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I AM A PREMIUM MEMBER
Hi all,
It’s been a while since I last participated in a monthly challenge (I think it’s been three months :o).
Life got a bit crazy and a lot has changed for me, so I still need some time to adjust to my new schedule and find time to practise ukulele.
I revisited Greensleeves for this month:I wish you all happy Holidays 🙂
@leb397 and @grannieannie Thank you so much!
Here is my last and final update:
I’ve managed to learn Moon River. 😊 A lot of repetition is really key!
However, I guess I’ll forget the tune quite quickly if I stop playing it, because it’s mostly muscle memory.Unfortunately, the video is a little off centre, so only half of the Kalimba is visible. Oh well! 😅
I’m quite happy with it, but I messed up a bit towards the end of the song. I didn’t play any wrong notes, I just forgot what came next. This is normally the easiest part for me when I practise. 😅I now have to catch up on all the entries from this month so far. 😅
First update:
So I might be overcomplicating this memorization topic. 😅
With “You Are My Sunshine” at least, it seems like a lot of repetition is key. This is also what I’ve read on reddit. However, I am still searching for some kind of “hack”. 😅
I did notice some patterns, like that adjacent tines are easier to remember or descending/ascending numbers, and I’m now more aware of which hand is playing the melody notes.So here it is:
As this song is quite easy and short, I’ve tried an arrangement of “Moon River” (love this tune so much 😊). It is way longer than “You Are My Sunshine” and the version I’ve found is more intricate as well.
I hope with a lot of repetition I am able to post a video for this one too. 😊So I’ve decided to work on a different instrument this month! 😊 A few years ago, I got a Kalimba for my birthday. I’ve played around a bit with it but not too much. I’m not sure why exactly, but the way the notes are laid out kinda messes with my brain haha. 😅 It makes memorizing tunes so difficult for me and I need to find a concept or a way of visualizing the notes in my mind. Like on uke, I memorize songs mostly by their chord shapes rather than just memorizing what frets and strings to play. Or on the piano, you can learn the right and left hand separately.
However, on the Kalimba, if you just wanna play the B Major scale (that’s how mine is tuned), the notes alternate between the left and right sides, and respectively left and right hand. So, basically, with this non-linear layout, both hands can play harmony and melody, if that makes sense. I find this very confusing. 😅 There’s got to be a better way to learn tunes than just memorizing numbers and relying on muscle memory. My guess is that I have to learn more about intervals.So here is my goal for this month:
Execution: I want to learn the beginner friendly song “You Are My Sunshine” and try to find a way of picturing the tune in my head.
Application: Practice daily and trying to be aware of the actual notes I’m playing. Additionally, research the internet on how to learn the Kalimba.
Evaluation: Share a video at the end of the month and report about how I’m getting on with memorizing.If it goes well, I might even learn another song too. 😊
@The_Bumble_Bard That is so sweet of you, to write everyone a comment with such kind words. 😊 You are so good at writing, maybe you should start a blog or something like that, I just enjoy reading your posts. 💕
I guess my one-take strategy only worked out so well because I am quite familiar with that tune and I practised it well. 😅 Sadly, it is not a shortcut for fast recordings haha. 😅
That is incredible, that you are playing on Open Mics! 😊 I’d be so nervous if I played on a real stage with an audience. 😅
Your two performances were great, and your singing sounded so confident. I know how it feels to feel kind of vulnerable when sharing your singing voice. RC101 really is a safe space for that kind of thing. I loved the idea with the puppets as well. 😅
Oh, and no worries, take your time with the email.😊@gi_gi_ Thank you so much! 😊 Haha, I wouldn’t consider myself a pro, but maybe imagining yourself on stage makes you one! Your performance was great, too. Well done with the new mic — it sounds nice! 😊
@otzepeng Thank you! Using that song as a warm up is a really good idea! I think I should include it in my warm up too, it has a nice variety of techniques indeed. 😊 I enjoyed your playing of Black Hole Sun, nicely done. 😊
@deadbuggy Congrats! Looking forward to the song you’ll choose. 😊@Andrew Thank you so much! 😁 Your comment made my day. 😊
@grannieannie It definitely is kind of freeing! I was still feeling very nervous.
But I don’t know if I would have submitted this take if there had been more mistakes in it. I’m glad it worked out so well. 😅 And yes, we shouldn’t be so hard on ourselves.Hi all!
For this challenge, I looked through my favorites and chose Hope. The tune is so beautiful! 😊 I learnt it back then when it was released, and I relearned it for this month.
This time, I took a different approach to recording. After warming up and feeling confident to record, I imagined myself performing the song on a stage in one take. Usually, I stop when I make a mistake and try again. But this time, I wanted to play through the mistakes as if nothing had happened.
Of course, I did make a mistakes, I had a slight brain freeze and almost played the wrong chord. However, I continued playing all the way through to the end.
This also saved me from trying over and over again until I got a clean recording. 😅So here it is. 😊
@The_Bumble_Bard Thank you so much for your kind words! 😊 I don’t always record them separately, but mostly whenever I record outside because of the background noises. I don’t have this little portable pick up thingy that Matt has that can be plucked into the phone and the uke to record outside. 😅
Your rendition of Free Fallin was really great! I wouldn’t be afraid of strumming, your doing a nice job. 😊
I loved the googly eye for the louder tap lol. 😂
@Andrew Thank you so much! It is always an honor to be featured in the newsletter. 😊 I’ll give playing behind the beat a go.
@gi_gi_ Thank you so much!@grannieannie Thank you! I mean, I cheated a bit because I couldn’t decide on a background for the recording, so I split the tune into three parts and recorded them separately. 😅
I definitely underestimated the cold fingers, too! It’s very confident of you to play a solo in front of others, even with cold fingers! 😊
Looking forward to your outdoor recording! 😊
@otzepeng Thank you! It’s definitely worth the trip, even if you have to travel through almost all of Germany to get there. 😅 And you get to see the Zugspitze as well. The area is great if you like hiking. 😊
It’s getting quite hot here, so at least you won’t have any problems with cold fingers. 😂I AM A PREMIUM MEMBER
I chose Summertime Swing this month — what a fun little tune! 😊
I recorded it while on holiday at the Eibsee in Germany, on a rather cloudy day, hoping that the place wouldn’t be as crowded as usual. I tried to feel comfortable in this uncomfortable situation, as Matt said in one of his recent life lessons. I didn’t realise how difficult it would be to play with cold fingers; it took some time to warm up and get used to the unfamiliar feeling.
I’m back home now and recorded the audio today. However, synchronising the video and audio was more difficult this time, since I usually record the audio first and the video later, rather than the other way around. 😅
Oh, and I didn’t bring my tripod with me, so we had to stabilise the phone with some rocks we found there. 😂
I’ve attached a picture of one of the setups there. 😅I am so sorry, Rachael. I’ve just checked RC101 to catch up on some posts I’d missed. Reading your messages in this thread back-to-back brought tears to my eyes. She was such a sweet and adorable girl. I’m sure you gave her the best life possible.
I AM A PREMIUM MEMBER
Here is Fingerpicking Etude No. 37. I only learnt it yesterday because I’ve had a very busy month. Consequently, I didn’t feel very comfortable while recording. Hopefully, I will find more time to practise for the challenge next month.
I AM A PREMIUM MEMBER
I chose the 5 strum patterns this month. I love learning strumming patterns, the progress is so satisfying! 😊
I started learning April Smiles as well, but I couldn’t get the second melody A up to speed. I’ll keep practicing though because the tune is very beautiful. 😊
@The_Bumble_Bard Aww more pictures! 💕😻 She indeed is precious and cuddly! I can tell she loves you too and that she already feels home. 😊 She even shows you her tummy. 💕
Fun fact, the danish call the toe beans “trædepuder” which translates to something like tread pillows and I think that is super cute! And the norwegians say “poteputer” which means paw pillows. 😻
