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@gi_gi_, thank you soooooooososo much, my friend! I can’t even say how encouraging that is. It’s so easy to get caught up in your mistakes or what you could’ve done better, so I really appreciate that. 😊💕
I saw your entry for the monthly challenge and it was very lovely indeed! I also really liked the monochromatic style of the video. 😊
@Andrew, thank you so much!! 😊 I’ll try an intermediate, then, at least give it a try!
@dianna, thank you kindly!! 😊
I AM A PREMIUM MEMBER
‘Ello friends! 😊
This time I went with Echude No. 1.
I’m in an odd place with these challenges now, I’ve realized. I feel like the beginner songs are not always as challenging as they used to be and I can learn them fairly quickly, but the intermediate songs feel overwhelmingly difficult at times. So, I think I’m going to adopt the strategy of learning the beginner song if it’s easy-ish enough, then working on (one of) the harder songs once I have a completed entry. Otherwise, despite all reason, I feel way too overwhelmed with the difficulty and too much pressure, along with the anxiety of the recording process. 😂 No one needed to know any of that, but just sharing my thoughts.
This song is so pretty and still was challenging, but not overwhelming. It reminds me of Etude No. 5, which is my favorite Andrew Etude. Thank you for these creations. 😊
Sorry the video is so quiet. Still trying to fix that, but I think I have an idea what to do now.
Great entries by everyone so far!! 😊
@annemarie, thank you very much!! Same here, I love the traditional hymns the most. 😊💕
@surferjay, piano is really great to learn! I think if I hadn’t learned piano first I’d have even more trouble than I do understanding how to play ukulele, and all the theory necessary (that I do know). Pianos are so much more black and white 😉😂 as all the notes are linear from the lowest to the highest note, obvs. But that makes a difference. Ukuleles are rather cheeky in their layout and I am still very confused by it, but I love them, maybe even slightly more than piano now–which is really saying something.
Ha! That’s so amazing that you found that! I may even have some piano music books somewhere from when I was a kid, probably with notes from my teacher telling me not to play by ear. 😂 She was great though. I need to look for those books.
Um, that’s flippin’ amazing! Maybe I do like jazz… On ukulele. Those super fast, complex riffs are crazy. 🤯😎
@surferjay, haha, thank you! 😁💕 I “arranged songs” on piano since I was around 8 years old so it’s sort of an engrained skill, and playing by ear. 😅 But still I can only really do simple arrangements because my knowledge and other skills are more limited. By the way, if I were arranging these songs on piano I would know all the notes. The only reason I don’t know the exact melody notes on ukulele is because I don’t know all the notes on the fretboard, of course. Forgot to mention that.
That’s an interesting way to think of theory. Theory really is a language. I do feel like I know just enough theory to create these arrangements and read music, but I really get overwhelmed trying to write down the arrangements so I just record them for my reference and sometimes to share. So, basically I know, “dónde está el baño?” on uke. 😅😂😅 (Also those accents may not be right.) I guess if I couldn’t read music I’d be a dang genius like those guys! 😂😅😉
That is really amazing! I haven’t seen any live music in years but that seems pretty great. I’m not the biggest fan of jazz but the skill exhibited there is impressive. 😊 You can play some jazz on uke?
@surferjay, thank you so much, friend! 😁💕
I did arrange it myself! I figure out the melody by ear that goes with the chords I choose somewhat arbitrarily, but I don’t really know what the melody notes are exactly. 😂😅 I know they’re one of the notes in a C or G chord, for instance, and they’re on the A string usually, but I don’t know what the notes are.
I actually didn’t have to look up any chords for this one. I just guessed based on songs I’ve learned before from RC101 and based on the other hymns/songs I’ve arranged. Sometimes I just remember the shapes of chords I know from other songs and try them until they sound right with the melody. 😂🥺 I know the names of just enough chords and their “functions” from playing piano to start most arrangements I’ve tried, but these hymns are pretty simple. There definitely are multiple songs I’ve tried to arrange that I couldn’t figure out this way, though, because the song or the chords are too complicated.
But I basically do these arrangements for fun, and to relax, which is why I haven’t pushed myself super hard to learn all the theory yet, even though I really should. 😅😳
That’s probably too much of an answer but there you have it. 😂😅 Thanks again! 😊💕
Just a few, completely hypothetical questions related to maintaining a ukulele:
1. If someone splashed root beer inside a ukulele, is there any way to get that out, or is that just kind of permanent?
2. If someone were to glue googly eyes–say, 450 of them–onto the surface a ukulele, would that negatively affect the sound at all?
(Two of them are already glued on, so…)
3. If a ukulele’s strings have never been changed since its purchase four years ago, is that bad?
Hopefully this lesson can help “someone.” Thank you! 😂
So beautiful, @lisadmh! Lovely playing. 😊
I prefer an overcast, stone-laden shore–like what you’d find in some places in the UK–to a sunny tropical beach, but I’m kind of a freak. It looks lovely there, though! 😂
@leb397, thank you so much, my friend!! I can’t even say how much all of your support and kind words mean. And from everyone else here, too! 😊💕
I feel like I owe the existence of these lil’ arrangements to all I’ve learned from RC101, and all this encouragement.
Happy Easter to you, too! Hope it was lovely. Mine was, but also a pinch chaotic. 😂🤯💕🐰🐇
@Steven, thank you so much for that! That seriously means so much. I feel far less alone in those anxiety struggles because of the encouragement and solidarity from everyone here. I can’t even say how much that has affected me and touched my heart, to be honest. It means a lot to know that even such incredible musicians like you and the other instructors here–along with most students here–share in that specific struggle, which can be such a heavy and shameful feeling at times. It’s good to know that y’all have flaws, so that I’m less convinced that you’re beings from Greek mythology. 😂😅 But then they’re pretty messed up, lol! ……….. Anyway, thank you! I’ll try to fix that transition that way. 😊
@dianna, congratulations!!! That’s amazing! Really enjoy that beaut of a uke. 😊💕@leb397, thank you so much my friend! Tbh, I never feel cooler than when I’m playing that electric uke. 😂 That was also a part of the struggle though because boy those strings are a little harsher on the fings, than my little plastic (?) stringed soprano uke. And it’s bigger and heavier of course. But thank you! Your take on that one was so lovely despite those challenges. 😊
Yes, the recording jitters may not ever go away. For me it’s just accepting that my hands will shake for the first few takes and that I’ll keep going until that passes. And also really trying to know the song as well as possible helps.
Same! Excited for April’s challenge!! 😁
@dianna, thank you for being so open about sharing your struggles, too! You said all of that so well and I couldn’t agree more. I feel like the mental and emotional side of playing an instrument can be one of the greatest challenges and rewards, as much as learning the music. I feel the same way that playing uke is simultaneously a way to face and soothe anxiety, and the second thing is what helps you hold on when things are really difficult and you want to give up. Or if you feel like you’re not good enough, which I’ve often felt.Thank you again! The encouragement from people here has helped so much. My real hobby is actually crying about ukulele. 😂😉
@leb397, ha, glad to show you a new tech thing for a change! 😅 For many Spanish words, an accent can change the word’s meaning. “Sí” is “yes,” but without an accent, “si” is “if”–if I remember correctly. Accents matter, man! 😅😉
@surferjay, that’s so neat! I’ve thought about getting a fold up keyboard, but I’ve read mixed reviews about them. Apparently that person made it work. 😅 Maybe you should give busking a go! That seriously would be cool. If you do, you should film some of it and share it here. The closest I get to busking is playing outside and hoping no one hears or notices. 😂Hello again, uke friends! (I guess I unconsciously absorbed that phrase from brettboy without realizing it. Whoops! 😅)
Here is my entry. I was originally going to try Swan Lake, but was having some struggles with the technique, and need more time with it. So, I tried Study in B Minor instead. Very lovely chune (tune). That “freaky B chord” tripped me up big time (or rather transitioning from that back to the “sneaky E chord”) but I’ll keep working on this and hopefully can get it smoother.
Thanks to everyone who was kind and supportive in this thread earlier about the struggles I was having. Recording anxiety is real, as is feeling overwhelmed learning new techniques. But the course is wonderful and the songs in it are beautiful and everyone’s entries this month were amazing.
Thanks to Andrew and Steven and co. for all you do!