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Chords up the Neck

3/30/2017

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This is such a hard working group. I realize that the tremelo is tough and takes time. It is a great technique to have in your repertoire of skills to get more sustained sound out of the ukulele and even sound like a mandolin.  Keep working on it. We'll use a bit more tremelo when we play Jeu Jeu. 
We worked on closed chords and moving the shapes up the neck (pg 51). Practice these shapes with the exercises on page 52. Also play Buffalo Gals. Play and sing in first position and then change keys by moving up the neck. These chords shapes also take patience and determination. Don't hurt yourself working on them. Here's the way to go at it:
Do a little at at time.
Lead with the finger that is hardest to place and then let the others fall in behind it. 
Don't fret over the sound, maybe don't even strum
Just work on letting your fingers get used to the shapes.
Put the uke down .... walk away. 
Later on, go back and do it again. 
Before too long your fingers will start to go there on their own.  


Remember to SMILE !  
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Shake it, Baby

3/21/2017

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.... your pick, that is. 
Impressive work on March. Bach would be proud.

On to tremelo flatpicking. Remember to hold your pick at a slight downward angle.
Just skim the top of your strings with the pick.  Don't dig too deep.
Practice the exercises on page 48-49, and Blue Monday, Shenandoah (1/8 note tremelo) and then go back to some of the earlier songs from the books and try them with a tremelo. 
Remember to tremelo within the rhythm (8th notes or 16th notes). 

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work with flat picks  and more

3/17/2017

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Sorry for the delay. I actually thought I had already done the blog....must have been a dream.
Next week we'll play Charlie is my Darling again with flat picks. This time remember to go up-down, up-down with the pick. Use the exercises on page 32-33 to practice this movement. We will begin tremelo flatpicking next week so get those picks working.
Also we play March again (pg 42) Just keep working towards the best fingering on those pesky, but beautiful, runs.
If you were there last week and understand what we were doing, practice transposing the song on page 47, up 1/2 step at a time. If you are just completely confused about this, leave it and we'll talk more about it in class.
Here is the link to Guido Heistek's webpage and blog:

http://ukuleleinthedark.com
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Great sight reading

3/8/2017

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Really good work on Dance of the Hours, which is certainly one of the most challenging songs in the book. AND on Oft in the Stilly Night. 
You also proved your sight reading skills on March, which we played without warning!

Next week we'll warm up with:
Dance of the Hours and Oft in the Stilly Night

We will also play Charlie is My Darling  WITH FLATPICKS. We need to get back to flat picking in preparation for trememlo flatpicking in a week or two.

Also -  begin to work on March on page 42.  This is a beautiful and fun song to play. It just take a bit of practice to play all of the runs up and down the scale. 
Start with Uke II, and then work on Uke I.
The "tr" means trill and you play it by hammering on and pulling off from the 2nd fret to the 4th fret. It's hard to describe. We'll talk about it in class next week. Don't worry about it while learning the notes.
Listen to your CD to get a feel for the rhythms in this song.  When we play it next week, we'll think about what "dynamics" would be good. Loud, soft, lively, short, etc. 

OUr friend Lola (Barbara) who used to be in this class would like to host a jam with some folks at her house a couple of times a month. Contact her if you are interested:
barbaralola0101@gmail.com
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Dance of the Hours

3/1/2017

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I encourage you to keep practicing your triplet strum. It takes a long to time to get it smooth. Just do a few each day and consider trying to put in a triplet strum when you are strumming and humming (even at the BUG Jam).
Dance of the Hours is absolutely one of the most challenging songs we will be playing. I continue to be impressed by how hard this group works. You have managed to play many songs (including Dance of the Hours) that some classes have never managed and I believe that is due to PRACTICE ! 
We will play Dance of the Hours again next week and the move on to Oft in the Stilly Night: A very sweet and slow song where we can focus on playing the rhythms (remember to listen to it on your CD) and the chords changes, and getting a sweet and lyrical sound. 
Annoucements:
BUG jam this coming Saturday (March 4) at 3:00.
Classes that I will be teaching starting in March:
       Playing the Blues - licks and tricks, rhythms, and repertoire. (starts March 20 for 6 weeks.
       Playing by Heart - getting off the paper. (starts March 11, for 4 weeks).
Click here for some more details about classes. 
 Bellingham Ukulele Orchestra upcoming performances:
       The Haynie Oprey - March 11. 7:00pm - $10.00
       Kennelly Keys Music in Anacorters, 7:00pm (free)
       Bridge of Aloha Festival - May 5 (time TBA)


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    Instructor

    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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