By Joe Mendel

I have been asked to write interview with ukulele builders by the editor of http://ukesessions.com/, Joe Carr. My first assignment is to introduce myself, so here goes.

I have been building and repairing fretted instruments since the mid eighties, my first instruments were mountain dulcimers from kits, soon I progressed to mandolins & guitars, and then I began repairing my own instruments, then repairing instruments for friends. I have been interviewing mandolin builders since the October 2003 issue of http://archive.mandolinsessions.com/index.html

In 1994-95 I attended guitar repair program at South Plains College in Levelland, Texas. Sadly, they no longer have that course of study. When I returned home I started my own repair business and repaired for several St. Louis area music stores until May of 2009, when I made the jump to building full time. I had been building all along, just not as much as I wanted, and although I am building full time, I still do a fair amount of repair.

I have been fascinated by guitars and the like since seeing the Beatles on the Ed Sullivan Show, and guitars (electric and acoustic), banjos, mandolins, lap steels, resonator guitars, autoharps, and yes, ukuleles and all kinds of music have been a big part of my life.

Until the last few months I had never build a uke, I have now completed four, two concerts & two tenors and have another batch going. I am looking forward to learning from the ukulele builders I interview, as I have from all of the mandolin builders I have interviewed. Hopefully, everyone else will learn something from them also.

Here are pictures from the ukes I built for Joe Carr.

Sitka tops with granadillo & mahogany backs. The templates in the background were made from polycarbonate from the plans sold by http://www.hanalima.com/

Grandillo & mahogany sides, unprofiled.

Bent blocked & kerfed sides, in home made forms.

Tops with rosette installed. Yes, there is one extra top.

Back braces glued using a go-bar deck.

Top braces being glued.

Bodies routed for binding. I used Stew Mac’s binding router set up to cut the binding ledges.

Bound bodies.

Seal coated with shellac & pore filler applied. I used Target coating water based pore filler, I was very pleased with it.

Granadillo fingerboards & templates. Headstock template.

Getting started on the necks. Carbon Fiber for the necks in the upper right.

I used a mill/drill machine to cut a 1/8″ slot for the carbon fiber neck re-enforcement.

Installed CF bar.

Fingerboards pinned (unglued) in place & peghead ears glued to unshaped necks, stacked heels are also glued on.

Profiled necks, with fingerboards glued on.

Heel caps installed & necks bolted to bodies to check fit.

Bodies hanging to cure with fives coats Epiphanes varnish.

Inlaid headstock veneer applied.

Necks, Drilled for tuners, sealed with shellac and pore filled & finished with Tru-oil. It made for a very nice smooth feel on the necks.

Bodies ready for sanding & buffing.

Completed instruments. The first three pictures are of the tenors, the next three of the concerts.

As I neared the completion the clock was running out, so the camera sat on the bench for the making of the bridges, saddles & nuts. I didn’t know, at the time, that I was going to be asked to do a pictorial of the build process or I would have taken more pictures. I you would like to ask any questions, I’ll be happy to answer them, e-mail me at: joe@jmendelfrets.com. Also, if you have suggestions for the column, builders to interview, etc., please let me know.

Printable Version

I am looking forward to writing the interviews and learning more about how ukuleles are built and hearing from you.

Joe may also be contacted through his website:

http://jmendelfrets.com/

Printable Version

What do these three things have in common?
Roy Smeck
Right Hand Rhythms
Trash Cans

What size ukulele should I play?

These questions and more are answered in the article below.

Hello Friends, Ukulele Players, Distinguished Colleagues!

    I’m very happy to join the writing staff of Mel Bay’s www.ukulelesessions.com. 

I found my first ukulele in a garbage can on my way to High school in Swartz Creek, MI in 1972.  This was no ordinary trash day.  It was officially “Clean Up Fix Up Week”.  Anybody could throw out anything and the trash collectors would take it away.  It was a magical time for our town each year.  We knew that just about anything we needed was waiting for us on our neighbors curb and we took good advantage of the situation.  Everybody in town was out early to beat the trash pick up.  I walked down the street and there it was, it’s tiny headstock sticking up out of the garbage can.  I carefully pulled it out.  It was a little wall hanger of a ukulele with a palm tree painted on it.  It held a tune and I was off and running.

     Yes, 1972 was the year my ship sailed in and boatloads of success were sure to follow. 

    My first professional gig playing the ukulele was with Gabe Ward and the New Hoosier Hotshots from Chicago.  Since then I’ve played the ukulele on stages across this country as well as Japan, Australia, New Zealand and in Great Britain for a couple of generations of kids, folk musicians and music fans.  My ukulele playing has been featured in film and television scores for PBS, MSNBC, National Geographic, The Food Channel (they have extremely good taste), The Today Show and many more.  I appear to be among a select few ukulele players to win multiple GRAMMYs.

    I was very lucky to meet and study with the legendary Roy Smeck in the early 1980s.  Roy was a brilliant multi-instrumentalist.  He played music on several instruments in the first film with sound in 1928.  That film was called “The Wizard of the Strings”.  It’s worth seeing! 

Here’s a link to a ukulele centered segment of the film on youtube

Right Hand Rhythm Technique

    Much of the magic of Roy Smeck’s playing came from intricate right hand rhythms.  That’s exactly where we’re going to start. 
    Here’s a video that demonstrates a double strum with one fluid motion. 

   The separation of fingers and thumb is the basis for all of the fancier syncopated rhythms that Roy uses in the video.  It’s worth spending some time practicing to get clear separate strums.

   The first strum is a versatile pattern that can be used in many styles of music.  It’s used here in the Calypso song The Sloop John B.
   
    D = all fingers strum Down and U = all fingers strum Up.  Keep your right moving up and down in a steady even rhythm.  Strum down and up with all four fingers.

 
The second strum incorporates the double strum with separate thumb and fingers.  Fingers strum down together and thumb follows.
Again D = all fingers strum down
             U = all fingers strum up
   And T = thumb strums down

UKULELES COME IN SO MANY SIZES.  WHAT’S THE DIFFERENCE?

Here’s a video demonstration of soprano, concert, tenor and baritone ukulele with tunings included.  Resonator and open back banjo ukuleles are also shown.

Video
Have fun with rhythmic strumming.  See you next time!

There is a diagram of each chord appearing the first time it is played. It is followed by a number of slashes. Each slash represents one beat, or one downward strum of the chord.

This song can include a very popular device often found in songs of this era and later. It is called a turnaround, and may be played as an embellishment at the end of the third line. You can play eight beats of C in this spot OR  each of these four chords for two beats each: C,  C#°, Dm, and G7. Keep your index finger on the first fret of the second string and the transition from Dm to G7 is just a small horizontal shift.

From now on I will insert the arrow symbol anytime the turnaround may be substituted. Later I will show you the same chord series in other keys.

Another smooth transition can be made from the F chord at the end of line five to the D7 chord at the beginning of line six. Hold down the second fret of the fourth string and simply add your third finger at the second fret of the third string to make this change. 

Bill Bailey is a two-fer. You may know the song “JUST BECAUSE”. It shares exactly the same chord progression as Bill Bailey. It was common during this period in American Music to write several songs using the very same chord changes if the first one was a hit. So if you invest the time to learn Bill Bailey you have also learned Just Because.

Printable Version

A wonderfully easy, entertaining way to learn the uke! Based on C tuning, this text presents strum-along/sing-alongs in the keys of C, G, D, F, and B flat. The DVD will teach you in a step-by-step manner, and provide hours of fun and enjoyment! You will learn 58 great, all-time favorite uke songs including Peg O’ My Heart and Fascination. CD included.

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50.mp3 | Printable Version

By Joe Carr

This new book is designed for seniors who wish to learn to play the ukulele. Care has been taken to select repertoire familiar and appealing to a more mature audience and attention has been given to the pacing of the material. Basic chords are given and variety of songs and exercises make the learning fast and fun. Play along CD includes all songs taught in the book.

20.mp3 | 21.mp3 | 22.mp3 | 23.mp3 | 24.mp3 |Printable Version

I have played guitar since I was seven years old. I couldn’t learn to play my guitar fast enough. I had to take three guitar lessons a week. For my birthday, ten years ago my husband gave me a $2000.00 handmade concert ukulele. I fell in love all over again with music, my new uke and my husband. You can read the complete story, including how I became a Mel Bay author at my website www.allmarylou.com.

After teaching my first soprano ukulele class at Bellarmine University, I formed the Louisville Ukulele Association Unlimited club (L.U.A.U.) and Orchestra. To complete the orchestra’s sound, I wrote the Easy Baritone Ukulele Method Book and taught a Baritone Uke Class. The baritone ukulele is played exactly like the first four strings of the guitar and has the deepest sound of all the ukuleles. Using my guitar background, I developed an extremely easy method to learn to play the baritone ukulele instantly.   

Lesson 2

Rhythm Ukulele

Chord Accompaniment

Rhythm Ukulele and Lead Ukulele

In Lesson 1 you played chords to accompany yourself and sang Row, Row, Row Your Boat. This is called Rhythm Ukulele. Lead Ukulele is the melody of a song played by individual notes.  I have arranged this version of Row, Row, Row Your Boat with strum patterns that will allow you to hear the melody as you strum each chord without playing the individual notes.

Lyric Sheet and Sheet Music

A lyric sheet is comprised of the words to a song and usually has chord names and strum patterns. Or a lyric sheet may have only the words to a song. Sheet music has all the music notation, chord diagrams including the words to the song.

Down / and Up V Symbols using Strum Patterns 

“L” Letter Form © Mary Lou Stout Dempler

Look at the lyric sheet of Row, Row, Row Your Boat. The G indicates to play a G chord instead of a / (DOWN) strum symbol. Always play a DOWN strum when a chord letter is shown. The V symbol indicates to strum UP over the strings. Practice strumming / (down) and V (up) over the sound hole. With your right hand close your middle, ring and pinky fingers. With your thumb and index finger make a very stiff “ L” Letter Form © MLSD. With your left hand form a G chord. With your right thumb strum DOWN over all the strings, after striking the last string quickly flick your wrist UP and strum all the strings with your right index finger. Practice and practice until you feel the / strum and V strum with your wrist. After you’ve mastered the Down / Up V strum pattern using the “L” Letter Form © MLSD, you can choose to use your finger strum or a pick.

G Chord and D7 Chord

Fretted Notes and Open Strings 

G Chord Formation 

Left Hand Third finger at the Third fret on the uke fret board of the First string.  When you place your finger on string on  the fret board it is a FRETTED NOTE. The g is a fretted note.  OPEN STRINGS are when the strings are played but no fingers are placed on the fret board thus playing OPEN STRING notes. The notes forming a G chord: g (fretted note), b, g, d, open strings.

D7 Chord Formation

Left hand Third finger at the Second fret on the First string, fretted f # (f sharp) note.

Second finger at the Second fret on the Third string, fretted a note.

First finger at the First fret on the Second string, fretted c note. 

Finger Mapping © Mary Lou Stout Dempler

 Practice  strumming the chords until you can play all the notes in the chord clearly.  Stand your left hand finger tips on the string close to the fret but not on the fret wire,  that will produce a THUD sound. Do not slouch your fingers over the strings, touching  or bending the strings as this will produce the wrong sound and even the wrong chord.

You want to be able to change chords quickly without hesitation.  FINGER MAPPING © MLSD is the easiest, quickest connections to change from one chord to the next chord.

Form a G Chord.  To quickly switch to D7 Chord from G Chord, slide your Third finger up to the Second fret of the First string this finger is the foundation to make the D7 chord fast and accurate. Next lay your Second finger on the Third string at the Second fret and your First finger on the Second string at the First fret.   After a couple days of practice you will have these two chords memorized.  There are many songs that only use two chords.

Play the strum patterns exactly as written and you will hear the melody of the song without playing the individual notes.

   G       /        /         V      /
Row Row, Row, Your Boat

    /   V      /       V         /       /
Gently Down The Stream

 /    V   /     /   V   /   /   V   /    /    V   /
Merrily, Merrily, Merrily, Merrily

 D7   V   /   V      G       /
Life Is But A Dream!       For a real fancy ending play an extra   / V / Strum. For an exceptional ending after playing the / V / strum / /! It will be a FANTASTIC ending. This arrangement is in the Key of G.

YOU DID IT! YOU SHOULD HAVE A BIG HUGE SMILE ON YOUR FACE!
 This arrangement uses the chords with strum patterns to play the melody.

CONGRATULATIONS!!!!!!

You can play this version of Row, Row, Row Your Boat on a guitar but do not strum the fifth and sixth bass strings. You need to form the notes on the 5th and 6th bass strings of the guitar fret board to form a full G Chord.

This was EASY and now you are playing music on your baritone ukulele!  You can use this same method to play a soprano, concert, banjo or tenor uke. Just tune the uke to the A E C G tuning. Of course the chord and note names will be completely different.

Sing while you play your ukulele. ENJOY MAKING BEAUTIFUL MUSIC!

 Play the Melody, Lead Individual Notes

Everyone thinks you have to read music or read tablature to play the lead/melody to a song. I have been teaching for years via email using words to teach music. To play the Lead for Row, Row, Row Your Boat in the Key of G just follow the steps below.

The words are above the steps to form the notes for the melody.

           ROW, ROW

Step 1 Strum / on the Third string G playing the G note open. This is a quarter note. Repeat above for the second word ROW. This is a quarter note.

            ROW

Step 2 Strum /on the Third string G playing the G note open. This is a Eighth note.

            YOUR

Step 3 Place your second finger on your left hand on the Third string G at the Second fret forming an A note. With you right hand strum V when you play the A note. This is the connecting Eighth note.

            BOAT

Step 4 Strum / on the Second string B, playing the open B note. This is a Quarter note.

            GENT-

Step 5 Strum / on the Second String, playing the open B note. This is a Eighth Note.

            LY

Step 6 Place your second finger on your left hand on the Third string G at the Second Fret forming an A note, with your right hand strum V when you play the A note. This a connecting Eigth Note.

            DOWN

Step 7 Strum / on the Second string B, playing the open B note. This is a Eight note.

            THE

Step 8 Place your First finger of your left hand on the Second String B at the First fret, forming a C note. With your right hand strum V playing the C note. This is the connecting Eighth note.

            STREAM

Step 9 Place your Third Finger of your left hand on the Second String B at the Third fret, forming a High  D note.  Strum  D note / with your right hand.  This is a Half note. Count one beat after playing the D note.

               MER-

Step 10 Place your pinky of your Left hand on the First String at the Fifth fret, forming a High A note.  Strum / playing the High A note.  This is a triplet note.

              RI-

Step 11 Place your pinky of your Left hand on the First String at Fifth fret, forming a High A note. Strum V playing the High A note. This is a triplet note.

              LY

Step 12 Place your pinky of your Left hand on the First String at the Fifth fret, forming a High A note.  Strum / playing the High A note.  This is a triplet note.

              MER-

Step 13 Strum / on the First String, playing the open E note. This is a triplet note.

               RI-

Step 14 Strum V on the First String, playing the open E note. This is a triplet note.

               LY              

Step 15 Strum / on the First string, playing the open E note. This is a triplet note.

              MER-

Step 16 Strum / on the Second string, playing the open B note. This is a triplet note.

              RI-

Step 17 Strum V on the Second String, playing the open B note. This is a triplet note.

              LY

Step 18 Strum / on the Second string, playing the open B note. This is a triplet note.

               MER-

Step 19 Strum / on the Third string, playing the open G note. This is a triplet note.

               RI-

Step 20 Strum V on the Third String, playing the open G note. This is a triplet note.

               LY

Step 21 Strum / on the Third string, playing the open G note. This is a triplet note.

               LIFE

Step 22 Place your Third Finger of your left hand on the Second String B at the Third fret, forming a High D note.   Strum D note  / with your right hand.  This is a Eight note.

              IS

Step 23 Place your First finger of your left hand on the Second String B at the First fret, forming a C note. With your right hand strum V playing the C note. This is the connecting Eighth note.

              BUT

 Step 24 Strum / on the Second string B, playing the open B note. This is a Eight note.

              A

Step 25 Place your second finger on your left hand on the Third string G at the Second fret forming an A note. With you right hand strum V when you play the A note. This is the connecting Eighth note.

              DREAM

Step 26 Strum / on the Third string G playing the G note open. This is a half note. Count one beat after playing the G note.

You have just played the entire note melody of the song Row, Row, Row Your Boat in the key of G without reading music at all or tablature. You also learned the names of the notes you formed on the fret board.

CONGRATULATIONS! Keep Practicing. Remember to have fun while you play your ukulele and sing along as you play beautiful music!

If you have any music or ukulele questions please email me at musiclou42@msn.com

MaryLou Stout Dempler   (Kentucky’s Ukulele goddess so they call me.)

 www.allmarylou.com   www.melbay.com  www.cdbaby.com

In the third installment of the Hawaiian Style Ukulele series advanced chords, strum patterns and scale are presented. Tunes include “Mauna Loa”, “Wailele O Akaka (Akaka Falls)”, “Green Rose Hula” and many more. This is a great series for those looking to learn Hawaiian style ukulele and traditional Hawaiian tunes.

PDF
/wp-content/uploads/2010/04/palolo.mp3

Classics for Ukulele features 20 well-known classical pieces arranged for fingerpicking solo ukulele. Tunes include: Moonlight Sonata, Ave Maria, Ride of the Valkyries, Hungarian Dance No.4 and many more. Music in standard notation and tab.

PDF

I have played guitar since I was seven years old. I couldn’t learn to play my guitar fast enough. I had to take three guitar lessons a week. For my birthday, ten years ago my husband gave me a $2000.00 handmade concert ukulele. I fell  in love all over again with music, my new uke and my husband. You can read the complete story, including how I became a Mel Bay author at my website www.allmarylou.com.

After teaching my first soprano ukulele class at Bellarmine University, I formed the Louisville Ukulele Association Unlimited club (L.U.A.U.) and Orchestra. To complete the orchestra’s sound, I wrote the Easy Baritone Ukulele Method Book and taught a Baritone Uke Class. The baritone ukulele is played exactly like the first four strings of the guitar and has the deepest sound of all the ukuleles. Using my guitar background, I developed an extremely easy method to learn to play music on the baritone ukulele instantly.   

Lesson 1

How to Hold Your Baritone Ukulele
Hold the neck of the baritone ukulele in the left hand. If you are left-handed, the ukulele must be restrung and the steps reversed.
Cuddle the ukulele like a little puppy in your arms resting it upon your chest and torso. I had a strap button installed on my baritone ukulele at the base of the body. I use a guitar strap tied at the neck right above the nut and slip the hole on the other end of the strap around the strap button. 

How To Tune Your Baritone Ukulele
    I recommend an electronic tuner like the Intellitouch © professional tuner with a backlight or the Intellitouch © PT-2 Tuner “Bare-Bone” which has no backlight. Lanikia Ukuleles has a programmed electronic tuner. Find the one that works best for you and fits within your budget.

The strings are tuned E B G D for the baritone ukulele.

The First String E, is the string facing the floor.
The Second String B, is above the E string.
The Third String G,  is below the top string.
The Fourth String D, is the top string and the string closet to the chin.

Finger Positions
The left hand index finger is #1. The second finger is #2. The middle finger is #3. The pinky finger is #4. Do not count the thumb.
Rest the thumb behind and in the middle of the instrument’s neck.
The right hand index finger is in a pointing position (all other fingers closed) and pointing to the strings over the sound hold.
I use a pick and I prefer that my students use a pick too. There are several different brands, shapes and size picks for different sound effects. Many ukulele players use a felt pick, which produces a softer sound. I like my ukulele strings to be heard, so I use a nylon 1. mm pick with ridges for easy gripping. Take your baritone uke to your local music store. Try out several different brands and thickness of picks. Find the sound you like when you strum your ukulele.

Fret Board
The baritone ukulele has frets on the neck of the fret board.
The first fret is from the nut right below the tuning pegs to the first fret wire.
The second fret follows and continues down the fret board.
Fret markers (dots or symbols) are placed at intervals on the fret board to help locate frets quickly. The markers usually begin at the third fret, fifth fret and so on.

Finger Positions On The Fret Board
Each finger corresponds with each fret. Finger #1 is played on the first fret. Finger #2 is played at the second fret. Finger #3 is played at the third fret. Finger #4 is played at the fourth fret. Now you are thinking WHOA! I’ve run out of fingers on my left hand. You are right but don’t panic! The #4 finger is used on the fourth and fifth frets. When you play notes or chords through the fifth fret, you are playing in the first position of the ukulele fret board.

NOW START YOUR STOP WATCH. You are going to play the baritone ukulele in 2 minutes or less.

Step 1 Place your #3 (ring) finger on the first string at the third fret. Be sure to place your finger on the tip behind the fret wire of the third fret. NO slouching or bending your finger over the fret wire. If you do not place your finger on the string correctly you will get a dull thud sound. You want to produce a clear sound of the note being played. Strike the first string several times until a clear tone is produced. Readjust your finger until the sound of the string rings clear. You have just made a G chord.

Step 2 Strum the strings down over the sound hole beginning with the top fourth string while holding the G chord formation. Strumming a chord while you sing or someone else plays the melody on a instrument is called playing RHYTHM.  When the melody of the song is played on an instrument it is called the LEAD. You will be playing the RHYTHM ACCOMPANIMENT while you sing the melody. 

Step 3 Keeping strumming and sing. This symbol / means strum down over the strings.
    /        /         /        /        /
Row Row, Row, Your Boat
    /    /       /        /         /      /
Gently Down The Stream
  /     /  /     /     /  /     /     / /    /      / /
Merrily, Merrily, Merrily, Merrily
   /     /     /    /       /
Life Is But A Dream!

YOU DID IT! YOU SHOULD HAVE A BIG HUGE SMILE ON YOUR FACE!
You just played your first song on the baritone ukulele!

CONGRATULATIONS!!!!!!

You can play this version of Row Row Row Your Boat on a guitar but do not strum the fifth and sixth bass strings. You need to form the notes on the 5th and 6th bass strings of the guitar fret board to form a full G Chord.

This was EASY and now you are playing music on your baritone ukulele!  You can use this same method to play a soprano, concert, banjo or tenor uke. Just tune the uke to the A E C G tuning.

 Sing while you play your ukulele. ENJOY MAKING BEAUTIFUL MUSIC!

If you have questions, email me at musiclou42@msn.com I would love to hear from you and your progress on your musical journey.

Musically Yours,

MaryLou Stout Dempler

Kentucky’s Ukulele Goddess 

www.allmarylou.com