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Hi Rock Class 101 Community!
We are back with site member challenge #95! WOW, there has now been over 5,000+ members participating in our challenges! If you’ve sat on the sidelines, please join us for this month’s challenge! Challenges are a fun way to stay motivated and a great way to meet fellow ukulele players who are passionate about learning and becoming better players. 🙂
And I offer feedback on ALL submissions!
Please watch the video above and read instructions below carefully for details/instructions on this month’s challenge.
Pick 1 from the following 6 RC101 Lessons:
STRUMMING SONGS (from beginner to advanced)
1) Beginner Blues Strumming * – Learn to play the 12 bar blues two ways, first with basic strumming, then with a percussive backbeat!
* Taught in its entirety for FREE!
2) Daybreak * – Discover the magic of “open chords” in this strumming etude that’s played entirely with the thumb.
* Taught in its entirety for FREE!
3) 12th Street Rag – This fun, vintage-esque ukulele song will help develop your rhythm playing.
Note: This song uses three of the four strumming techniques which are taught in our Strumming Course titled: Beyond the Island Strum. I recommend completing the course before attempting this arrangement, as it covers the mechanics behind each technique.
FINGERPICKING SONGS (from beginner to advanced)
4) Aura Lee * – A beautiful melody that serves as a wonderful intro into fingerstyle playing.
* Taught in its entirety for FREE!
5) Blue Skies * Taught in its entirety for FREE! – Learn to fingerpicking a beautiful song.
* Taught in its entirety for FREE!
6) Magic Ukulele Waltz – An enchanting melody from ukulele virtuoso Roy Smeck.
** If you need assistance with how to record yourself check out our FREE course on recording audio/video and/or private message me and I will be happy to help you out. **
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GOALS FOR MEMBER CHALLENGE:
1. Beginner Level: Be able to play one of the lessons as shown by Andrew smoothly and in time. Do not worry about trying to play fast; slow and steady wins the race.
Recommended Piece: “Beginner Blues Strumming” OR “Aura Lee”
2. Intermediate to Advanced Level: Be able to play one of the lessons as shown by Andrew smoothly and in time. Do not worry about trying to play fast; slow and steady wins the race.
Recommended Piece:“Daybreak” [Intermediate], “Blue Skies” [Intermediate], “12th Street Rag” [Advanced], “Magic Ukulele Waltz” [Advanced]
3. Participation Goal: 35 Rock Class 101 Member Participant Videos/MP3 posted.
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GROUND RULES FOR PARTICIPATION:
1. Post your Youtube, Vimeo, or Soundcloud links of you playing 1 of the 6 RC101 pieces anytime between Saturday, February 1st until Friday, February 28th, 11:59pm ET.
The upload feature on the site only supports photos. Members must host their own files. Creating an account is easy and free! Here are the links to create an account:
YouTube (For Video) – https://www.youtube.com/create_channel
SoundCloud (For Audio) – https://soundcloud.com/signin
2. Submit individually, as a reply, IN THIS POST.
3. Feel free to submit more than one video for the challenge, but additional videos will not count as extra entries into the raffle for the prize.
4. Have fun and don’t be intimidated by this challenge!!! Use this challenge to help you set goals and complete them by a deadline. You can also use this as an opportunity to chat with your fellow Rock Class 101 members and share tips or tricks on this challenge that you think are useful.
5. You must perform the entire piece to receive an entry into the prize raffle. Performance must be submitted by the deadline listed (in #1) above to gain an entry in the raffle, as well as, to receive feedback.
* Note: In my opinion, it is better to show progress versus perfection with these challenges. So if you are a beginner and can only play the first couple of measures. That is completely ok. If you play two more measures of the next challenge piece than you did the previous one, you are on track to getting better. This is what these challenges are about… you learning ukulele and getting better. Remember we are all here to support you no matter what your current playing level is.
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COMMON FAQs:
1) The prize and the challenge is open to the entire world!
2) Premium membership is NOT required to participate, but will make participation easier as it gains you complete access to the full video lessons, tabs, and the on-screen tab viewer.
3) Basic membership (free) is required to submit a reply on this forum post. You can sign up for Basic Membership HERE.
4) To post YouTube video links (in which they appear embedded on the forum), simply copy and past the video URL in its own line. For example:
YouTube URL
5) If you live in the Continental U.S., we will ship the giveaway ukulele to you for FREE! If you live outside of the Continental U.S., there will be a shipping fee ranging between $40 USD to $80 USD. This fee will be collected by Uke Republic. You are also responsible for any custom fees or duties.
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Giveaway Rules:
There will be 1 winner, selected by random drawing on March 5th. To qualify to win, you must submit your audio and/or video links of your playing by the deadline listed above.
Grand Prize:
1) $115 Grand Prize: Holo Holo by Kanile’a (Travel Concert Ukulele)
THIS UKULELE COMES IN 4 DIFFERENT COLORS:
LISTEN TO THIS SWEET UKE BEING PLAYED!
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THANKS TO OUR SPONSOR!
Uke Republic: https://www.ukerepublic.com/
Let’s crush this challenge!
This is such a cool idea for this challenge, how it’s laid out with the strumming and fingerpicking in “parallel difficulty”! Part of me is curious to revisit Aura Lee because that’s the first RC101 song I learned. I might do that and also try one of the easier strumming songs in my “forever quest” at getting better at that. 😂 Also that uke prize is very cute!! 😊😂
What fun to have a travel Uke. Love the side sound hole and cutaway. Think I’m going with a picking challenge 🤔☺️🎼
@gutoguedes – Nicely played Guto! I like how you incorporated strumming into the second half of the tune, it ties in perfectly with this month’s fingerpicking and strumming theme! The one thing I’d suggest working on is lightening your right hand attack when fingerpicking. This is a concept I demo-d and explained in this video a few years back for another member who was learning this song. You can ignore the comments on the left hand in that video.
This was a great first post, hope to see more of your playing in another challenge!
I’m afraid none of the options are calling me to participate this month but I will enjoy listening to everyone’s submissions.
@dhruv123 – Beautifully played, an excellent first post! One suggestion, try to place your thumb slightly above the middle of neck. That will help increase fretting dexterity, making the stretch chords, like: 0015, in measure 6, easier to play. Check out this lesson, it talks in more detail about thumb placement as it relates to proper left hand form.
Hope to see more of your playing in another challenge! 🙂
I went with Blue Skies. Beautiful tune Matt with a befitting name!
While it is an easier fingerpicking tune, I challenged myself by transposing it for low G (forcing me to introduce some semi-barre chords) and also setting my goal on performing it with the feel it deserves, by applying dynamics and rubato and letting the notes connect and ring as much as possible (imagining a blue sky where small white clouds ebb and flow):@marianne – I think you aced all of the points you set out to accomplish, Marianne! Beautifully played!
@marianne – sounds great! I’m working on this song also the month. I’ve got the notes down, but want to work now on the feel. Your ‘feel’ and dynamics are great. So pretty.
@marianne – You play that so elegantly, and you’ve made the notes ring. I’m working on this piece too – the feeling you put into it is an inspiration.
Oh, how time flies! I’m revisiting one of the very first songs I attempted to learn on Rock Class 101 back when I was also learning “Zelda’s Lullaby” and “Toss a Coin to Your Witcher” nearly five years ago! I remember being totally overwhelmed by the tricky strumming patterns and those pesky triplets at the end. Eventually, I put the song aside because it just felt too difficult.
Fast-forward to now, and I’m so excited to share that I can finally play it in a passable way. I still have some fret noise to smooth out and those final triplets to tighten up, but it’s incredibly satisfying to see how you can use all the lessons and songs posted in Rock Class 101 and how they can help you and guide you along your ukulele journey. If any of you are working on your strumming technique, I highly recommend giving this piece and the accompanying course a try—it’s super fun and really helpful.
Happy strumming, everyone, and best of luck in this month’s challenge! Keep practicing, keep pushing through the tough spots, and you’ll be amazed at what you can achieve with time. See you all in next month’s challenge!
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