[karenj]

I AM A PREMIUM MEMBER

I had a lot of fun learning Wipe Out, especially sine it is much different than anything I’ve ever played before. There are plenty of mistakes, but here it is anyway. I try to remember that the goals for me with these challenges are to learn, improve, have fun, and to let go of the goal of getting a perfectly clean recording. The percussion section sounds a lot better in my head than it does in the recording. And I know I muffed the transition back to the melody. I am still working on transitions and trying to keep a consistent rhythm.

I do suffer from U.A.S (Ukulele Acquisition Syndrome). This Epiphone Les Paul isn’t my favorite sounding ukulele, but it seemed perfect for this song. The fret marker at the 9th fret instead of the 10th rather messed with my head and made me realize I use those fret markers ore than I thought.

It would, of course, be nice to add that lovely Kanile’a to my collection, but I am a winner just to have the opportunity to benefit from these great classes and such a supportive ukulele community. I’ve enjoyed everyone’s submissions so far and look forward to listening to more!

Thanks again,
Karen

[karenj]

I AM A PREMIUM MEMBER

I’ve worked hard on this song despite having day after day of clouds, rain, and gloom in the U.S. Northeast. With a beautifully sunny weekend behind me and a busy week ahead, I figured I better do my recording. My top goal this month was to relax and just do my best with the recording and keep playing despite mistakes. I told myself I would spend an hour recording different takes then pick the best one. Not worrying about getting it just right did help me feel relaxed. I know there are more than a few mistakes and the rhythm needs a lot of work. My cat, Leo, was also a bit of a distraction but fun to have in the video. So maybe I can blame my mediocre performance on the cat. . . .

Thanks again for a great class.
Karen

[karenj]

I AM A PREMIUM MEMBER

Here’s my submission of Dream a Little Dream of Me. My goal was to play more relaxed, despite the recording. I still tense up and require a zillion takes, but I did make a little progress. I want to work on my timing, but I seemed to keep wanting to put a little swing rhythm into it. And I wish the volume on my thumb strumming blended better with the finger picking. But that does seem better when I play more relaxed. I also worked on Stand By Me, but it has a long way to go. The Jurassic Park theme is now calling me!

Thanks again for the great lesson and fun challenge, not to mention a chance to win such an amazing prize! I am looking forward to catching up on recent posts.

[karenj]

I just want to say thank you again for the feedback. I learn not just from the comments directed towards me, but also from the feedback and tips you give to others. I am impressed by the time and effort you put into this. Thank you Andrew and the Rock Class 101 community.

[karenj]

I love the harp duet! So pretty. And also your version at the beach!
Karen

[karenj]

Here is my attempt at Red is the Rose. After what felt like a million attempts, I gave up the goal of getting a clean recording. I wish it was better and am humbled by how slow this melodoy finger picking comes to me. I know I need to work on smoothness, especially for Melody B, but it took me the whole month to get this far. And March is a long month! But I wanted to challenge myself and really appreciate how Andrew breaks down and explains the different sections. It’s such a great class. I am looking forward to spending some time checking out the other submissions. Happy Spring!

[karenj]

Here’s my version of Scarborough Fair. This is one of my favorite songs and I improvised the latter part. Sorry about the thumb only picking, but I recently cut the tip of my index and it’s messed with my picado efforts.

I’ve known how to read music, but never in connection with the ukulele and I’ve enjoyed the course. Thanks again for Rock Class 101!

[karenj]

I AM A PREMIUM MEMBER

Thanks so much for a great song. This recording doesn’t really show how much I have practiced, never mind how many millions of recording attempts I made. (It always sounds so much better in my head.) I found the song deceptively simple in that it shows all the inconsistencies in my tempo and force of picking. Some of that was an attempt at vibrato, but lots of it just shows room for improvement. Anyway, here’s my submission of one of my most favorite Christmas songs. I should also make a shout out to the Cocobolo Ukulele Company. I wish my playing was worthy of this beautiful instrument (https://www.facebook.com/groups/cocoboloukulelesmarketplace/)
Thanks again and happy holidays to everyone.

[karenj]

I AM A PREMIUM MEMBER

Once again I am frustrated with all my mistakes, especially when I hit record. But I do feel some slow but steady progress. The song wasn’t as difficult as I thought it would be on the first listen, thanks to the wonderful way the lesson is broken down. I worked on this a lot over Thanksgiving break and want to share that I was feeling thankful for the entire Ukulele community, including Rock Class 101! So here ya go, multiple mistakes and all:

[karenj]

I AM A PREMIUM MEMBER

Oops. Didn’t realize I needed to write that with my submission. I know my chances are slim to win this beauty, but I didn’t win that 978 million lottery, so here goes. . . .
Here’s another link just to keep it all in one submission. Thanks again for a fun challenge.

[karenj]

Here’s my go at the Walking Dead theme. I haven’t participated in a few months and am feeling pretty rusty but figured my sub par performance might encourage others who are also low on the learning curve. I also can’t believe how much worse I play once I hit the record button. Oh well, I am trying to let go of perfectionism and focus on improvement and just have fun. I hope the link works okay.

[karenj]

Here’s my Fingerpicking and Strumming. There are still lots of mistakes and pauses, but it is the best of my million takes (or maybe it just seemed like that many takes). Thanks for the lessons. I do think I am making some slow but steady progress.

Karen

[karenj]

How can I get clearer sounds with my finger picking. Sometimes the notes are all warbelly and/or muffled, especially obvious on my recordings. Also, I’m wondering if you think strings make much of a difference, how often to change them, best brands, etc. Thanks for the great lessons.

[karenj]

Here’s my recording of Chopsticks. I gave up on getting a clean recording, as I could have made another thousand takes and made a thousand different mistakes. That said, this was a fun song to learn and I find the challenge motivating. I am still working on a consistent tempo. Thanks!

[karenj]

Oops. I guess my file upload didn’t work. That dang learning curve again. How about this link?

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