Ukulele players out there? (Page 3 of 5)

I bought my first uke about three years ago....a Martin Soprano that I used as I learned the chords and some picking.  Am currently working in Honolulu (since late February) and bought a really nice Kamaka Six-string Tenor in mid-March.  The Kamaka's sound and quality makes the Martin seem like it was made from a cigar box.  The Kamaka was over $700 new, but it is a lifetime instrument for me and my kids.

The Kamakas are a little harder to get sometimes, but a great instrument.

Hey - Hello,
I started playing a year ago - and I'm hooked, they are just plain fun to  play.
I started with a Lanakai tenor, then bought a soprano Bushman (both sound good) and then find of the century - I went to a second-hand store and found an old (no sticker on the headstock so it is 1930 or older) CF Martin style 2 ukulele! It had a few cracks which spruce tree music (in Madison) fixed up just fine. Got my Bushman there to - great place.
I find myself playing the soprano's instead of the tenor. Was so much fun my brother(who is much more musically inclined then I) started playing too.
If you are just starting I strongly recommend forking up a few extra dollars and buying a decent one. Lanakai and Bushman are both good IMHO.
One thing of note if you are new to the uke, they do go out of tune fast but - in my experience after playing for a while they hold their tuning longer - I don't know if the strings stretch out or something. Also, if there is a little screw in the tunner peg make sure it is snug.
Here are a couple of sites that I really like:
http://ukulele-lessons.com/   
Dorthy Muncy - very nice always answered my e-mail questions and each song includes an mp3 of her playing, I love this style of playing.

Also, http://www.doctoruke.com/  lots of great songs and some have music clips.
People are always suprised to hear me play (not that I'm a virtuoso!)- they say "I thought ukulele's were just toys" Anyone in doubt of that should watch Jake on UTube playing "while my guitar gently weeps"
Oh, one more thing...this site is absolutely fabulous!

Benny Martin played Ukulele on an old album with John Hartford.  Album title was "Slumberin' on the Cumberland".  It was a nice collection of songs and I wish I still had it. 
Martin made a believer out of me, showing that a uke is a very flexible instrument.  I think he was a fiddle player, but he got some great sounds out of the uke.

Hey! I too am a ukulele player and I only heard about this site about a month ago! There are several sites for songs out there but this one ROCKS! I have been playing the uke since June but I now play in public - I agree,it is just sooo much fun! I've never played a stringed instrument (other than the piano so nothing you hold) and the uke is perfect...only 4 strings and rather easy chords. I own a few ukes at this point - I have a Greg Bennett Samick concert uke, a Lanakai soprano and my first one - a Hilo soprano and also a Oscar Schmidt electric concert uke - now that one is awesome! Hope to hear from more uke players!

Aloha,

Topher

"A hui hou kakou, malama pono".
"Until we meet again, be good".

Aloha all!

New to Chordie and to the ukulele. I've had various [brief] infatuations with the guitar since I was a kid and never stuck with it but now in my 40's, I got on a Hawaiian kick late last year and fell in love with outrigger canoeing as well as the ukulele. 4 strings instead of 6 (easier for my simple mind I guess), small and easy to cart around, and da sound iz da kine! I never applied myself to learn music. I'm more of a by-ear and chord chart player. I should, and probably will, learn to read music one of these days.

I have two [affordable] sopranos at the moment and am contemplating getting a concert soon. I'd love to get a KoAloha or Keilii someday but for now I got what I bought.

I'm diggin' more Hawaiian music than anything else right now. Trad and some contempo stuff. Just feels right. I've been surfing the web for ukulele stuff and came upon a great find last month. Don't know why I didn't stumble on it sooner. http://www.iamhawaii.com/  Go to IAH TV and there you'll find some great how-to ukulele vids by two uk greats, Aldrine Guerrero and Jake Shimabukuro. Ono stuff. Ya gotta sign up to see it though

Pau.

hi unicorn and welcome to chordie.

So a baratone uke is similar to the guitar for chords? I dont know what kind my mine is GCEA. And when you play the chord G it is like the chord D on the guitar, this mixed me up a while until i got used to it. Now I love playing my uke regularly.

Ken

By the way, my baritone uke has 14 frets to the body of the uke. A soprano uke has 12 frets to the body.

Hi

My boyfriend gave me to my birthday my first ukulele this year in november. It's a Lanikai FU-11.

My musical background is almost zero. I played the guitar when I was a kid, but I don't remember anything. So I'm learning the chords slowly, having problems with the right hand and the rhythm, but it's so enjoyable ^___^ I had problems to tune the uke, but I found in internet a tuner for the computer and works pretty well ^___^

Now I have to keep practicing

My name is Gerry Long.

  I am a retired professional musician and music professor (woodwinds), who got hooked on the uke in my retirement about 7 years ago.
  I belong to a large group here in Corona del Mar, Ca -- about 75 to 90  strummers who meet each week.  Our most celebrated member is Bill  Tapia, who became 100 years old on Jan. 1.   I also teach uke classes here in Corona del Mar, and in Huntington Beach, and Laguna  Woods, Ca.
  Because of my background in music theory, jazz, arranging, teaching,  etc., I have started a series of helpful articles for uke players  entitled "UKE-TIPS", which I send to an email list of about 500 names.
  The 'TIPS are free of charge, and are based on what I have learned about chords, chord progressions, and other practicing, performing and arranging principles over the years.   Applying these principles to the uke have enabled me to make some rapid progress on the instrument.  For example, one of my UKE-TIPS articles is entitled:  "Learning 24 new chords in 5 minutes".
  If anyone would like to get on my mail list they need only submit there email address to me at gerrylong@cox.net.   There is, of course, and "opt out" option on each issue of the 'TIPS, should one decide not to receive them. They will be coming out about every three weeks.
  I have also self-published a beginning chord-solo book for which I have a web-site www.ukesolos.com.  Have a look at it.  James Hill recorded all the solos in my book, and you can hear him play five of them on the web site.
   The ukulele movement is a marvelous development world wide, and we are all fortunate to participate in it at a time when there are such great artists as Jake Shimabukuro, James Hill, Lyle Ritz, and many others.  Enjoy.
   Gerry Long
   Newport Beach, Ca.

My goal from my first trip to Hawaii was to return with a ukulele.  I found one that looked good, it had a turtle-shaped sound hole.  I figured that if I failed at playing it, it would look good hanging on the wall.

It sounded the best of about 10 or so ukes I played.  Probably paid to much for it, but who cares...I've had that much fun playing it the past two years!

I'm a classically trained french horn player...but those are hard to cart around and they can be kind of loud.  It's also tough to sing while playing.

I just started showing up at a ukulele group near my house.  Strumming and singing.  It was the most fun I've had in a long time! 

Love that uke!

i have been playing guaitar for while,and i got a ukulele for xmas,but i really didn't start to play with it until sunday,and i can't seem to put it down.it is a fun little instrument to play.i found some great web sites,and this is a great one.www.sheep-entertainment.nl/ukulele  --------                    also check out some of the people on youtube . keep on strumming,and picking.

The Uke saved my life...