Home Opinion Ukulele club offers chance to play in a social setting September 13, 2022 in Opinion O ur ukulele club that meets every Thursday at the Council on Aging is growing a little bit. We meet at 10 a.m. and go for an hour. Playing the ukulele is not difficult and it is, generally speaking, an inexpensive musical instrument. I recommend buying one from a local music shop, especially if this is your first instrument. I like to say that I prefer musical instruments with only four strings because I only have four fingers. For a beginner, I believe that it is an advantage over an instrument with six strings. Also, the ukulele strings are generally a softer material like nylon instead of steel, which may make it a better beginner instrument than a steel-stringed one. There are basically three sizes of ukuleles and they pretty much all sound the same. It really does not matter too much which size that you get if this is your first one. I prefer the largest size, which is the tenor. The smallest size and the most popular based on sales is the soprano. This is the typical ukulele that you would see just about everywhere. They often come in all kinds of colors and painted patterns and are very popular with kids. I am pretty sure that the sopranos are also the ones that a school would buy for music classes. I highly recommend that schools should have regular music classes and the ukulele is a very inexpensive and easy instrument on which to begin. The ukulele is usually played in a group setting in which most people will strum the chords and sing songs. Ukulele clubs are very popular all over the country and there are several in this region. Our ukulele club meets once per week, which I believe is a great advantage over those that meet once a month. Besides being a great place to play music, they are outstanding social clubs. That is why I believe that meeting every week is a great idea. That is also why I encourage you to join our club at the Council on Aging. The middle size ukulele is the concert size and it sounds like the other two. There is also a baritone uke that is larger than the tenor, but the strings are tuned to the same setting as four guitar strings, so there is a difference in how you might play it, but is perfect for those familiar with guitar chords. Lastly there is a base ukulele with very thick rubber-like strings, but it has to be hooked up to an amplifier to get any real sound out of it. I don’t recommend it for ukulele clubs unless you want to haul around the amp system. The uke has great possibilities for more than just playing chords. Just like with a guitar, you can learn to play tunes, that’s music without words, and learn to play with a finger-picking style which is great for solo performances, but not so much for a large group setting. Many players play chords in club settings and do finger-picking tunes at home for their own enjoyment. It can be very relaxing. I highly recommend that you check out YouTube videos by James Hill and by Avery Hill to learn more about how to play the ukulele. I have played with both of them and they are outstanding teachers. They have plenty of free material for you to enjoy. You can make great progress at home by watching those two and playing along with them. James Hill wrote the grammar school music education program with ukulele for the Canadian school system. So, he is very knowledgeable about how to teach ukulele. Avery is based out of Portland, Oregon, and also teaches very well online. We invite you to check us out every Thursday at 10 a.m. at the Council on Aging. We can even provide a free ukulele if you don’t have one. You can join us just to sing if you don’t want to play. It’s all about the social atmosphere. I hope to see you there. Matt Nowak is a hobby player and helps lead the ukulele club at the Council on Aging. Matt Nowak Latest Stories Lansing football tops rival Leavenworth to earn first win of 2022 September 17, 2022 First lady visits teacher from Leavenworth September 17, 2022 Fun guys make trouble foraging fungi September 17, 2022 COLORFUL ZINNIAS September 17, 2022 KAY CATHERINE BUNDY September 17, 2022 Dorothy (Breeden) McDonald September 17, 2022 Jay Rodney Lewis September 17, 2022 Fredrick (Fred) E. Miller September 17, 2022 Biden approval rises sharply ahead of midterms September 17, 2022 U.S. moved online, worked more from home as pandemic raged September 17, 2022

O ur ukulele club that meets every Thursday at the Council on Aging is growing a little bit. We meet at 10 a.m. and go for an hour. Playing the ukulele is not difficult and it is, generally speaking, an inexpensive musical instrument. I recommend buying one from a local music shop, especially if this is your first instrument.

I like to say that I prefer musical instruments with only four strings because I only have four fingers. For a beginner, I believe that it is an advantage over an instrument with six strings. Also, the ukulele strings are generally a softer material like nylon instead of steel, which may make it a better beginner instrument than a steel-stringed one.

There are basically three sizes of ukuleles and they pretty much all sound the same. It really does not matter too much which size that you get if this is your first one. I prefer the largest size, which is the tenor.

The smallest size and the most popular based on sales is the soprano. This is the typical ukulele that you would see just about everywhere. They often come in all kinds of colors and painted patterns and are very popular with kids. I am pretty sure that the sopranos are also the ones that a school would buy for music classes.

I highly recommend that schools should have regular music classes and the ukulele is a very inexpensive and easy instrument on which to begin. The ukulele is usually played in a group setting in which most people will strum the chords and sing songs. Ukulele clubs are very popular all over the country and there are several in this region.

Our ukulele club meets once per week, which I believe is a great advantage over those that meet once a month. Besides being a great place to play music, they are outstanding social clubs. That is why I believe that meeting every week is a great idea. That is also why I encourage you to join our club at the Council on Aging.

The middle size ukulele is the concert size and it sounds like the other two. There is also a baritone uke that is larger than the tenor, but the strings are tuned to the same setting as four guitar strings, so there is a difference in how you might play it, but is perfect for those familiar with guitar chords.

Lastly there is a base ukulele with very thick rubber-like strings, but it has to be hooked up to an amplifier to get any real sound out of it. I don’t recommend it for ukulele clubs unless you want to haul around the amp system.

The uke has great possibilities for more than just playing chords. Just like with a guitar, you can learn to play tunes, that’s music without words, and learn to play with a finger-picking style which is great for solo performances, but not so much for a large group setting. Many players play chords in club settings and do finger-picking tunes at home for their own enjoyment. It can be very relaxing.

I highly recommend that you check out YouTube videos by James Hill and by Avery Hill to learn more about how to play the ukulele. I have played with both of them and they are outstanding teachers. They have plenty of free material for you to enjoy. You can make great progress at home by watching those two and playing along with them. James Hill wrote the grammar school music education program with ukulele for the Canadian school system. So, he is very knowledgeable about how to teach ukulele. Avery is based out of Portland, Oregon, and also teaches very well online.

We invite you to check us out every Thursday at 10 a.m. at the Council on Aging. We can even provide a free ukulele if you don’t have one. You can join us just to sing if you don’t want to play. It’s all about the social atmosphere. I hope to see you there.

Matt Nowak is a hobby player and helps lead the ukulele club at the Council on Aging.

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