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Pentatonic Party!

9/24/2014

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A few thoughts: 
1. It is completely normal to feel a little lost and dazed at this point. If you persist, it gets better and becomes more fun.  If you practice, you will get better.
2. It is also normal to play much worse in class than at home. That also gets better with time…. and practice.  If you practice, you will get better.  
3. It is very hard for we grown-ups to be beginners at something (like music). But…. it is very good for us on so many levels. Good for our brains, our bodies, our confidence, and our souls. 
4. Having musical friends and building a musical community is the best thing ever. 
Class review and what to do for next week:
After reviewing the Pentatonic scale, up and back, we played Safari…... like pros. On to the cheery Rocky Mountain in 2/4 time… March (or walking). And finally……. the lovely traditional Acadian Lullaby. 
We'll revisit Acadian Lullaby next week, so continue to practice it, using care to get a warm, full sound. Also, pay close attention to note value here as there is a good mixture of half, quarter, and eighth notes. Practice both parts Uke I (all open strings) and Uke II.  The audio file for this in last week's blog entry.

For some reason, it is easier to play songs that we already know, like Oh, Susanna and Up on the Housetop. Clearly there are things going in our brains that help us to "read" the music with familiar songs.  This is the reason that our CD is so helpful. I always advise listening to the song you are working on several times. Sing along, and get familiar with it and that should help the "reading" of it. 
Ear training: Try I Got Rhythm by ear at home. It starts on low G and uses only pentatonic scale notes (hint: it never goes above goes above an open e). Another tune to try by ear at home is Auld Lang Syne - also starts on low G…...
Next week, we will venture a bit beyond the pentatonic scale to the C scale, adding 2 new notes. Be sure this week to work hard to get the pentatonic scale notes down. Use the "tests" (but not as tests) that are in the previous blog entry. As you have time this week, start trying to read the notes of the C scale on page 14, #1

As always, please contact me with your questions and concerns.
Gail
733-6867

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Some exercises to practice

9/23/2014

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Below are some exercises to practice the Open Strings notes and the Pentatonic Scale notes. Although the say "quiz" at the top, they are NOT quizzes for us and are not intended to be timed.

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Safari and beyond

9/17/2014

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Really nice work on Safari AND Rocky Mountain High. Continue practicing the notes of the pentatonic scale with the exercises on page 7, using page 6 as a reference. Be careful with your fingering, remembering the finger to fret rule. 
Your goal for these first couple of weeks is to learn to sight read the notes of the pentatonic scale.  Focus on getting them into your brains and your fingers.
Next week we'll play Safari again, just because it will seem so much easier, and Rocky Mountain High, both Uke I and Uke II. Note that the Uke II parts in both of these songs are  all open strings. 
We will also plan to play Acadian Lullaby so practice finding the notes in this song at home. We combine half, quarter and eighth notes.  Slower Mp3 files of these songs are below
Try picking Oh! Susanna and Up on the Housetop - both very satisfying because you know how they sound!

Remember as you find new chords that you want to learn to teach your fingers the shapes. Do NOT build chords. The goal is to be able to go to the shape easily without looking at your fingers. When leaning, lead with your most difficult finger. 
Begin to think of chords as numbers, rather than letters.  in the key of C, the C is the 1 chord, the F is the 4 chord and the G is the 5 chords.  If you are just beginning to learn chords, try to get comfortable with the shapes of the C, F and G chords this week (the diagrams are on the back page of your book). 

For those who are ready to try a bit of transposing, here is a very simple transposing chart. If you are just beginning to play chords, ignore this for now. 
1   2  3  4  5   6  7  8
C  D  E  F  G  A  B  C
G   A  B    C   D   E   F# G
F   G   A   Bb C   D   E   F
Call me if you have questions or concerns.
Gail   733-6867
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We're off and running………… class #1

9/8/2014

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Welcome, Mighty Ukers, to Book 1 of Ukulele in the Classroom ! This blog is where I will post everything you need to know for class: What we covered in class, handouts, audio files, what to practice each week and what to expect next week.


In our first class we covered Lessons 1, 2, and 3: How to hold the ukulele, open strings, note value, and pentatonic scale notes: This week practice the the exercises on page 3, 4, 5, 6, and 7. Your goal is to be able to identify in musical notation, and play the notes of the pentatonic scale (which include your 4 open strings). Next week we will be playing songs using these notes: Safari on page 8 and Rocky Mountain on page 9. It will be helpful to listen to these tunes on your CD to hear how they sound. We will play them slower than the CD. Attached is a slowed down version of Safari. 
Also Attached is the page of "finger exercises" we went over in class. and a recording of the pentatonic scale. 
For  those who want a challenge, pick out the rest of the notes for TAPS on the bottom of page 5 (Hint: you will need to play fingered g - third finger, C string). 
JUST FOR FUN - play a steady rhythm on alternating G and C string while you sing the Star Wars version of Frere Jacque: R2D2 R2D2. C3PO C3PO, OB1 KENOBI OB1 KENOBI, HANS SOLO HANS SOLO

Other important things:
* If you feel like you need help understanding or keeping up, please call me. I am willing to meet with you outside of class (at no charge) in order to get you started on the right foot. 733-6867
* You can always attend either the Tuesday (3:00) or Wednesday (7:00) class, or both classes. They will be the same but sometimes it helps to go over the information again. 
* If you practice, you will get better.  If practice time is a problem, just plan on 10 minutes a day. 
* Put your name on your book. They all look just alike and they have a way of getting left behind. 
* Having a low g on your ukulele and a strap will probably make this course easier. 
* Remember to have fun. It's a ukulele, after all. I promise that it will get even more fun as we go along in the book. 
See you next week,
Gail
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    Gail MacDonald is a
    Fully Certified Instructor with the James Hill Ukulele Initiative with  over 6 years experience teaching Ukulele In The Classroom classes.

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