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@clempek, congrats!! Such a gorgeous uke, can’t wait to hear you playing it coming up! 🙂
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@leb397, ha! Thank you! 🙂 Learning, recording, posting, etc. the song literally within the last hours of the challenge – then posting it one hour before the end of the challenge – maybe I’m starting to push it a bit, LOL. I have a plan for this month though and I’m really excited and hoping it works out. And it hopefully won’t involve last-second insanity. 😉And thank you – I have been playing piano a lot more than ukulele lately to be really honest. I think I mentioned, I started playing piano when I was 8 years old, so that is very much a part of me. But every time I pick up my uke, nothing has changed with that, either. So much love there, and it’s also a part of me. 🙂 That’s how I feel about it; for me music is very personal that way. I’m really hoping to include a bit of piano in this month’s challenge, though, as a “side character”; that’s my goal. A bit of a spoiler perhaps, but I’m excited for it!
I always look forward to your posts, as well, friend! Thank you for all of your encouragement! No question, this is a very lovely and special uke community that way and in so many ways! 🙂
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Congrats again on the win, @Clempek!!! 😀 Very exciting!
Oh man, this is a great topic! I feel like if I have any skill with music – it’s this. Mostly because I’m really good at making mistakes. And making things up.
If you spend a lot of time staring into space and just playing whatever comes to mind, and get used to making things up that way, you learn that with any song there are multiple “note options” that still sound pretty good. So even if you didn’t play the exact note that was written – literally no one will know except you, unless you stop, say something, or panic, LOL. When you have performance anxiety, it’s so easy for any of those things to happen, but the more you do it, the more you get use to that “anxiety monkey” being there as you play. And you learn that even if you do mess up, it’s okay, and no one will judge you. In fact, people will be incredibly kind and supportive 95% of the time.
I just played on a virtual Open Mic and this happened to me – twice. I didn’t play what I intended in one song and in the second song, I felt like I messed up a lot, but when I watched it back, it wasn’t as bad as it felt in the moment. That’s really the key – is to know when you mess up, it almost always is not as noticeable as you think. For me that was incredibly helpful to realize and to know how much people just appreciate hearing you play. My Australian cousin who hosts the Open Mic agrees with all this and I feel like you will, too, Matt! 🙂
Can’t wait to hear more on this topic! I also really hope you all at least get 5 more live lessons in because then you’ll make it to 100! Thank you all so much! 🙂
Weeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeell, howdy there, ukulele friends!!
With only an hour and a half left of this month’s challenge, I’m coming in clutch! Is that a phrase? Welp, it is now. 😆
I learned, recorded, and am posting The Travis Picking Etude tonight! This has become my “new normal” with these challenges is waiting until literally the last day of the challenge to even start learning a tune, LOL. On one level, it’s really funny because of the pure chaos (of joining the challenges that way, but also life is chaotic, as well), but on another level, I know I’m not challenging myself with the music itself as much that way. I think it is definitely a skill I have honed even more is to learn songs very quickly, put them to memory, and attempt to clean them up. I didn’t even trim my nails for this one; that certainly didn’t help matters (not even on my left hand, fretting hand, whoops). I do love this tune. I struggled *way* more than I expected with the swing feel of this tune. I think I did okay with it, but that was definitely part of the struggle.
Oh yeah, and then a spider attacked me just as I was finishing up the tune – NOICE! 😆
I got to hear a few of the entries – some really amazing ones! @leb397 and @mysticrick, AMAZING job on that duet! I loved that so, so much. @otzepeng your take on St. James Infirmary was fiah (fire)! That had such groove, such swag. Can I say swag? Help me, lol. And @brettboy, so glad you’ve returned, you’ve truly made up for lost time with those tunes and so glad your wrist is doing better and better! I really loved the second Hawaiian tune you did the most (Loki Lani? Really hope that’s right – I’m so tired, lol), but they were all fun! And I caught little glimpses of a few of the others – all amazing, as always! 🥰
Admittedly, lately, I have gotten *very* into playing piano again, which was my first instrumental love. I’ve learned some tunes I never thought I ever could and am really challenging myself with that. But I think if I had not spent 5 years (is it 5 years?) playing ukulele, I never would’ve had the courage to try some of the things I am now on piano. I owe so much to the time spent in this community and the people here and the great education RC101 provides. And I still play my uke, but admittedly have spent less time reading tabs to learn new tunes. Not sure if that makes sense. But whenever I do it’s RC101 tunes or Matt’s arrangements on his Patreon and YouTube, lol. Good times…
By the way, I did end up finishing editing that book last month! I did the entire thing, almost, in one almost 9 hour sitting. I am definitely okay (maybe not). Thank you all for your encouragmement with that and my ongoing chaotic entries here, lol. I will try so, so hard to not start learning the tune on the actual last day of the challenge next month, but we’ll see.
Y’alls are the best! Please get blessed! 🥰
The still image is one of a flower I took a few years ago. 🙂 For some reason, the video editor made it look incredibly blurry, but the original photo is not (unintentionally), lol. Any respectable-ish photographer has to say that. 😉
@Gi_Gi_ thank you so much, my friend!! Your take on St. James Infirmary was sooooo stinkin’ good ‘n’ cool! Love that! Such a tricky song, too! Evan is elite, plain and simple! But such a lovely sound, always enjoyed that tune! 🥰
I don’t even know how I got this together. This one is relatively simple, Chunking Etude (Mini Lesson #18) but for me strumming still is very tricky and I had to go over the second half with the backbeat several times and there still was a pause in there. Once I got it, it was very satisfying to play, though! Maybe one day I’ll get passed my mental block with strumming, but this is a step in the right direction! I’m very pleased I was able to pull this together and get (mostly) everything else done tonight somehow!
Looking forward to going back and listening to the entries I missed! Y’all are so talented! And thank you to Andrew for hosting these challenges and for all your work on the course! I do fully intend to go through it in order because I know that’s how it’ll work best, but time is agin’ me these days! Hearts to you all!! 🥰
Here ’tis:
Oh, one thing I almost forgot! I saw this little jumping spider on some flowers a little while ago and loved him so much! THEN I found out it is a thing for people to keep jumping spiders as pets! That’s a trend now. Apparently, they are cat-like in that they stalk their prey (like cats), as opposed to catching it in a web like other spiders, and they’re very attentive to humans for that reason (because they actively look around at their environment). So, they each have little personalities! I found that so cute and it made me actually think that I want to try having one as a pet! This makes sense for this stage in my life. But I thought I’d share that, along with the tune, since I didn’t want to be on camera tonight! So, enjoy those fax (facts)! 😂
And guess what, @Andrew! I actually remembered to copy / save this text so it wouldn’t be lost if the post timed out, for once in my life, LOL! Thank you and good day, sir!
Weeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeell… (Singing a country tune) I waited ’til the last second and haven’t even started learning anything and have to learn, record, and post today if I want to join this challenge, and hey doodle dee, still gotta work my second job an edit and entire book TODAY, life’s too crazy for me! I can do it? Yippee! 😂😂😂
@gi_gi_ hahaha!!!!!!! I completely forgot about that tangent!!! 😅😅😭😅 Man, we really missed our shot with that one! How are we suppose to clone Andrew now?!? He got wise to our scheme! Haha!!! Good times! 😅🥰😆
Yay, I’m pretty pumped about this one!! Quite an interesting concept!
I think the beauty of the ukulele in general is its limitations- its limited strings with their limited range of notes. So much creativity is required to “get around” those limitations, which is why I still love high G the most because it’s the most limited.
But what you would write for a high G ukulele may not naturally fit on low g or baritone uke, and vice versa. So, it seems like whatever instrument you write for, the goal is to draw out and highlight what makes that instrument special. It’s kind of like selecting a character in an RPG based on its strengths and weaknesses and how sometimes you try to customize that character to reflect yourself a bit, except I’m not literally an elf princess, just to clarify that. LOL!! Hopefully you see the real point of that tangent…
Anyway, really looking forward to this one!! 😊
Agreed with @anyon1 that your take on Gymnopedie last month was so lovely, @Gi_Gi_! 🥰 I wanted to do that one this month, but the low G arrangement does not really translate well at all to high G. I tried it. So, will keep looking at the different tunes! I defs will go through the whole course in order for sure at some point! 😅
@leb397, Louisa, thank you sooooo much for your kind words! They really truly touch my heart and I’m crying all over again, contrary to @Andrew ‘s custom meme, my “ukulele life” is one of the contexts I’ve cried the most! 😆 Mostly out of being so incredibly touched by the kindness and support of everyone in this group especially! And how much I’ve grown as a person because of the people here encouraging me as I’ve tried things that terrified me, like playing in front of people, which I still struggle with to this day but never would’ve improved as much as I have without the people here and ukulele as a kind of “excuse” to step out of my comfort zone. My ukulele is also sentient, his name is Ukebert, and his spiciness pushed me even further out of my comfort zone. All this to say, you were a huge part of that, Louisa, and many of my ukulele arrangements exist because of you, all the hymns! That’s pretty amazing! Because when you’re not sure of yourself, a kind word means so much more than people realize for creative growth.
I’m getting emotional again! For me, Andrew was one of the biggest encouragement as well and his feedback gave me so much confidence when I first started out especially. Along with the conversations we’ve had about creating music. I can never really express my gratitude for that! And Matt was such a huge influence as well with all the extra info he taught me about arranging songs on uke along with just… what is happening with the ukulele itself, how it’s laid out. So much gratitude! 😅🙏🥰
@Gi_Gi_ you’ve become such a dear friend to me and your encouragement has helped me feel even freer to be myself here! We’ve had so many laughs over the years. Do you remember Drewmpa Loompas?! That just popped into my head, I don’t even remember why that tangent happened. 😅😅😆 So many good times! And then us doing the open mics together which Tim from UU is letting me pretend to host (really assistant host / secretary)! I never would’ve even dreamed that could happen without you inviting me to those!! Thank you, friend! (Gotta get ready for that, speaking of!) I also will catch you up on the situation I was telling you about, but it got way worse / better since we last talked! The End to this novel, but in short, I love everyone here, especially those I got a chance to bond with! Please get hashtag blessed!! 😅🥰🙏Hahaha!! @Andrew, that is beautiful! That cracked me right up! I’m saving that one for later, LOL! When I first looked at it (on my phone), I didn’t notice that Tom Hanks was holding a uke! Absolutely perf!! And thank you – case in point why I love this community! 😂🥰
@dianna, thank you so much, friend!! 🥰 I think that’s part of what made me start feeling emotional was looking back on when I first joined here and had literally no clue what I was doing, but felt such support and gained so much knowledge and experience over the years here – and some real friends, like you and @Gi_Gi_ (both of you have beautiful hair, LOL!). All of those things are so special! And how much learning ukulele helped with my personal confidence, like learning to speak on camera and that helped with my speech anxiety in every day life. And again with all the encouragement, helped with my confidence in my creative abilities. There’s so much. I have had a lot going on in my personal life which is why I haven’t been on here as much, but this community will have a special place in my heart forevs! 🥰Looking forward to this month’s challenge and exploring the Pathways course more!! 😀
@otzepeng, very gorgeous playing on Etude No. 29! Quite lovely! 🙂
@misterbones, so amazing! I have always loved that tune and you absolutely nailed it as usual! Oh wow!! That triplet picking though!! That is crazy good!!! (I’m writing this as I’m listening!) Your entries keep getting more and more impressive! Well played, friend! 🙂
@shmu88 (I may have to go back and correct your name because for some reason I always spelled it wrong, lol), your Georgia on My Mind is so lovely! That inspired me to get the piano version but I want to learn the uke version, too! Really lovely and soulful! 🙂
@leb397, thank you so much, I absolutely love that tune you picked, if that’s the one I’m thinking of! I have good memories attached to it, but I can’t explain why here, lol! It was just happy moments in my life that coincided with that tune coming out. But very beautifully played! To this day, still can’t chuck, LOL! Maybe some day! Lovely work, friend! 🥰
@grannieannie, very beautiful playing on your entry! I’m the exact opposite and only play high G! My electric uke that I won from here is low G, but I don’t play that as often because it is very heavy, frankly! It’s cool, though, I’ve been meaning to revisit that. Anyway, very lovely performance!Thank you so much for your kind words about my video! That really means a lot! This community does mean so much to me and always will have a place in my heart, even during life’s chaos. The last couple of years in my personal life just have been very intense. Things are stable right now, but just chaotic for reasons too awkward even for me to describe here, lol. But thank you, I do love this community a lot! 🥰
@gi_gi_ Thank you so much, my friend! Your support has always meant so much to me. 🥰 I kept trying to reply to your email, but then the chaos of the situation actually managed to increase and change constantly, so I didn’t know how to articulate it until things became clearer. They seem to be becoming clearer now. I’ll have to tell you about it a little later. My “romantic life” is basically the plot of Twilight, with slightly fewer vampires. LOLOLOlol, sigh. 😂 That’s the most I can publicly say.As for your entry, absolutely gorgeous playing, friend! I wanted to pick that one, but since I did both my entries today, I just didn’t have time to do it justice like you did! Such beautiful feeling behind your playing. Is that going to potentially be a UU Open Mic performance in August? 😂
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I’m really sad I can’t reply to everyone, but I’ve got other stuff to do tonight, including working my second job! Good times!! I have to go back and listen to @Marianne ‘s and I’ll just say in advance that I know it’s amazing! Also, I know everyone else’s are, too! Y’alls are the best!
Oh yeah, here is the second entry I did to “make up” for missing last month (again, just in my heart, not an actually counted entry). It’s Etude No. 13, and while I managed to learn / record that AND Aura Lee tonight and they’re both beginner tunes, for some reason I really struggled with the rhythm of this tune. When it’s ongoing 8th notes but with different, distinct patterns, I sometimes struggle with that for some reason (I think it’s because I know it’s suppose to be one, continuous “flow” of notes, but I’m thinking of the pattern changing simultaneously). Beautiful tune, though!
I hope you all get hashtag blessed!! 🥰
P.S. Not sure why, this video is crushingly quiet, while the other one’s sound was normal! Sorry about that, lol! 🤔
Hello ukulele friends!! 😁
I managed to get an entry together this month! I explain more in the video, but I picked Aura Lee because it’s my 4 year ukuversary from when I joined Rock Class 101 (I think a couple weeks ago, but still) and that was the first song I learned when I joined here! 🙂
I look forward to going back and listening to all the, no doubt, incredible entries this month! Thank you to this amazing community and all the incredible work that @Andrew and co. have done to make this site better and better every year! Lorve you all!! 😁🥰
@brettboy, so sorry to hear about your wrist, that’s such a huge bummer on multiple levels! I hope you heal up ASAP and it isn’t too painful now. 🤗
This is just a funny thought mostly, but @Andrew, what if you composed a right-handed etude just for this occasion and added it to the challenge? That would be so funny and it’s interesting to consider if that’s possible… but your idea probably makes more sense. 😅😆
Wishing you swift healing, Brettboy!! 😊🙏❤️
Also I know that I’ve nigh on vanished but let’s just say I’ve had some things going on that are very distracting. 😅😅😆😆 Sigh. Haven’t even started this challenge, I need to get on it!! 😅😬🎶🎵🎼
I wanted to share this little snippet of this piano tune I’ve been working on for a couple months. This part took me sooooo long to learn and I’m now starting to focus more on dynamics and fluidity and things with it, so still not perfect but I thought I’d share since I’m proud of my efforts and sharing it around! And now with my fellow music enthusiast friends! I hope you enjoy! And I plan to record the whole thing and share once it’s all smoothed out!! Thank you if you listen! 🥰☺️🙏
@annyuke, gorgeous playing! Was it you who said you had only been playing six months or less? Either way, very lovely playing!!
And @Andrew actually just announced that they’re doing a special challenge during the summer months with an amazing prize, an acoustic-electric ukulele! Also you don’t want to miss all the fun because the summer challenges are often extra quirky and unique!
Also with sight reading tabs / music, that definitely also takes practice! I’m not even the best at it and I’ve been playing piano since I was 8 years old and ukulele for the last five years! These things take time and practice for sure but you’re doing an amazing job even so far!! Keep going!! ☺️🙏🎼
