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Everything about that melon bar looks pretty great! 😂 The premise of that show seems interesting. Also for some reason the site unsubscribed me from this thread…
Really looking forward to catching up on the entries so far and hopefully getting my own recorded this weekend! I changed songs mid-challenge but I’ll still post what progress I made on HOTRS. Please enjoy this stream-of-consciousness post. 😅
Such a magical topic! So excited for this one! I hope other people chime in with their ukulele superpowers! 😀
And that clip was definitely worth watching!
Steve Vai:
“The level of achievement that we have at anything is a reflection of how well we were able to focus on it. Because the only thing holding you back, is the way you’re thinking.”
This is 100% fact. Our thoughts can hold us back from so many things in life, the thoughts we have about ourselves, “I can’t do this” or “I can’t do that.” Those are only stories we tell ourselves. Only if we believe them, will they become true. The power of our own thoughts cannot be underestimated. I say this from my heart based on so many things I’ve experienced in life, but this is also so true in any creative venture.
My ukulele superpower is turning (almost) any song into a clawhammer song. It makes absolutely no sense that I acquired this power, so it must be that I was bitten by a many-eyed ukulele and that’s where it came from. 😂
I really can’t wait for this lesson! Thank you all so much! 🙂
@gi_gi_ ha that’s fair, I was being unnecessarily cryptic about it! I picked House of the Rising Sun to continue my pursuit of strumming. If I can get the strumming section to 50% speed, I’d be elated! Right now, it’s about at 15%, max speed. 😅😂🥺
I can’t wait to hear your Lagrima, that’s such a beautiful tune and I know you’ll capture the feeling of it! 🥰
Today is my “Rock Class 101 Birthday,” the day I joined up here 3 years ago, if I’ve got that right! What a special journey it’s been! 😊❤️🥰🎁🎉🌮🎊🦝🐰🐰🐄🦊🦋🍿🍳🥓😯😤🌲🌳
@gi_gi_ haha thank you, friend! I think you might be right! 😂 Cuteness is an ongoing theme with RC101 so that would make sense! And thank you, my musical taste lies somewhere in between Beethoven’s 7th Symph and the Backstreet Boys. 😅😂
I did finally pick a tune for this challenge, although I had a few in mind, it’s another of Matt’s arr. that’s related to a series he’s doing on his patreon, but he also did a version for RC101 that’s very similar. I like to try out tunes here before I learn them, but then I just ended up starting to learn the whole thing. I feel like that gives away what I picked for anyone who’s following Matt’s adventures. 😂
@heilene, thank you so much for the lovely reply! And I also noticed you subscribed to my lil’ YouTubes (plural) channel, so thank you for that! I subscribed back, though it might not show that. 😊😂
I think you and I are really similar with our experience in life in social situations. I really love people a lot, but am naturally very shy, nervous, and introverted, so I’ve had to work extra hard to begin to “overcome” that, but really it’s just learning to embrace that part of yourself. Shyness, nervousness – these can be labeled as negative things at times, but really they are a beautiful part of who you are. It would be a rather boring world if everyone were the same. The other thing is, so many people experience social anxiety, so I think it’s a really good thing to be more open about that. To this day, it’s still something I struggle with, being able to choose to go into certain social situations of my own accord, but I have come a long way with that. Also, yes, the self-isolation – it got to a point with that with me at the end of last year that I needed to talk to someone about that because there were certain places in public that I couldn’t go anymore because of my anxiety and tendency to want to be alone (which again, can be a really good thing and there’s nothing wrong with that – but you do have to leave the house sometimes 😂). If you are someone who enjoys being alone a lot, it takes extra effort to leave your “comfort space.” But yes, I also have so many creative hobbies that occupy me when I am alone, like ukulele for instance. So, I completely empathize with your experience! 😂
So cool! I am so excited you found Rock Class 101 and are giving it a try! Look forward to all you can share here with us. July’s challenge is to pick ANY song from all of Rock Class 101’s songs and the prize is a custom arr. from Matt Dahlberg, so I feel like that could be perfect for you – also to explore all the amazing tunes on RC101, if you’d like. 😊
Did you share Sea of Storms in June’s challenge? I’m going to have to go look for that.
I couldn’t agree more about the challenges here! They are so much fun and such a great way to find extra motivation to learn tunes you may not choose otherwise (such as in different styles, techniques, and genres that you would not normally choose). And just the community here is so fun and encouraging – it has meant a lot to me in learning ukulele and also led me to do other things I never thought I could ever do – such as play on Open Mics with my ukulele. And just the friends I’ve made here are so special to me. 😊🥰
Hoppin’ aboard the TMI train, but thank you so much for the reply and hope you have a lovely weekend and week ahead!! 😁
Rachael
This is the most delayed reaction of all time, but I just realized that the example you gave in the challenge video of an excessively elaborate song to pick (for the custom arr. prize) was Beethoven’s 7th Symphony, and I literally asked Matt at one point to create an arrangement of that on his Patreon once. I feel personally attacked. 😉😂😂
LISTEN, I DIDN’T MEAN THE WHOLE THING, JUST PART OF IT. HELLO?!
(Or that could just be an insane coincidence, as happens so much in life. I’m sure it’s that. 😂)I have ideas for less involved tunes in the unlikely chance I win, though. I just found that really funny after the fact. 😉😂
It’s also *so* tricky to pick a tune (to learn) from all the tunes Rock Class 101 has! Looking through them made me realize what an amazing wealth of music is available to learn here. So, thank y’all so much for that! 😊
Hahaha! Immediately my brain started going off the rails with the possibilities but then I realized there were stipulations to the arr. Oh okay, I guess it’s fair to be realistic and not ridiculous. But immediately had some pretty hilarious ideas. So excited!!! Matt is praying now that I don’t win. 😂😂😅
No, I know that isn’t true… probably.
So I guess that rules out original tunes then since the song has to be well known? Can’t wait to see what happens with this one! 😂🎉🎊
Also congrats on 100 challenges! That’s so special! 🥰
I once again blew up the forum with my posts, but oh well – I’m going through ukulele / ukulele community withdrawals after the last week of insanity. I did so much cooking and party-prepping, I don’t even know how I got it done… 😂
@grannieannie, I know what you mean! There are definitely just some songs where they are not as “natural” to play for whatever reason – maybe just because you play in a different kind of style or approach. I definitely have experienced that. Also, that’s really lovely that you have so much natural beauty around you that can’t be tampered with! 😊
@leslieb, that sounds very lovely! @Andrew left you some great advice just for keeping the pace, but your playing sounded very beautiful! 😊
@gi_gi_ absolutely gorgeous, friend!! 😍 I love the feel behind your playing so much and how you really “dug in” to the groove (as Andrew likes to say) and really drew so much feeling out of that one! I like that you really let the notes breathe and sound out in all their beauty and pizazz (?). Haha! Yes, it gets to a point where you start thinking “oh, gosh, I can’t mess up now” near the end of the song, or else I’ll start over. 😂😂 But you played absolutely perfectly! Yay!! Also that sigh at the end – that moment where you realize you were holding your breath through the whole song! 😂 I also have screencapped Andrew’s comments before because countless times they have made my day and lifted my spirits when I was feeling bad about my playing – and indeed to look back on when you’re struggling. Ha, yes!
@johanna2509, oh, okay, that makes perfect sense with the outdoor recording that you’d “dub over” it later! I also would like to get one of those pick up things, but it seems all of my technology is too outdated. Some day, lol. Thank you so much about Free Fallin’, that was such a huge deal for me to get over that fear of strumming. So much of the time, the only thing holding us back is our own self-imposed limitations (fear, self-doubt, etc.) – that was the case there, I think. Haha!! See, this whole time, all I needed to do was glue googly eyes to myself and I was able to break freeeeee! 😂
@kanique, such lovely playing! Really a flawless performance with such beautiful feeling / style! 😊 Wait, what? That one is by George Gershwin? How did I not know that…?! 😂
@anyon1, I think I missed your entry earlier, but wow, that was a lovely take on Free Fallin’! Absolutely perfect. Very clear and apparently you have a much better sense of rhythm because you seemed to sense the beat enough to not have to do the non-stop up’s and down’s with strumming. For me, that’s the only way I can strum remotely on time. 😂 Haha!! I should really trademark that somehow. You know, I have mailed googly eyes to more than one person in the uke community at this point, but I have other “targets” in mind for that. As always, TMI, but thank you so much, I was so thrilled and amused that actually worked!! 😂
@lhamilton, beautiful take on that one! I also had that exact same struggle with the high section – you do have to hit those strums somewhat exactly because otherwise you miss the melody notes. But it sounded very lovely! 😊
@bibilele, so beautiful! A really perfect performance! I also love the settings you always choose for your videos – very interesting! 😊The End. Looking forward to more tunes in The Final Countdown of this challenge!! 😊
@heilene, that is so, so lovely and magical! I loved the effect you created with the song overall – with the voice effects (reverb? I know nothing, lol) and what sounds like layers in certain parts. But the song itself is just beautiful. Not sure why, but it gives me Lana Del Rey vibes, which is definitely a good thing! It’s clear you have a talent for songwriting. Would be very interested to hear what Andrew says when he gets a chance! But thank you so much for sharing! Would love to hear more! 😊
Aww, dang, really? I just looked. His YouTube channel is indeed gone. It looks like he has all (?) of his songs on this website, though:
Not sure if he transitioned everything to there, or if something happened to his YouTube channel? I’ve heard that YouTube is getting stricter about its copyright restrictions and things like that. So, sadly, not sure what happened there. :/
@heilene, I completely understand all of that! When I first started out here, I was terrified of almost everything – being on camera (in general), playing on camera, even just interacting with anyone (because I am also very shy and nervous at first in certain situations). I got such anxiety whenever I was recording, but now that has gotten much, much better with time and practice. But what really helped with all of that is just learning how incredibly kind, lovely, and supportive everyone here is and no one is judging you at all; it’s the opposite, that everyone only wants to help, let you know how great you’re doing, and enjoy your music! 😊
And yes, there is a HUGE range of skill here on Rock Class 101, from very, very beginners who just started playing ukulele to………… maybe professionals? 🤣 When I first started here, I knew almost nothing about playing ukulele and now I am creating my own arrangements – a good part due to learning/recording songs here, talking with people here, and all the support that encouraged me to continue. It actually makes me really emotional because this group of people helped me become more the uke player I wanted to be. So yes, I can’t say enough good things about everyone here. 💗
I also simultaneously started following Matt Dahlberg at the same time I joined RC101! He is a magical person on this earth – such a brilliant musician and teacher. I’ve taken private lessons with him, almost ten once I can afford my next one. He also was instrumental on my uke journey. 🤣
Haha!! Same! It’s the lowest pressure challenge ever. All you have to do is learn the whole song and no one is perfect at all. It’s also one of the most fun things I’ve done playing ukulele is learn songs here and try to join in every challenge for almost 3 years straight in July (others have been going for even longer than that!). But yes, everyone here is amazing and I’m very excited that you’re here, too! Can’t wait to listen to your originals! 😊
– Rachael
@heilene, hello and welcome!! Glad to see you pop in to say hello! Would really love to see you join one of the challenges coming up, there’s still time to join the current one, but otherwise you could join for July’s challenge!! They are so much fun and everyone is so encouraging. 🙂 But the one for this month will give you extra entries to win the Kanile’a in December! But you can still have a chance to win the Kanile’a ukulele if you join in the Fall challenges later on this year! 😀
You might already know all that, but just in case you didn’t, now you do! 🙂
Oh, and agreed with Andrew, everyone here would love to hear your original tunes, too! 😀
@grannieannie, that was so lovely!! Only the tiniest of hiccups and you didn’t let that interfere with the flow of your playing! Like @Andrew said, we are all our own worst critics and that’s so true! I think that mentality can apply to all of life that everything we experience, how we experience it is just a matter of interpretation and perspective – if we look for the good, we’ll see the good. Not to get super cheesy, but that really is so true! Really loved seeing your sweet, surprise doggos and the beautiful woods, as well! 😀
@shmu88 and @brettboy, those were some super sweet Summertimes! Such different, but equally incredible, performances of that tune! Really amazing! 🙂@Andrew, thank you soooooooo much for your kind words! Your encouragement really means the world to me. It’s always a huge bonus when you are impressed by something. I feel like I earned a special gold star this day! 😂 I really do want to try more strumming tunes, but it may not be every challenge because learning those takes up about 100% of my brain’s CPU (and I don’t have much to spare…). 😂 Anyway, thank you again so much!! 😊
@grannieannie, thank you so much for that! I kind of want to cry from all this encouragement. I don’t know how repeatedly everyone here practices certain passages of music, but I probably played the chorus of the song… more times than I can count before I got it that far. And the “break,” oh my word. The verses weren’t too hard, but incorporating the tapping was very tricky. I also love that about RC101 tunes – that they are incredible pieces of music and truly fulfilling to learn and play, but also teach something valuable in the process. And you’re right that it’s very subtle, which is part of the brilliance of it. That really isn’t always true for all ukulele tutorials. You can just see that all the teachers here put their hearts into what they create – Andrew being one of the best examples, in that he never cuts corners and always strives for perfection (none of the teachers cut corners, but just saying – the love and dedication to quality put into these tunes carries through). I try to put the love I feel, the emotional expression, into playing them – for me that’s my main objective with music.Haha, I really wanted Andrew to notice the eye-tapping, but I’m not sure if he did! Lol!! My goal is to eventually get it where I “don’t miss a beat” taking the googly eye on and off. 😂
I just can’t compute that you find strumming easier to play! That’s really awesome, though. I think that for all the reasons previously listed, I find every aspect of strumming difficult. It also has to do with physical comfort, kind of, which is hard to explain. But I agree – I also just love fingerpicking so much, and it is that “classical” effect that you can get and all the beautiful techniques you can experience while fingerpicking. There are a lot of techniques with strumming, too, but imo, they are way more difficult. Thank you for the lovely reply! 😊
Looking forward to hearing a bunch more tunes this month!! 😀
@gi_gi_ thank you so much, my friend!! It was such a big deal for me personally to get over that hurdle of avoiding strumming by learning this song. Haha do most people prefer strumming? Thank you so much, can’t wait to hear your entry!! 🥰😊
