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Andrew,
It’s funny that when I was just kicking back and playing with this song, I was starting to get into that slow dreamy feel. But of course as soon as I hit record everything immediately tenses up … I think because I focus on trying to hit every note/chord perfectly. But it is a pretty fun song to play and I’ll work on your suggestions. Thanks as always for your dedication.
Robert
I am a premium member
No costume today, just my rendering of Sleepwalk. I can hear you now … need to work on dynamics 😉 … I’m painfully 🙂 aware and will hopefully get there someday. Was playing around and inserted two ascending chords to lead into the final C (G# to A# to C) at the end. Thanks in advance.
Thank you for the video critique. I was jazzed that this challenge had a really nice opportunity in the intro to use the vibrato technique. Before the challenge, I had been working (as previously discussed) on including vibrato in my playing using Red is the Rose since that piece is quite slow (until melody B) with many held chords. I’ve been really experimenting with where and how much vibrato to use … from way overkill using it everywhere … to using it really sparsely.
As I’ve been practicing, it seems that most of the time I make an almost an instantaneous decision at the moment of playing the chord whether to use some vibrato or not, though I have an idea beforehand of where I might want to use it. But as you say, using it too much can be detrimental, I think because it makes it seem too contrived. The intro to A Thousand Years seems to clearly want some vibrato to help set the mood. But, I just played the intro a couple of times eliminating vibrato from just the 4th hit of those first three measures to make it a little sparser as you suggested and I like it better.
Thanks as always for your great insight.
Cheers,
Robert
I AM A PREMIUM MEMBER
A Thousand Years … sure seems like it. This was a real challenge, and is going to require a LOT more practice … whiffed the first slide … a few hesitations … inconsistent volume … some weak pull-offs … some poor transitions with the muted hits … but is certainly a great song to practice all these techniques because it is so beautiful.
And I finally included vibrato in my playing … which I neglected to use in my performance of Red is the Rose … yay!
Cheers,
Robert
Andrew,
My sincerest thanks for your very helpful critique. I have been hesitant to introduce vibrato into my playing, concentrating mostly on timing and transitions. But I can “see” by listening to your rendition of Red is the Rose that the addition of vibrato adds some much needed evocative depth to this song which my rendition sorely lacks. This particular song is really the perfect one for me to work on introducing vibrato into my playing because it’s so familiar and naturally demanding of it. Well, now’s as good a time as any to give it a go. When I get something worth presenting, I’ll post another video … but don’t hold your breath ’cause it may take a while ;-).
Thanks again.
Robert
p.s. Andrew, I thought I posted a response to your critique but I didn’t see it shown up on the forum. So, I wrote again above and this is my repost.
p.p.s. About my new Kanile’a. You kinda forced me into buying it by introducing your Low-G lessons 😉 ! Found a good deal on ukes.com (aka Bounty Music in Kahului, Maui). They’ve got a clearance sale on pre-2019 Kanile’a ukes amounting to about 25-30% off. I think it’s because I heard Kanile’a has introduced their new TRU-R bracing on *all* their models for 2019 (?) and I suppose they are trying to unload their inventory of ukes with the older version of the TRU bracing. So I was able to pick up a KCS-T-Premium for a really good price. I figure I’ll string my Mele Mango tenor as a low-G because it has such a beautiful warm tone with the softer wood. The Kanile’a I’ll keep as my high-G. And now I finally get to go back and take a look at Taimane’s Moon with my old/new low-G Mele 🙂 …
@morrieuke1 Thanks for the compliment. It’s funny that when I’m practicing, I play with a much more relaxed feel. But as so many have mentioned, as soon as the camera is turned on, everything tenses up. I suppose that besides the main goal of getting us to practice and learn new songs, the membership challenge also gets us used to playing “live” in front of “others” … yeah, funny how playing by yourself in front of a camera seems to feel like you’re playing in front of a big audience. Anyway, I’m hoping in time and with repeated challenges that I (we) will overcome the nervousness and be able to perform just as comfortably in front of others as by ourselves. Cheers.
Stephen,
Thanks for the critique. Working on this piece was the first time I used the on-screen tab viewer … in particular when I was trying to get the vamp timing down. I’ll look into trying to add the metronome to my practice sessions as you suggest to improve the consistency in my tempo.
Thanks again and Happy New Year!
Robert
I AM A PREMIUM MEMBER
Here is my go at We Three Kings. I was on business travel from Nov.26 through Dec. 11, so it was difficult to squeeze in a lot of practice. As usual, my main trouble is keeping the tempo under control. The video has two takes in it. The first was taken with the built-in microphone on my Sony 4K camcorder. I wasn’t really happy with the sound on my previous videos, so I got an external microphone to see if it would make a difference … I think it does. There’s a couple of days between the takes (even though I’m wearing the same Aloha shirt 😉 ) and during which time I managed to bugger up my thumb requiring a bandage.
Merry Christmas to all!
mheiden,
The first set are Aquila Red Series. I think they are a Nylgut string but infused with copper to increase the density. Increased density means the C string can be thinner. Notice how the diameter of the C string isn’t much different from the others. But, as I mentioned, they do have a tendency to snap easily and have a slightly rough feel to them.
The second set are Aquila AGxAQ strings. They are actually 100% nylon strings, unusual for Aquila whose name brand technology is the high tech Nylgut and variations thereof. They were a joint effort between Aldrine Guerrero and Aquila. Not sure what they’ve done, but they sound much nicer than your basic low end nylon. I’m really liking them the more I play.
My string issues are that Super Nylgut and the like tend to squeak when I fingerpick, and I don’t like the thinness of fluorocarbon. The AGxAQ feel real nice to me and don’t squeak. But strings are a real personal choice. The only way to decide is to try a variety of strings and see which you like best.
Cheers,
rpina61
becky7777,
Glad you enjoyed the video comparison. Which strings do you like better in terms of the sound?
And welcome to the group. Take advantage of your complimentary premium membership to explore the great site that Andrew has put together. In particular, take a look at the “The Definitive Beginner’s Guide To Ukulele”. I spent a good 9 months working my way in detail through the course and repeatedly practicing the numerous lessons before I took on my first monthly challenge. If you stick with it, you’ll find the quality of your playing will improve rapidly. Andrew is a great teacher.
Again, welcome.
rpina61
I AM A PREMIUM MEMBER
Here’s another take of La Gitanita. My first was posted on the 19th. In that one, I was playing with Aquila Red Series strings which I really like. I had been using them for about 8 months, and in a chat with RB Ukulele Vids I mentioned that people apparently either love them because of the tone or hate them because they tend to snap quite easily (usually the C string). Of course … and you can see it coming … I HAD to mention that I had NO PROBLEM with them snapping … and with that tempt of fate my C string snapped the next day while playing. So, in the Ukulele spirit, instead of frowning I took this as an opportunity to try a new set of strings which I had been curious about … the Aquila AGxAQ … which I am playing in this video. They have a pretty cool pale green color, particularly evident in the C string. So I wanted to record them for comparison with the Reds, so here you have it …
Rickeymike and Mheiden,
Thanks. Still needs work though. I found that because the song has so much energy, the hardest part for me was keeping the tempo under control … it kept trying to run away. I had to consciously keep slowing myself down. Even in this recording, I had a little trouble.
But thanks again.
rpina61
I AM A PREMIUM MEMBER
Here’s my attempt at La Gitanita. And I agree with hotmilktea about the harmonic and the mood of my uke 😉
Cheers,
rpina61
Hi Rickeymike,
As a lot of people comment, funny how your playing always seems to get worse when you hit the record button! 😂 But thanks for the compliment!
The uke is a tenor, mango wood body, from Mele Ukulele on Maui. The strings are Aquila Reds which I just love.
Cheers, good luck, and Happy Halloween.
Robert
