"The Works" have ukuleles for a tenner. Always fancied a go, especially as there are only four strings (They also have guitars for twenty quid, but five strings might be pushing it).
I know they're not exactly concert hall at that price, but I'm not going to be playing in one. I just wonder if fingers that are not to far from retirement age might find the muscle memory needed to bang out a tune a bit too much?
Last edited by: VxFan on Tue 22 Dec 15 at 21:32
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Would you not be better off with a banjo living where you do?
;-)
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>> Would you not be better off with a banjo living where you do?
>>
>> ;-)
>>
That would be my preferred choice, having been brought up on a diet of Irish and C&W music. Way too expensive for an experimental dabbler, though.
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I have some musical taste, but no musical talent. So my attempt to learn tenor sax in my twenties or thirties simply disturbed the neighbours. I used to practise in a nearby phone box, but even that failed to inspire me. Pity really because a sax-playing friend did his best to teach me.
Lived near Wimbledon Park at the time.
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Assuming that's some sixties beat combo, couldn't you have, like, got one of them to help you, man?
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You could have emulated punk style, AC. No need for skill…..
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>> You could have emulated punk style, AC. No need for skill…..
Thats why punk died out so quickly. In the short time they spent touring and doing live gigs, they all learned how to play.
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>> Assuming that's some sixties beat combo, couldn't you have, like, got one of them to help you, man?
BEAT COMBO? How dare you! He was a jazz player, and good too. But alas, I wasn't and was never going to be.
Tsk.
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>> He was a jazz player, and good too.
He went to Africa to get close to the roots, and married there and had a daughter. I looked him up there, in a mountainous bit of Tanzania, near the Rwanda border, with a fabulous distant view of Lake Victoria.
He and his Haya wife were big boozers of local hooch, but they kindly got me some weed when I went to stay, and introduced me to a scary old witch doctor friend of theirs.
I'm sure I've posted all this dozens of times. Sorry.
(Tried to add this to the above post, but the damn pink stripe of death seems to cut in more and more quickly).
Last edited by: Armel Coussine on Tue 22 Dec 15 at 23:32
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>> I have some musical taste, but no musical talent. So my attempt to learn tenor
>> sax in my twenties or thirties simply disturbed the neighbours. I used to practise in
>> a nearby phone box, but even that failed to inspire me. Pity really because a
>> sax-playing friend did his best to teach me.
>>
>> Lived near Wimbledon Park at the time.
>>
Did you ever hear the bagpiper? My parents lived near Wimbledon Park and we often heard the mystery bagpiper practising outside.
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""The Works" have ukuleles for a tenner. Always fancied a go,"
I just had a look at the advert .......... and nearly wet myself! It declares - "This awesome ukulele is designed especially for music lovers! " ....... some claim!
I've played guitar and banjo (5-string) for 50 years, mostly as a semi-pro and, since arthritis slowed me considerably, I've done some teaching. Nearly all the beginners who I see turn up with a cheap, nasty, badly set up heap of junk that is guaranteed to result in failure.
This all boils down to a very basic and understandable 'Catch-22' situation where you don't want to spend a lot of money in case you don't take to the instrument but, on the other hand, a feeble amount will only buy unplayable rubbish.
RoR, if you live within a drive of Bury St Edmunds, I would be delighted to give you guidance.
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>> >>
>> RoR, if you live within a drive of Bury St Edmunds, I would be delighted
>> to give you guidance.
>>
Much appreciated, but I'm on the west coast of Wales. Ukes are pretty cheap tho, how much for something acceptable?
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"Ukes are pretty cheap tho, how much for something acceptable?"
Well, IMHO, ukes are a great instrument for someone who wants to get quick results - they are, I understand, taking over from recorders in schools. As with any string instrument, it is vital to start with an instrument that is set-up well - chiefly, the distance between the strings and the fretboard isn't set too high - hence it is very helpful for a knowledgeable friend to give an opinion. At this stage, 'tone' is not a major consideration.
It must be 5 or 6 years ago since I bought a very nice Kala Tenor Travel uke from 'Highly Strung' - it was £99 then, but it seems to be significantly more now www.highlystrung.net/acatalog/Kala_Travel_Ukuleles.html
I preferred a 'tenor' to, say, a soprano because there was more room for my fingers which were used to a guitar.
Highly Strung is advertising the 'Makala' range here www.highlystrung.net/acatalog/Makala_Ukuleles.html
Without actually trying one, I would anticipate that the 'Concert' at £49 would be a reasonable serious beginner's uke. But I don't think you'd get much of an instrument for less than that sort of money.
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Stick with the banjo idea. I'm sure you have neighbours who could squeal accompaniment.
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Piggies in blankets for Christmas din dins.....o:-)
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Just bought one of my grandkids a ukulele for Xmas; and yes it was with his mum's approval as he's having lessons at school.
RoR, I highly recommend this shop if you venture my way;
www.james-music.co.uk/
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If you get a chance to see them, The British Ukelele Orchestra are great fun. Saw them locally last year and they are touring, so might be in your area at some point. Seeing them again next spring as it happens.
You've not heard anything until you've heard eight ukeleles at the same time playing the theme from Shaft.
Edit. Just discovered there is to be a Radio 4 programme about them "sometime between Christmas and New Year" if of any interest.
Last edited by: Crankcase on Wed 23 Dec 15 at 06:14
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There are some YouTubes of the Ukulele orchestra mentioned by CC, I was watching them a month or so back and thought it looked quite entertaining.
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I've been learning to play a guitar since I was 8 years old, and have 4 guitars for my sins. I also have a mandolin which has 8 strings and I see that a uke has 4 strings whereas a banjo can have 4,5, or even (occasionally) even 6 strings.
I have a mandolin but have never attempted to learn to play it, but I was just wondering if, being I can play a guitar, would it be easier for me to learn to play all or any of the above instruments, or is it a totally different ball chord game?
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You might not take to folk guitar, Dog, but I found a lovely little album on Spotify, (undoubtedly on other places too) called Folksinger's Guitar Guide Vol 1: An Instruction Record. It was done by Pete Seeger, of course, in 1955, and it's of the "pluck this string, then that, now those three. Now quicker, a bit quicker" variety. Before you know it you've got some pretty good sounding strumming and plucking going on. Great fun. By the end you're doing a bit of unusual South American rhythms. There's a volume two as well.
One of those "great to hear someone who really knows what they are doing explain how it's done" things, even if you don't want to try yourself.
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Cheers Cc. Bert Weedon rides again. I like folk music actually, after blues of course. :)
The Folksinger's guitar guide is on YouTube too, I'll have to check it out later:
www.youtube.com/watch?v=YrbyHH5k3Fc
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....I quite fancied learning the guitar while I was younger, but the quality of some of the performers I saw in the folk clubs (largely around around Reading) rather inhibited me.
Some of them were so good, it rather put one off ever attempting to emulate them. In later life, I only have to play some of their stuff, and I still find it inhibiting.
The most memorable performances I saw live were twice at the Four Horsehoes in Checkendon by this guy:
www.youtube.com/watch?v=34PwYB-FLFI
...who, despite his prodigious talent, and some (fairly anonymous) session work for high-profile artists, continued mainly on the folk-circuit until he died.
I have never seen another live performer who came close (and I've seen a good few of the big names).
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Well Mrs F, who's closer to 60 than 50, switched from clarinet/sax to bass guitar just over a year ago to pursue her rock chick dream. This was her with the rest of her rock school group on Sunday night at one of Smokie's locals:
vid969.photobucket.com/albums/ae173/focushj/VIDEO0121_zps1gjpgz5b.mp4
(at the back in the santa outfit, not the singer)
She loves it!
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I'm teaching myself drums. I had a proper acoustic kit as a kid, sold to get my first Lambretta. I now have an electronic Traps kit. I think I'm getting quite reasonable on them, but I spend my time playing along to stuff rather than trying to learn proper technique and reading music. I did take a few lessons three or four years ago while working away from home but I didn't have the capability to practice between the lessons.
Also last year I was given (by request) a half decent keyboard. I learned Piano at a very young age but never got on with it. My ambition is to teach myself how to play blues, rock and boogie, along with some more modern type stuff using the inbuilt sequencer etc - and hooking it up to the PC to use with some music software at some stage. I've had that a year now and barely touched it though.
I've got no desire to perform publicly on any instrument, or even to really learn to play properly. I'd just like to be able to walk up to a keyboard/piano and make a tune that people recognise. I can already do that with the drums, having the beat for Stevie Wonder's Superstition and Honky Tonk Women by the Stones fairly well rehearsed now, plus a few others.
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>> trying to learn proper technique
important
>> and reading music
not important (for rock)
If you do want more lessons, I highly recommend Mike Creech; see page 2:
www.drumwright.co.uk/drummerzone/teachers/list?genre=rock®ion=berkshire&page=2
He lives near us in Woodley, and taught/inspired stepson and metal drummer Rob from an early age.
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Anyone Learnt a Musical Instreument Late in Life? - Runfer D'Hills
