Learn to Play the Ukulele (No Lessons!) Part 2 - The Beginner

Okay, so you've got your uke, you've learned the basic chords and a few songs, now what? This guide will help you take the next steps in what might seem like a point your stuck at. It's true, most people learning to play will experience a period where they feel like they are making no progress (I sure did). But, follow these steps and you'll notice a difference in no time!

Step One: Self Evaluation

Okay, so in order for you to use the rest of this guide, we need to make sure your up to par so far. At this point you should be able too...

Know the most common chords: A, Am, C, Cm, D, Dm, Em, F, G

Be able to play these chords: A7, C7, D7, E7, G7

Use this website if you need a little help: https://ukuchords.com/


Step Two: Challenge Yourself

Now it's time to get outside you comfort zone. Start to play songs with more difficult strum patterns and chord progressions. Often times, this is where beginners struggle, and I speak from experience. I only wanted to play songs with easy chords that I could learn fast, but this will limit what you can play and inhibit your progress. You will mess up, and these songs will take a bit more time to learn, but keep practicing! It's the only way you can get better!

Some songs to try (I also recommend you just play what you like)

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=v5icqntzxOA

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=I3qlaouFEAY

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FANC-qvJFhQ&index=8&list=PLvcoWGhnkDmjlDo_n8XAuJwmJe_uFGDR9

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CzRZep_uo2s&index=63&list=PLvcoWGhnkDmjlDo_n8XAuJwmJe_uFGDR9

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=c9YCL3f9GK4&index=19&list=PLvcoWGhnkDmgTRa9GFzuVVJFBrnRW38gy



Step Three: Learning New Skills

The next step in this process is to add some new skills to your repertoire, such as how to palm mute and finger pick. This will allow you to change up your basic strum patterns and give your songs a unique vibe. Below are some video to learn these skills. I've also included a link to learn to play "hallelujah", a song that is very good to practice finger picking.

How to pick: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0osv8Z2fbm8

How to palm mute and other skills: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FypFf8YjcM8

Hallelujah: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uz2uFpAuqiw


Step Four: Learning Music Theory and Tabs

Now it's time to grind out some memorization. Learning to read tabs will basically allow you to play any song without a tutorial. Learning music theory (scales and relative scales) will teach you to write your own songs. It will also teach you how to improvise, which is can lead to fun jam sessions with friends. This is definitely the most advanced part of this tutorial, and is really a learning process that never ends. I'm honestly still on this step, and I wish I had begin to memorize the scales sooner. Once you have picking down, playing the scales is easy, so start memorizing them before hand!

Learn to read tabs:https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vUp_2mIwM5Y

Learn all the major scales from this awesome app! (Links from video)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oiJby-D6RJk

QUICK LESSON ON IMPROVISING: Remember, the sixth note of the major scale is it's relative minor. For example, the scale of C major is "C D E F G A B". The sixth note is A, so the relative minor scale is A minor,  "A B C D E F G". However, you can use any of the minor scales for A. The former is the natural minor, but you could use melodic, harmonic, or my personal favorite, the pentatonic minor scales as well.

So, if my friend were to play the chords of Am, C, and Em (all chords in C major), I would finger pick notes from the A minor  pentatonic scale (A, C, D, E, G, A).




Alright! That concludes the second part to my guide on how to teach yourself the ukulele! There will be a far shorter part 3 coming soon so stay tuned!