Home Page › Forums › Monthly Member Challenges › Participate in the February 2025 Member Challenge: Strumming or Fingerpicking
Tagged: 2025, February Challenge, Fingerpicking, Holo Holo, Kanile'a, Site Member Challenge, strumming
- This topic has 5 replies, 5 voices, and was last updated 3 days, 1 hour ago by
Andrew.
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January 30, 2025 at 6:47 pm #65431
Andrew
KeymasterHi 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!
February 1, 2025 at 12:17 pm #65497The_Bumble_Bard
ParticipantThis 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!! 😊😂
February 2, 2025 at 3:55 pm #65513leb397
ParticipantWhat fun to have a travel Uke. Love the side sound hole and cutaway. Think I’m going with a picking challenge 🤔☺️🎼
February 3, 2025 at 1:21 pm #65522ukefinlandgirl
ParticipantThere is still a lot to learn. It is sometimes so tough to decide what to learn next.
February 4, 2025 at 6:23 am #65523gutoguedes
ParticipantFebruary 2025 Challenge: Aura Lee
Link below Hope you enjoy !
February 4, 2025 at 5:46 pm #65525Andrew
Keymaster@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!
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