[karenj]

Thank you for the feedback and encouragement!

[karenj]

Here’s my September submission of Wildwood Flower. This was certainly a month for me to work on some new things! I picked up the U-Bass just a few weeks ago and have enjoyed learning this backing track. And learning how to do 2 recordings and make a split screen video was another learning curve. I don’t think I got the meshing of videos quite right, but it seemed the best I could do. I didn’t memorize, and there are plenty of mistakes and variable tempos, but I had to let that go too. And my dog’s collar shake at the end makes me laugh. I love the clawhammer style and enjoyed this lesson very much. Thanks again to the Rock Class 101 community. I’m looking forward to your submissions.

[karenj]

Here’s my August submission of Hawaii Five-0. What a fun song to learn! This is still pretty rough, but I am out of time so this will have to do. I am working hard to focus more on progress rather on all of my mistakes. I wish a happy Labor Day to all in the USA. Thanks again to RC 101 for a great month of music!
Take care,
Karen

[karenj]

Here is my July Challenge submission of Aloha Dreaming. I really enjoyed learning this lovely melody. I wish my harmonics were clearer, but between that and measures 9 and 10, this was my best take. I am looking forward to checking out everyone’s submissions this month. I wasn’t up for it right now, but I do hope to try an original song some day. Thanks again to the Rock Class 101 community.

[karenj]

I AM A PREMIUM MEMBER

Here’s my June submission of Axel F. What a fun song to learn! Keeping in time with that backing track was certainly a challenge, especially the D section which I could barely keep on the rails. I have company coming soon, so here’s the best of my million takes.

I’m looking forward to everyone’s submissions. Happy Summer to all!
Karen

[karenj]

I AM A PREMIUM MEMBER

Here is my submission of Clocks for the May challenge. It still isn’t quite up to speed, but I still struggled to get a consistent tempo and rhythm. But it was a fun song to learn. And since my Sister and Nephew are big Coldplay fans, it is fun to say this is in my repertoire (at least sort of). I am looking forward to viewing this month’s submissions. Very impressive so far! Thanks again to RC 101 for another great month of songs.

[karenj]

I AM A PREMIUM MEMBER

Here’s my submission of Bella Vita for the April Challenge. What a lovely piece! It was tough to decide which option to select this month, but this beautiful melody called my name the loudest. Thanks again to Andrew and the team for all of these great lessons. And there have been so many wonderful submissions so far!

Take care,
Karen

[karenj]

Here’s my March challenge submission of St. Anne’s Reel. Yowza. I really struggled with this one and gave up getting anything close to a clean take, even at a slower speed. I know my tempo and rhythm is all over the place At times it felt more like St. Anne’s Surreal! That said, I enjoyed learning the triple pick technique and hope to play it in a more relaxed style some day.

Thank you to the Rock Class 101 team for a great course and another great challenge. All of the submissions have been fabulous this month!

Take care, Karen

[karenj]

Here is my February Challenge submission of Amazing Grace (Harmonics Version). I had started working on harmonics in January but caught a flu bug and had to break my challenge submission streak. I was so happy to have flexibility this month for a “take two” opportunity. I love the tone of harmonics, especially on that rare magical moment when I hit it just right. And this song will always have a special place in my heart. One of my goals has also been to focus on progress and not trying to get it perfect. So here is my best of a million takes.

I have been blown away by everyone’s recordings so far. Amazing work! You’ve inspired me to find some time to pick through the extensive catalogue of songs/lessons. So much to learn! Thanks again to RC 101 for the wonderful harmonics course and everything else.

Take care,
Karen

[karenj]

My goal for the month is to work on Harmonics. I love this sound and am so happy when I have been able to “hit” the right note on occasion in various monthly challenge songs. I hope to be able to do this more consistently. And another one of my overall goals is to continue to work on letting go of my perfectionist tendencies and focus instead on my progress.

Execution:
Complete the RC 101 Harmonics course. I had started this awhile ago but never completed it. I will thus restart the course and am committed to completing it and learning Amazing Grace.

Execution:
I will practice at least 20 minutes daily. I will complete the Harmonics course by January 20th and use the remainder of the month to improve my performance of Amazing Grace.

Evaluation:
Record and submit the Capstone piece, Amazing Grace by the end of the month. I will also record early practices to reinforce progress over perfection. I will also work to add some harmonics to my other ukulele playing.

I’m looking forward to everyone’s submissions this month! Good luck to all in reaching your goals.
Karen

[karenj]

I AM A PREMIUM MEMBER

Here’s my December submission of Have Yourself a Merry Little Christmas. I’ve always loved this song and was very happy to learn Matt’s beautiful arrangement.

I have been a fan of the Ukulele Kids Club for years and just added $50 to the Rock Class 101 pot.
For those who are on the fence, it may be good to know that the donations help buy ukuleles and ALSO help support the music therapists who work with the kids.

I should also say that I have no intention of “winning” another ukulele, as I am beyond thrilled with my Kanile’a from last December. But it is motivating to me to have my name on the list. Thanks again for another great month of challenges. The submissions so far have been fabulous.

Happy holidays and many wishes for a healthy and peaceful New Year.
Karen

[karenj]

I AM A PREMIUM MEMBER

Here is my November Challenge submission of Always With Me. What a lovely arrangement and such fun to learn! I was glad I had worked on the hammer-ons and pull-offs last month but this was still quite a stretch for me. This is the best of the million recording attempts, as I especially struggle with getting a clean recording with longer songs. I make mistakes in different places on each take. And of course there is that tricky D section that never is the way it sounds in my head. But here it is, mistakes and all. It’s been a busy few weeks but I am now looking forward to taking a look at everyone’s submissions. Happy Holidays to All
Karen

[karenj]

I AM A PREMIUM MEMBER

Here’s my October submission of Etude no. 25: Morning Dew. I just love this beautiful melody. And it was also good to work on my hammer-ons and pull-offs. I did spend a ton of time on Little Trouble in Big China. It was fun to learn and I was plugging away at it, but at some point I realized I wouldn’t be ready to submit by the end of the month and thus switched to Morning Dew.

Thanks again to the RC 101 team and members. Another month of great submissions! Wow! And congratulations on 10 YEARS!

Take care,
Karen

[karenj]

Here’s my September submission of Summer Nights. I loved learning this melody but was also in the ‘harder that it looks” camp and couldn’t believe how long it took me to have my fingers to do what I wanted them to do.

My lovely cat in the photo pretends to be a sweet thing, but if you look closely you can see he’s really a sheet music eating devil. Or maybe he’s just encouraging me to memorize it faster? And I sure do love this Kanileʻa that was courtesy of Rock Class 101. I also love Matt’s lessons and want to give a shout out to his performance in the Music and Meals for Maui Fundraiser (still available for streaming).

I’m sad to say goodbye to summer nights but wish you all a happy fall.
Take care,
Karen

[karenj]

Bury Me Beneath the Willow:
This was a bit of an obsession for me these past few weeks and I gave up on getting a clean recording. Of course the worse parts are the “solo” and the ending, when my recording button nerves are the worst. Considering the length of the song and with the idea of being an accompanist, one of my goals was to just ignore mistakes, regroup, and keep going. I highly recommend the clawhammer course for those who haven’t yet tried this. It is a lot of fun even with a traditional ukulele.

I’ve been enjoying everyone’s submissions so far. I especially want to try Cielito Lindo, but then I can’t get that (politically incorrect) Ay-yi-yi-yi Frito Bandito song out of my head.

Take care,
Karen

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