Sorry peeps, no live lesson today. It’s new years eve and we’re all busy doing the new years eve things with the families. Before we enter the year 2009, the three of us would like to say thanks for spending some time with us every week. It’s been an incredible first year for us and we know that none of this would be possible without your support. It’s all of you who are the real Ukulele Underground. Keep jamming and see you all next year with a brand new lesson!
This time on “Member video of the week” we got watchmeuke (anarkeemcpablog on YouTube)
This video is a good example that the ukulele knows no boundries. It can be used in any genre of music. Here we’ve got a really smooth hip-hop/R&B song translated perfectly for our favorite four-string. Great vocals, awesome collab – music can really bring people together and create beautiful magic.
The year is almost over. Looking back, this year has really been quite a road for UU. A big MAHALOZ to all of you! Our small underground community is slowly turning into quite an ukulele utopia. We can’t thank you guys enough for all your support. Each and every one of you brings a smile to our faces <– (bigger than this). Let’s all work together and spread the ukulele love all around the world!
May you all have a VERY HAPPY NEW YEAR! Let’s all greet 2009 with some sweet, sweet Uke music.
Hey there UUers! It’s time for another Uke Minutes!
After the many episodes of Uke Minutes created and featured here, we finally realized … we haven’t bothered to explain one of the most basic (and essential) elements of good ukulele playing – having a properly tuned ukulele! Until now.
By far, the easiest and most precise methods of tuning your ukulele is to have a digital chromatic tuner. This way, you will be able to tune your ukulele to the notes G, C, E, and A (from top to bottom strings), with excellent precision. Just remember the order of notes:
C | C#(Db) | D | D#(Eb) | E | F | F#(Gb) | G | G#(Ab) | A | A#(Bb) | B | C
By tightening a string, the pitch will slowly move up the scale. By loosening the string, the pitch will move down the scale. If you are using a digital tuner, tighten or loosen each string until it reaches its respective note.
In the video, Aldrine explains how to tune your ukulele, using only one reference note. By tuning the G string (top string on your ukulele) to a reference G note (correctly played on another instrument), you can tune the rest of your strings based on your correctly tuned G string.
You can also match your ukulele strings to the correctly tuned notes at the end of the video as a way to tune your ukulele!
As always, if you have any questions on this or any of the lessons here in the Underground, send a message to askaldrine(at)gmail.com or stop by the UU Forum and ask around!
A big MAHALO to everyone who helped spread the joy of music this holiday season (and all year long!)
Avery C and Luke Newman get their questions answered! What kind of amps should I use for my ukulele? Why not have a pickguard on your tenor?
Thanks to everyone who attended the Ukulele Underground OAHU meet up! We all had a good time. It was super nice to meet and greet all the lovely people that came This Uke Got Mail also features some footage from that meet up.
As usual, send your inquiries to: askaldrine@gmail.com
Merry Christmas and Happy Holidays to all you ukers out there! Uke and be merry!
This time we explore video game realms and makes us wanna dust off our Nintendo 64 (SIXTY-FOOOUUURR) and listen to some great sounds from Mario 64. Tsudawuda plays us his rendition of the Water theme. Also, check out his awesome shirt! You can get that shirt at our STORE
In other news!
All the smoke has cleared and everything will be back on track (hopefully) this week. The recording sessions went well and we’re back home. So we go back to our regular scheduled programming. Thanks for being patient last week (the lack of a live lesson, super short Uke Got Mail, and absence from the forum), we apologize if it caused anyone any inconvenience.
Hope that everyone enjoys their Christmas or whatever holiday you decide to celebrate this week. Grab your uke and start jammin and call it a holiday.
Hello Mighty UUers! Saturday is here (and the start of Winter Break for all you young’ns) – Thanks for stopping by and hanging out with us! In this week’s episode of Uke Minutes, Dominator and Aldrine (mostly Dominator) give us a tour of three basic picking techniques and how they are displayed in ukulele tabs.
Slides: s or / (also sl. below and an arc above, in Power Tab)
Hammer-Ons: h
Pull-Offs: p
So for example, in
A|----5h7-5-7-5p3------
E|--8-------------3/5--
C|---------------------
G|---------------------
You would pick the E string 8th fret, pick the A string 5th fret and hammer to the 7th, pick the A string 5th fret, then 7th fret, then 5th fret and pull off to the 3rd fret. Finally pick the E string 3rd fret and slide to the 5th (haha, name that tune!).
For more info on the Power Tab program and advanced notation in Power Tabs, check out this article about Tablature Symbols from the PowerTab website.
Hey Uke Playas! In this quick UGM episode, Aldrine and Manny answer the ukulele question: Four strings or six strings?
Typically, ukuleles are made with four strings, however, there are six-string models (doubling up on two of the strings in note pairs or octaves) and eight-string models (doubling up on all strings). And if you look hard enough you might be able to find fives and sevens, as well. Because the strings are doubled, as long as you are tuned to GCEA, the fingerings on a more-than-four-string ukulele will be the same as on a four-string ukulele.
Adding more strings usually increases the “fullness” of the ukulele’s sound when strummed, so if you’re planning to do a lot of strumming and less picking, a 4+ string ukulele might be for you. It really all comes down to what you like in an ukulele, so try out different ones or listen to what they sound like in video clips before making the jump to buy a uke with more than four strings.
If you’ve got an opinion on this or anything to add, check out the discussion about this episode in the Forum, or comment below!
*Also* if you’re on Oahu, there will be a UU Meetup this Friday (December 19th) at 2:30 pm at the Yogurtland at UH Manoa. Aldrine and Ryan will be there, along with some awesome people from the Underground and UU Forum! Come by and jam!
Hope everyone’s staying safe and warm this Holiday Season! (And if you’re not warm, strum harder!) : D
Hey all you crazy kids of the Underground! The unfortunate news for today is that, although it is a Wednesday, there will be no live lesson today (the guys are recording on Oahu). *tear*
However, that means that you have even more time to dream up and live out your contest entry for the
Just take a picture of the crazy/beautiful/outrageous/interesting/awesome BLING that you hang from your ukulele headstock and send it on over to:
UKULELEUNDERGROUND(at)GMAIL.COM !
The craziest/beautifulest/outrageousest/interestingest/awesomest BLING that comes our way could win YOU a brand new Kala Koa Concert Cedar Top Ukulele (courtesy of MGM)!
The contest will run until the middle of January (2009), but don’t wait! Use the extra time you’ve got today to enter your Bling!
This video shows us that the spirit of Christmas is alive and booming within our little community. “Deached” or “Russ Bussed” are two terms we learn in this video. This is a great example of what we’re all about in the forums. Help each other out and make some awesome friends at the same time.
Hop on to our FORUM to see what all this excitement is all about! Meet some great new people. Perhaps maybe even people in your area to jam. Whatever the case, the ukulele really brings people together and this video is a great example.
DONT FORGET! There’s also a contest goin’ on right now! It’s called “Bling Fo’ Yo’ Thing” (as best described in ‘Yook Minutes’ by Eldrine) Take a picture of the outrageous “bling” that you hang from the headstock of your ukulele and send it to us at ukuleleunderground(at)gmail.com
<– (bigger than this). Let’s all work together and spread the ukulele love all around the world! 
