[Andrew]

@maryjanew – Wow MJ! What a beautiful performance to match the view! Hope you’re having a great time on the cruise and thank you again for the donation 🙂

@leihali – TY so much for the donation and kind words! When you get a chance, please email me the amount so I can update our tally.

[Andrew]

@leihali – Wonderfully played and super fun to listen to Kay 🙂

@mkstewart67 – Wow Melissa! TY so much for the generous donation. It’s greatly appreciated ❤️

[Andrew]

THANKS TO EVERYONE WHO PARTICIPATED THIS MONTH! WE HAD 72 ENTRIES! YOU GUYS ROCK!

Here’s the list of everyone who participated and earned an entry for this month’s challenge. If you notice any discrepancies, please let me know as soon as possible. I’ll be filming the video for the random drawing to pick the winner tomorrow 🙂

—-

marianne
marianne
emiliano
emiliano
The_Bumble_Bard
The_Bumble_Bard
ukefinlandgirl
deadbuggy
deadbuggy
morrieuke1
morrieuke1
misterbones
misterbones
willw18
willw18
anyon1
anyon1
planetfink
planetfink
leslieb
leslieb
lucauka
lucauka
clempek
clempek
leb397
leb397
bomarkt
bomarkt
nat-uke
nat-uke
katazumiri
katazumiri
lhamilton
lhamilton
heike_uke
heike_uke
janaq1
janaq1
jgillard
jgillard
jasdel
jasdel
dianna
dianna
mickan88
mickan88
ldarrow
ldarrow
mysticrick
mysticrick
kanique
kanique
mark1256
mark1256
ruiafonso70
ruiafonso70
rgillof
rgillof
chantmt
chantmt
johanna2509
johanna2509
brettboy
brettboy
coffeemug
coffeemug
joe150
joe150
abster
abster
ukulelee
ukulelee
rickgrant2025
rickgrant2025
smlarson
smlarson
darktoto
alanaw
mmoynihan
mmoynihan
anikali
anikali
laurakarr12
laurakarr12
lynnzo
lynnzo
bibilele
bibilele
grannieannie
grannieannie
1481632_m
richard_siegert
richard_siegert
suekulele
suekulele
olemartin
olemartin
shmu88
shmu88
jayton
jayton
tessiert
tessiert
nelsonlin2021
nelsonlin2021
k_ra11
k_ra11
kelsey91
kelsey91
potter
potter
otzepeng
otzepeng
rw1950merritt
rw1950merritt
corey_mclean
corey_mclean
ccwuke
ccwuke
avicularia
avicularia
markmdive
markmdive

[Andrew]

@avicularia – Very beautifully played, Kasia! I only have one suggestion. For the double stops, try strumming through just a touch faster so they don’t sound as arpeggiated.

@markmdive – Hi Mark, below is a video with feedback for you. And here’s a video I made to help another member out. I’ll also paste additional lessons that touch on this topic. Here is the first and second lesson I recommend reviewing.

That last link also covers proper left hand form and here is the one for right hand form.

@hotshot & @karenj – Y’all played it beautifully, well done! Unfortunately, you just missed our deadline. I tried to give everyone a friendly reminder yesterday. While I won’t be able to give you an entry for this month, both of you do have entries from prior months that will count for the drawing 🙂

[Andrew]

@nelsonlin2021 – I loved it! You both did so great, and that ho ho ho joke line had me 😂

One tip, when you’re ready for her to come back in, that’s when you give her the head nod. But bravo to both of you, I really enjoyed it! And TY so much for the donation!

@k_ra11 – We’re always our own worst critic. I’ve done take after take in the past, probably more than necessary, but what helps me is sending it to a friend for feedback. Most of the time, they’ll say, “Yeah, you’re good on this.” So, I’ll be that friend and say, yes, you’re good! You really nailed the feel, and that’s the hardest part of this tune, in my opinion. The verses have a driving energy, while the chorus is soft and sweet, and you captured that beautifully. Way to go, Kasha!

@kelsey91 – That’s awesome to hear about all the shows you are playing! You’re def bringing folks a lot of joy this holiday season, me included! I really enjoyed your performance. You had the melody and harmony shining brilliantly. Keep practicing when you find time between gigs and I’m sure you’ll have it smoothed out in no time 🙂

@potter – No worries on the music stand, Jen! You always play with such great feel, it was a pleasure to listen to 🙂

@otzepeng – I won’t lie, I chuckled the moment I heard your fury friend sing, lol! But seriously, it’s impressive you can sing with that voice and actually make it sound good! Playing wise, bravo on the rhythm and the solo was fantastic. The only thing I’d suggest working on is bringing the solo up to match the tempo of the rhythm. Keep up the great work Markus and TY for the kind words and for the donation!

@rw1950merritt – Beautifully played Bob! Excellent work this month 👏

@corey_mclean – I think we could call this performance a duet ❤️

You’ve got a great singing voice! And some serious rhythm chops. Very well played! The only thing I’d suggest would be to keep working on the solo section, but with your talent, it doesn’t sound like it will take too much work to smooth out.

@ccwuke – I like the syncopated rhythmic changes you threw in for the verses. They sounded great and worked well for this tune! Great playing overall, well done this month Chris!

[Andrew]

Here’s everyone on page 8 that I hadn’t gotten to.

@olemartin – You aced it! Beautifully played, bravo 👏

@shmu88 – Dude that was awesome! The solo and the outro were extremely impressive, this is def a performance to be proud of. Keep up the excellent work Sam!

@jayton – I definitely think you’re ready for this level of tunes, Jayton! That was very well played. Honestly, the only small mistake I noticed was in measure 7. It’s a filler bar with harmony, and while it’s fine to change it up—as it sounds like you did—just be careful not to cut out a beat. That could make the bar sound short or cause the rhythm to feel like it loses the beat.

@tessiert – Very nicely played Trace! Great pacing and feel. Well done!

[Andrew]

@otzepeng – Looks like your posts got caught in spam. Sorry about that! But the one above with the YT video is showing. If you ever have any issues posting in the future, please send me an email. I’d be happy to fix it for you 🙂

[Andrew]

@suekulele – Awesome performance, Sue! I have just two small tips. In measure 7, you want to hold the first note out a little longer as it’s a quarter note. And as you continue practicing, I’d focus mainly on timing (keeping it steady throughout). Try looping 4 or 8 bars at a time with Steven in the tab player. Try to lock in as close as you can with his playing. That’s a great way to practice timing. Or you can go old school, with a metronome/tapping your foot along. Either way works 🙂

TY so much for the donation and kind words! When you get a chance, please email me the amount so I can update our tally.

[Andrew]

@chantmt – That’s a sweet looking and sounding instrument! I appreciate the kind words. I’m happy to hear that my feedback was helpful 🙂

[Andrew]

@grannieannie – That was really cool Ann! I had no idea that mashup worked so well. Great playing on both tunes and I wish you happy holidays!

@1481632_m – Your sustain and timing sounded great! Lovely performance, well done Megan! And TY for the kind words, I really appreciate it!

@richard_siegert – I thought you did a great job Richard! You play with such great feel! From here, I’d play along with Steven in the tab player. Try one section at a time with a focus on keeping it steady. Well done this month, keep up the great work!

[Andrew]

@bibilele – Beautifully played, Bianca! And I loved your outfit and backdrop 🙂

TY so much for the donation! ❤️

[Andrew]

Friendly Reminder – The deadline for receiving feedback and an entry into the giveaway is tonight at 11:59 PM ET (check your local time zone).

[Andrew]

@The_Bumble_Bard – Merry Christmas Rachael!

@johanna2509 – I can def hear the diff. Maybe it’s the pickup? If you have another uke w/ a diff pickup, that would be a good A/B test to run to see how it compares with those notes.

@darktoto – Beautifully played, well done Thomas!

@alanaw – Great job, Alana! A few of the single notes and double stops sound a bit strong in the mix, try giving them a gentler pluck for a softer touch. I shared some tips on this in this video a while back for another member working on this song. Don’t worry about the left-hand tips in the video, just focus on the plucking advice. 😊

@mmoynihan – Beautifully played Matt! Great feel and nice pacing. TY so much for the donation! When you get a chance, please email me the amount so I can update our tally.

@anikali – Loved the harmonics at the beginning, the rhythm/strumming changes you threw in, and the mashup at the end. Very creative and beautifully performed Joan!

@laurakarr12 – Very beautifully played, Laura! I only have one suggestion. For the double stops, try strumming through just a touch faster so they don’t sound as arpeggiated.

@lynnzo – Great job Lynn! You played it wonderfully! Love seeing y’all push beyond your comfort zone by trying challenging pieces. That’s a great way to grow as musicians and players. Keep up the great work!

[Andrew]

@smlarson – Thank you for making it public! You played it beautifully! The only mistake I noticed is in measure 11, you played one melody note differently than written. I’d also recommend using the exact fingering Matt suggests for that measure; it’ll make it easier to play and provide the best sustain. Here’s the time stamp where that part of the lesson begins. 😊

[Andrew]

@chantmt – Beautifully played, Michael, and an excellent first post! I do have one tip for you: try to keep your finger pressure held down for the full duration of the notes. Sometimes I hear you play a note and lift up right away to move to the next, which can make it sound slightly staccato.

For example, listen to your performance from 37 to 41 seconds. That phrase has a beautiful sustain because each note is held for its entire duration. Now compare that to the double stop phrase in the next 10 seconds and you’ll notice those notes don’t ring into each other as seamlessly.

For the double stops, try not to lift your fingers entirely as you move between notes. Instead, aim to keep your index finger held down throughout while moving up and down the neck. That’ll help increase sustain.

Here’s a video where I demonstrate the difference. The first time, I lift my fingers between notes, and the second time, I sustain them. You’ll hear how much smoother the second approach sounds.

@johanna2509 – Beautifully played Johanna! How do the melody notes on the A string sound in real life? I can hear that some of them, mostly in the chorus, are low in the mix. If that’s the same in real life, I’d try to pluck those louder to bring them to the forefront. If it’s not, try positioning the mic closer to the sound hole. Keep experimenting with EQ/compression, it’s def a balancing act until you get the right settings dialed in.

@brettboy – Excellent playing as always, Brett! I really like the rhythm changes you added, they bring a nice touch of creativity! 😊

@coffeemug – Lovely performance, Mary! My only suggestion would be to focus on maintaining steady timing throughout. Try practicing one section at a time; once you’ve perfected it, move on to the next, then go back and practice combining both sections together. Keep up the great work!

@joe150 – That was awesome Joe! Great job on the melody, rhythm, and timing! Fantastic work this month 👏

@abster – Bravo! Such a beautiful solo and duet! Y’all are so talented! I loved it ❤️

@smlarson – Hi Steven, your video is set to private, can you make it public? Here’s instructions on how to do that.

@ukulelee – Beautiful performance Leone! I think it just might be my favorite of yours to date! For that tap, try just hitting the strings, as softly as possible. Or, you can omit it. That would be fine too.

@rickgrant2025 – Fantastic playing Rick! Couple suggestions. For bar 7, which is all open strings, watch out for the rhythm there. Two of those notes are quarter notes. And for the Chorus, I would recommend playing along with Steven in the tab player. Try looping 4 bars at a time. Work on matching his playing and keeping the timing steady. Once you’ve perfected it, move on to the next 4, then go back and practice combining both sections together. You’ve mostly got it down, this tip will help smooth it out more 🙂

[Author]

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