sped up my ability to play all over the neck and improvise. Ah, Roy Smeck. I would have loved to have had a lesson or two with him!
