Forum Replies Created
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@joannetala – Great playing, Joanne! I’m hearing the tempo in the B Melody get a little bit faster, so as you continue practicing, try playing along with a metronome. It’s always a great tool to practice with 🙂
@annemarie – Nicely played, Anne! Great job showcasing the fun feel of the piece in your performance!
P.S. Don’t forget to add the premium member tag for K Challenges 😉
@kaski85 – I’d say you’re def ready to jump into more advanced pieces like this one. It was very well played! Feel was spot on. Good groove too! Only thing I can point out is to keep practicing on getting it to flow smoother. But that’s just a time commitment thing (i.e. more practice). The other aspects I pointed out are harder to achieve. Well done! And TY for the kind words 🙂
@jbmills07 – Right hand form looks good to me! Feel was great too! I’d guess what you wrote about is more related to a comfort level for this playing style/techniques. Looks like you’re well on your way there, should be effortless in a couple months.
@dianna – Awesome to see you do 3! Let’s jump into ’em 🙂One Finger Etude – I really like how you accent the melody note at the start of the bars. Nice touch! Pacing had a natural feel to it too. Very well done!
Harmonizing Chords – Excellent timing! Great job switching between both parts!
Feel Good Strumming Riff – Matt’s an amazing strummer! Much better than I am. And that’s why he played the performance and taught it instead of me 😂. But with that said, one of the best pieces of advice I heard is to try to be better than you were yesterday, instead of comparing yourself to someone else.
I think Bumble Bard’s advice is spot on. It does become easier to focus on feel once you get the muscle memory down.
For this tune, I asked Matt to review your video. He said “you’re turning your hand too much away from the ukulele. The Index should turn straight into the fretboard on down strums and then come up more pointed towards the fretboard.”
Check out Matt’s intro to strumming lesson here. It’ll provide more clarity to see the exact motion he uses.
@mark1256 – Feel and groove are spot on! I’d say you have it down! Well done, Mark! 🙂
@musiclover – Very beautifully played, Mary! Double check bar 6. There’s one extra open A on the & of 2 that you left out.
So timing (i.e. keeping a steady tempo) for this tune is a bit of give and take. Because it’s a perfect tune for experimenting with rubato. Which is how Matt chose to play it. I think your comment on timing may have meant transitions. Like, connecting one phrase to the next without pause.
Try listening back to your performance and note the areas where you paused. Target those spots in your practicing.
@mepasha – Excellent fingerpicking and I dig the ending!
@jebergeron – I like the quicker tempo! Love seeing y’all take it and make it your own! Excellent work this month, JP.
@bunny2311 – Bravo on tackling both parts! It was beautifully played and I’ll be sharing it in tomorrow’s newsletter 🙂@jbmills07 – Nicely done!
@jbmills07 – Another performance with great feel! Well done, Justin! I have one suggestion. Since you’re keeping the tempo steady, when you come to the end of the B Melody, hit that triplet strum exactly on beat 2, keeping the tempo steady. That way the entire melody stays uniform. Which I think would give it a stronger ending than slowing down or adding a little rubato pause.
@hawaiihaze – Excellent strumming Austin! Only thing I’d work on is to gradually increase the tempo. Keep up the good work! I’ll be rooting for you! If you win, we’ll be expecting some sweet factory tour pics 🙂@billypancakes – That was awesome, Will! You did an excellent job showcasing all 3 dynamic changes. Well done!
@muzikmama – Both takes were beautifully played! I really liked your interpretation and pacing of the piece. An excellent first post(s) for the month! 🙂
@deadbuggy – Such a fun take, Sara! Always a pleasure to get to share your performances in our newsletter 🙂Wow! 68 members joined us for this month’s challenge! Watching everyone’s performance has been a pleasure for Stephen and I. BIG thanks to each of you who participated and bravo on a job well done!
Our June Challenge is LIVE and the theme is: Mini Lessons! I hope each of you joins us again.
Below, I will post a list of members who participated in the May challenge for your second chance to win the Kanile’a Ukulele. Please let me know if there are any discrepancies.
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gstriph
gstriph
billypancakes
billypancakes
rgillof
rgillof
johanna2509
johanna2509
mark1256
mark1256
mroman99x
mroman99x
joe150
joe150
rafaela
rafaela
leb397
leb397
lisadmh
lisadmh
rebeca
rebeca
muzikmama
anyon1
anyon1
lhamilton
lhamilton
dividedsky
dividedsky
lyndallk
lyndallk
annemarie
annemarie
kaski85
kaski85
jbmills07
jbmills07
leslieb
leslieb
jody_hendrickson
jody_hendrickson
The_Bumble_Bard
The_Bumble_Bard
katazumiri
katazumiri
shmu88
shmu88
smokealot
smokealot
jebergeron
jebergeron
lynettejd
lynettejd
peiching
brettboy
brettboy
ldarrow
ldarrow
joannetala
joannetala
ccwuke
ccwuke
patdrehu
patdrehu
barbecueblack
barbecueblack
lynnzo
lynnzo
bibilele
bibilele
moonshoes
moonshoes
clempek
clempek
suekulele
suekulele
kdeacon7
kdeacon7
misterbones
misterbones
lbilkie
lbilkie
dorabr
jgillard
jgillard
richard_siegert
richard_siegert
karenj
karenj
june2020
june2020
ukulelee
ukulelee
morrieuke1
morrieuke1
dianna
dianna
janaq1
janaq1
akukes73
akukes73
zongozongo
zongozongo
richo_uke
richo_uke
robinl
denisedistefano
denisedistefano
riley_ukulele
riley_ukulele
concan
concan
lmdlinda
riffyk
riffyk
mlarson
mlarson
yukalele
yukalele
addilein
addilein
omaon4
omaon4
maryjanew
maryjanew@ksapp92 – Rhythm playing sounded great! Well done, Kelby! Unfortunately, you just missed our cutoff time for an entry! I tried to give everyone a friendly reminder on the 31st. Luckily, we still have our June challenge! Hope to see you there 🙂
@casadot349 – That rocked, Tyler! Great groove and impressive tempo! Unfortunately, we’ve been pretty strict on deadlines for the last couple years. So I won’t be able to give you an entry this month. I tried to give everyone a friendly reminder on the 31st. Luckily, we still have our June challenge! Hope to see you there 🙂Here’s everyone on page 8.
@robinl – Excellent rhythm playing! The only thing I’d work on is getting the ending lick rhythm to be a little bit closer to what I played/taught. Jump to 20 minutes in the lesson and try playing the lick along with me to match the timing/feel.
@denisedistefano – Bravo! It’s very impressive how fast you’re progressing. I certainly couldn’t do half of what you’re doing in only 4 months of playing!! So def keep doing what you’re doing, it’s working!Good catch on spotting the fretting position. Watch out for that as you play. We want to be super close to the neighboring fret, but not on it.
One thing I noticed is that you have a lot less tension in your right hand when playing the first half of the tune vs. the second half. I want you to go back and watch your video when you repeat bar 13 to 14 three times. Watch only your right hand.
Then watch me play that part. Again, watch only my right hand. Notice how I’m picking lighter and there’s less movement in my picking hand. Try to copy that. Here’s a short video showing both. The first time I play the passage, I’m using too much movement and too much force when plucking. The second time I play the passage is more on par with where we want it to be.
@riley_ukulele – You aced it! Good luck with your studies 🙂
@concan – Your playing has a great feel! And you showcased all of the changes 🙂I would just work on memorizing it, so you can focus 100% on your playing. Also try working on one section at a time w/ a focus on keeping it steady.
@lmdlinda – Very well played, Linda! That’s a performance you can be proud of 🙂Rhythm playing was excellent throughout and I like the slight change you added to the lick at the end. It worked really well!
@riffyk – Great job, Kahn! I think you’ve got a great base established. But, there are issues with the form being incorrect in the first half, as well as, some of the rhythmic variations were missing in the second half.When you do have internet, I’d recommend working section by section with me in the video lesson. That’ll help tighten up the loose ends.
@mlarson – Bravo! Excellent rhythm playing!
@yukalele – That was awesome David! Nice tight playing and groove. I think this is my fav performance of yours to date!
@addilein – Very well played! I only have a few suggestions. First is to memorize it, so you can focus 100% on your playing. Second, work on getting the rasgueado strum a little cleaner. Third, don’t forget about the triplet strum. That’s a very cool technique to add to your playing repertoire.
@omaon4 – Great job, Helga! I think you’ve got a great base established. So from here, I’d recommend working on one section at time. Focus on memorization and working towards gradually boosting the tempo.
@maryjanew – Way to go MJ! Rhythm playing was spot on in the blues tune! Great feel/energy throughout too! That ending lick is tough because that note on the 1st fret of C happens right after the A7 strum. Keep practicing that transition. It’s a toughy!I was very impressed w/ your playing on the other tune too! Target your practice from bar 18 to the end. Everything before that you’re rockin’!
@denisedistefano – No worries, you’ll get two entries for this month 🙂
Friendly Reminder – The deadline for receiving feedback and an entry into the giveaway is tonight at 11:59 PM EDT (check your local time zone).
@lhamilton – Tempo is already sounding more steady! Well done!
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Here’s everyone on page 5 I hadn’t gotten to yet.
@brettboy – Bravo, Brett! Riffs were tight. Excellent job jamming with the band!For the solo, playing wise, it was very impressive! But, watch out for the timing. You started the first phrase perfectly on beat 2. But the second phrase, you started early on beat 1. The next 3 phrases were also early. You got back on time with the double stops.
@ldarrow – Well done! Wonderful playing with a great feel throughout! I have two suggestions as you continue to practice. First, try to get a little cleaner on the rasgueado and triplet strum techniques.Second, try to keep the tempo a little more steady. Specifically in the first time through the form (bars 1 – 16).
@joannetala – Bravo, Joanne! Excellent take all around. Well done on showcasing all of the variations. And great timing & feel throughout! 👏