Cynthia Lin and Ukulenny Host First-Ever San Francisco Uke-tober Fest

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This past weekend hundreds of ukulele players and fans came together for a jam-packed weekend of playing ukulele, learning new songs and techniques, and listening to inspiring performances from artists Cynthia Lin, Ukulenny, Craig Chee & Sarah Maisel, Aldrine Guerrero & Aaron Nakamura, and Abe Lagrimas Jr.

On October 7-8, Cynthia Lin and Ukulenny hosted the first-ever San Francisco ukulele festival known as SF Uke-tober Fest. Arising from local Bay Area ukulele jams hosted by Cynthia and Ukulenny, the SF Uke-tober Fest brought over 150 ukulele players and fans from around the world to jam with their favorite artists and teachers.

I went to SF Uke-tober Fest to experience the joy of ukulele and to learn more about the amazing community that Cynthia and Ukulenny have built in the Bay Area. What I discovered is a remarkable group who have a passion and love for the ukulele and sharing that magic with others.

Perhaps you’ve wondered what a ukulele festival is like and if you should ever go. Now you can know and see what it is you’re missing!

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Learn to Play “Hawai’i Aloha” in Chord Melody

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There’s nothing quite as peaceful as listening to the melody of a song intricately picked and strummed on the ukulele.

This style of playing ukulele is known as chord melody or solo fingerpicking. You combine the melody and harmony of the song to create a rich and beautiful sound.

Today I give you a free arrangement including the sheet music and ukulele tab of the well-loved Hawaiian song Hawai’i Aloha, one of six arrangements in the new Hawaiian Chord Melody course now available to all members in Club Ukulele.

About Hawai’i Aloha

Hawai’i Aloha was written by Lorenzo Lyons and is sung to the tune of I Left It All With Jesus a hymn written by James McGranahan. Lyons a Christian missionary who came to Hawaii from Boston in May 1832 dedicated his life to the native Hawaiians learning the language and composing many songs and hymns.

The song Hawai’i Aloha is sung by small and large group gatherings in Hawaii including the inauguration of the Governor of Hawai’i and the opening sessions of the Hawai’i State House of Representatives and Hawai’i State Senate.

Learn Hawai’i Aloha

Watch the video and take a listen now.

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3 Unconventional Ways to Make Ukulele a Habit in Your Busy Life

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Chances are if you’re waiting for motivation to come, then, you might find yourself at the end of your life wondering why you didn’t learn to play an instrument.

A lot of us have had this experience at some point in our lives where we set out to change our lifestyle for the better, like exercising or eating more veggies, only to find ourselves three months later in the same exact spot.

Learning to play ukulele can be similar.

You know you love music.

You know you have a passion for music.

You know you’ve always had a dream to play an instrument.

Then, why is it so hard? Why haven’t you done it yet? Why is it the first thing that slips away when life gets busy?

Before you start beating yourself up, consider you aren’t the only one to have fought to find the time, energy and motivation to make music in your busy life.

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Learn Ukulele Major Scale Theory and Build a C Major Scale

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Are you the kind of ukulele player that wants to deeply understand their instrument?

Have you ever wanted to know the notes of the fretboard and how they interact and relate in meaningful ways to make music?

That’s what this lesson’s about. In this two-video lesson, you introduce yourself to the world of major scale theory on ukulele starting with the chromatic scale and major scale.

The major scale is the foundation of music you make on ukulele.

Learning the major scale is important if you ever want to compose, arrange, or write your own music. The major scale also demonstrates a meaningful relationship between notes on the fretboard. This understanding allows you to become a more creative musician and ukulele player.

By the end of this lesson, you’ll know how to make a C major scale and play it in first position.

Let’s begin!

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Learn to Play “O Shenandoah” in Chord Melody

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One of the most loved ways of playing ukulele is in the style of chord melody sometimes referred to as solo fingerpicking.

In this advanced style, you strum and pick the rhythm and melody of the song at the same time.

Today I give to you a free arrangement of O Shenandoah one of five chord melody arrangements I teach in the new 5 Chord Melody Songs course in Club Ukulele.

Watch the video and take a listen now.

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4 Ways to Learn to Play Ukulele if You’re a Complete Beginner

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You have a ukulele!

That feeling of learning an instrument for the first time is pure excitement. There’s nothing quite like it. However, that excitement can also be met with the feeling of overwhelm and a big fat question:

Where do I even begin?

With your ukulele in hand, what do you do now? How do you take this strange alien object called the ukulele and turn the sound it makes into beautiful, inspiring music?

If you’re a beginner and don’t know where to start, here are the four options you have before you to learn how to play ukulele.

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You Must Master These Four Things to Arrange Chord Melody Songs

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One of the most popular ways of playing ukulele is in the style of chord melody – sometimes referred to as solo fingerpicking.

Chord melody is a style of playing ukulele where you strum the chords and pick the melody at the same time.

Both Jake Shimabukuro and James Hill come to mind as masters who have brought so much attention to this way of playing ukulele with chord melody songs like Hallelujah and Billie Jean.

A lot of my students will ask:

“How do I arrange a chord melody song for ukulele?”

You too might have a desire to play in this style. Perhaps singing and strumming isn’t your thing but picking the melody is. If that is you, then, here’s what you eventually need to know to arrange and come up with your own chord melody songs.

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Pick the Country Bluegrass Tune “Little Old Log Cabin In The Lane”

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Sometimes in life it might feel like your dog is your only friend.

That’s what this song is about!

With the sheet music and ukulele tab, try your hand at picking the chords for Little Old Log Cabin In The Lane played in the country and bluegrass style.

Listen to a performance of Little Old Log Cabin In The Lane fingerpicked on the ukulele. Instead of strumming the chords of the song, pick an uptempo syncopated country and bluegrass picking rhythm. I teach you how to play this song in Lesson 4 from the advanced-level Country & Bluegrass Pickin’ course in Club Ukulele.

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Learn to Fingerpick “Arpeggio Study In A Minor”

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Performing ukulele as a soloist is a great feeling.

One way to be a solo ukulele player is by fingerpicking the ukulele. There are many ways to fingerpick the ukulele. One beautiful way is to fingerpick arpeggio-based pieces.

Arpeggio pieces can be original compositions, like the one you learn in this lesson, or they can be based on Spanish and classical guitar pieces that have been arranged for ukulele. Arpeggio pieces feature a rhythmic and melodic intricate sound.

Take a listen to a performance of Arpeggio Study In A Minor – a piece based entirely around a repeating arpeggio picking pattern.

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How to practice ukulele when 15 minutes is all you have

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One of my musical mentors Danny used to practice drums early in his career every day for eight hours… or until his fingers were bleeding.

“You’re kidding me,” I laughed the first time he told me this.

He wasn’t kidding.

Yikes!

I’ve learned a lot from Danny and his work ethic. For him, he wanted to be a career musician and his discipline allowed him to do just that.

But, if you’re anything like me, chances are you don’t have eight hours a day to practice or the desire to play until your fingers are bleeding!

Fortunately, there’s an easier way.

Playing ukulele is about experiencing the joy of making music.

If playing ukulele is about experiencing joy, then, why does practice sometimes feel so overwhelming?

Here are the most common reasons I know from my own experience and from talking with you.

See if you relate:

  • I don’t have the time. Life is busy. Family, work, children, grandchildren, traveling, home projects… it’s a lot.
  • I don’t know what to practice. When you actually find the time, you ask yourself, “Where did I leave off? What do I even practice next?”
  • I’m frustrated I can’t play a certain song or technique. When this happens, the tendency is to think there’s something wrong with me (i.e., I don’t have natural musical talent).

Let’s get beyond these frustrations and find a better, simpler way to practice.

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