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Blame it on the Bossa Nova (strum)….

3/30/2016

Keep working on the Bossa Nova strum daily and by next week you will have it down ! I can (almost) promise that.
Also continue to work on Las Chaparerras. It will really help to listen to the recording to get the rhythm in your heads. I have attached that recording below to make it easy for you to listen to it. Also focus on the pull-offs in the second half. Practice the strum by playing alternating bass strings (C and G) for the first beat followed by 2 enthusiastic strums (for beats 2 and 3) Think Mariachi!
Review the pages on major and minor intervals (pg 36-37) and we will talk about playing intervals next week.
Enjoy the sun !

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Dance of the fingers and eyes takes hours and hours

3/24/2016

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Remember to practice your Bb scale in thirds for next week

The Dance of the Hours had never been a favorite in this book. Why is so darn hard to read?
You can use the handout below to try playing both Uke II parts at the same time. This may be easier than reading them separately. We will play this again next week, just for Kathy, Les, and Michael (and you thought you could get out of it!). We'll also sing the Hello Muddah words that Michael sent…. for comic relief.

There are many things we can practice with the fun latin rhythm song, Sway.(attached below)
1. Playing the song by ear. Listening for the chord changes.
2. Playing the "closed" chord shapes so that you can move around the fretboard and change keys
3. Play this song with a Bossa Nova Rhythm (Use your Strumming handout; Brazilian Strum, and the recording below)
4. Stylize the tune by varying the rhythm and leaving some empty space, etc

We will also begin to work on Las Chaparreras (pg 35) As you pratice this, concentrate on the rhythm and the pull-offs.

Events:
Bellingham Ukulele Orchestra will present it's 4th annual concert (Just For Fun) on May 21 at the Heiner Theater at Whatcom Community College. Tickets are $10.00 and can be purchased at Brown Paper Tickets or from ME in April. We will have special guests and we put on a good show so don't miss it.

Also - the Langley Ukulele Ensemble will be appearing in Bellingham on April 24. If you have never heard the amazing group of kids, you will love them. Click here for ticket information.

sway-_without_chords.doc
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ukulele_strum_patterns.pdf
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dance_of_the_hours_intervals.pdf
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Happy St. Paddy's Day

3/16/2016

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I hope you all find a great way to Celebrate the day.
It was fun to play some Irish tunes. Have fun with Star of the County Down and The Blarney Pilgrim. If you have questions about them, we can talk about it next week.

Next Week we'll warm up again with the Bb Scale (across the neck). Charley has sent a diagram showing the Two patterns for Scales across the neck: One starting on the G string and the other begins the pattern on the C string. These are easy to read and may help you get the patterns in your head. Attached

scale_across_neck.pdf
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We will begin to tackle Dance of the Hours next week. Although the Uke II part can be played both notes at once, it is meant to be divided (div.) and played by two ukuleles. So, we really have 3 uke parts on that piece. Please practice the Uke I and then both of the Uke II parts (top and bottom notes separately). The notes are very tricky to read and there are some booby traps. For example a B# is the same as a C, and a E# is the same as an F. So…. read them carefully.
The Uke I is all over the place (staff) so take your time and work out the fingering.
Many of you will recognize this tune and Michael has sent (by email) the words that were put to the tune by Allen Sherman while Ponchielli was (no doubt) rolling over in his grave.
See you next week, Gail
A handful of skill is better than a bagful of gold. - Irish Proverb

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Abdelazar and more chords

3/9/2016

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Lovely job on Theme From Abdelazer. We'll play that again next week…before we have our Irish song party.
Playing this beautiful piece prompts me to review and practice the Bb scale. In class I passed out two different ways to look at it (attached). Please practice your Bb scale for next week. This is the major scale pattern that begins on the G string. Once you have learned it, you can move it up and down the fretboard to play any major scale.

We did some review of Summertime. looked at chord for that in another position on the neck and changed it to the key of Em.

In honor of St Paddy's day, please practice Oft in the Stilly Night (pg 41), and I will also compile a list of other Irish Songs, some of which are below. The songs that are scanned below, and maybe of bad quality, are in the Daily Ukulele.

danny_boy.pdf
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2_irish_songs.pdf
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whiskey-in-the-jar-7515.pdf
File Size:	34 kb
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drunken_sailor_–_am_and_g_.doc
File Size:	24 kb
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Playing in Am and Abdelazer

3/2/2016

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To summarize last night:
We warmed up by playing I Shall Be Released using our sliding chords up the neck.
We then played Salvonic Dance; both the melody and the harmony and chords.
We then reviewed the chords in the Key of Am (pg 20) and afterwards played the Crawdad Song in Am - It works but sounds a bit weird.
Next we talked about the chords in Summertime, and some strumming and picking techniques that can be used with that (and other songs).
Finally we began to work on Theme From Abdelazer, and talk about some chord shapes that can be used for fingering (Attached). Listen to this lovely song on your CD to become familiar with it.

For Next Week:
Practice Theme From Abdelazer - learning the notes, practice the chords also.
Work on playing Summertime by ear using the patterns I showed you in class. And then work on your own arrangement making it sound the way you want it to. That means to vary the strum, use finger picking, leave some silences, or whatever you feel like doing to make it yours
Have fun with it!
Gail

shapes_for_abdelazer.pdf
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BELLINGHAM UKULELE ORCHESTRA Spring Concert
MAY 21
$10.00 - Tickets will go on sale in April

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Blame it on the Bossa Nova (strum)….

Dance of the fingers and eyes takes hours and hours

Happy St. Paddy's Day

Abdelazar and more chords

Playing in Am and Abdelazer

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