Play your Ukulele with Emotion

1. Improve your Ukulele Playing: Hello and welcome my ukulele friends. In this class, you will learn more advanced techniques on the ukulele so you can improve your playing and performances on this amazing instrument. So first you need to learn the basics before this. Tuning, strumming chords, the note fretboard and so on. But in these more advanced class, you will learn to add emotion and expression. For example, by in court as arpeggios. By coloring chords, by adding a variation. By doing some percussive playing perhaps. Or by muting the strings. By doing some collect codes instead of strumming like this. And by adding some dynamic expression, for example, like this. And finally, to add all that variation to create emotion into your performance as on the ukulele, for example, like this, and so on. So let's learn to do more advanced playing on your ukulele. Right now. 2. Arpeggios: Okay, so the first advanced ukulele playing technique you will learn to do is what is called an arpeggio. An arpeggio in music means a broken chord. If you imagine you play a chord on piano, for example, then you press three or more notes at the same time. And on a string instrument, it is the same as strumming. Basically playing all the notes at the same time. While an arpeggio, a broken chord means you play them note by note, by you create movement and motion and flu. That is the mood you get from playing in an arpeggio. Let me show you this with, for example, a C major chord. If you fret, third fret on the high string. And then you play this strings one by one, like this. And it's the same on any type of quality, can use only three strings or four strings like this on a G chord. It doesn't matter if it goes straight up. So string 1234. I'm back again. You can play them in any order. So that's creates a lot of creative freedom for you as long as it played them, the notes of the chord one by one. So, okay, now let's start to practice this. What I want you to learn is instead of using only your thumb for the downstrokes and your hand like this to first fingers, one of them. For the upstrokes. Learn to place your fingers so that the thumb will be placed just above the first string. Okay, So the GSV, your index finger on the second string. So just below, of course, thumb is just above. Here. The first string index just below. I don't know if you can see this just below here. The second string, the middle finger just below the third string, and your ring finger just below the fourth string so that you hold them. Can you see like this? Okay? Alright. It's a bit hard to see like this, okay? And what I want you to do is practice on an E C chord like for example, the C major chord just fret, third fret on the high string. Hold the fingers like this, and then just practice plugging one string at a time. Start here on the G string. Then the next one. Next finger. Then go up again. So ring finger, middle finger, the second string, index finger. So you're plugging this, this, this, this fourth finger. And then for the highest string, and then going up and down like that, if you think that is a bit too dense at the beginning, well, use only three fingers and try it on the, only the three highest ring. Skip, skip this ring closest to you. So on the C chord, you can do it like this. On the second string from the top, from closest to you. Still on the C major chord here, fretting the third fret on the high strain. Okay? As you can see, sounds, very flowy movement the crater. And when you feel that you have got a knack for this, try another color, let's say the G major cause of CO2 32. You can use the code shot to check this up. And you can, then, you'd like this. But since the G chord inclusive course a G, I recommend Solving on the high G here closest to you. So you can swim with the thumb here. All four strings. Practice going like this. First rings second string, third string, third string, fourth string, third string, second string, first string. So from this closest to you, then you do the second, third, fourth, third to one. That is the easiest arpeggio pattern. Then once you feel you are comfortable with this, you can start to move around. Be created with free when you do this, I recommend doing this on the G chord because then you will include all four strings. You don't even have to store this terrain. You can start on anyone. Just go through them. Lactase. Go to another chord. Let's say we do an F major chord, so to say a row, one CRO. And as you can hear, what I do also is that I speed up and slow down when I play. So not 12341234, I actually playing with some speed variations. So I pluck the strings faster and slower wave basically. So that is a very advanced technique you can add even later on when you practice this. But again, make sure to learn to hold the fingers on this string by a string basis or thumb is your first finger on the first ring on top, and then index on the second below the second middle finger on below, just holding on the other side here of the third string. And your ring finger on the underside of the fourth string. And then just do some simple code. Start practicing with 1234321 and then start to move around, let say 13243421. Anything you feel like. Eventually you will be able to start adding these arpeggios in any type of performance. So let's say you start to strum. Then you can add a couple of arpeggiated nodes in-between. So that is how you play arpeggios on the Lillian. Next, let's move on to the next lesson. 3. Chord Coloring: Welcome back my friends. In this lesson, you are going to learn an advanced technique I call code coloring. So let's start right away. Let's say you have a G major chord. So 0232. Now, to spice up a performance, instead of just playing, let's say G major to C major to F mater. In most cases, you can actually add some color in the particular course. So from the G here to add color, you simply change one of the notes inside the code, usually one of the higher nodes, actually. So let's say if you take the C major chord, third fret on the high string here. If you just run that and then you all through that node, for example, paying instead of the third fret, just adding the pinky here to the fifth fret. See altar. Again, standard holder. You can try another alternative. For example, second fret. That way you can. I actually just changed the name from third grade to fifth fret. Second fret in this case, which are actually other code variations. But since you gravitate around this, see, just add those items as spice. I call this technique called coloring. Let's try another one. Let's say the G chord here. So 0 to three. To start on that. Then if you take your ring finger, which is on the third string, third fret, just angle it down so that you are actually writing also the final highest ring on third fret like this. So going from this standard and then angling it down so that your ring finger or fretting two strings at the same time know from this to this. So you can do that to add spice. You can even try to, for example, release the high string, which is played with your middle finger on a G chord. If I release it now, try that as well. Just from ordinary G chord, release, your middle finger from highest rate. That's a spice. Think of it as adding a little twist on the front panel. To add some variation to boring, simple G chord. You can try if you can extend. For example, your pinky, which is not used on a standard G chord, that couldn't be used on the third fret on the high x-ray. Or even if you can extend it all the way here to the fifth fret. So you're playing 0235. So there are no real rules here other than if it sounds nice in the actual spelling pattern and progression, simply use one new thing. Only thing is to alter one with three fingers to add one of the fingers that have threading is trying to remove that as I showed you, to add some color. And this works on basically any chord, let's say the F-Major chord here, which is 2010. You are using two fingers for this, your middle finger on the first string, second fret, and your index finger on the first fret, third string. Then you have your ring finger and pinky available to add some spice called color. Let's try. Let's say the second fret on the highest ranked. As you can hear, there are almost unlimited options to add variation with cold colors for your chord progressions and strumming on the nucleolus. I want you to practice this now. Startups on any chord. If you have a free finger that's on a string or fret, that sounds nice to you. And sometimes even you can remove one of your fingers on that particular code, just as I showed you on the G chord, where your middle finger is on the high a string second fret. But you can just remove it briefly and then back again to add some spice with the chord color there as well. But basically, that is how you add expression and emotion with adding alternative cold colors in your strumming and chord progressions. So practice that and then I'll see you in the next lesson. My friends. 4. Percussive Playing: Now let's learn about what is called percussive playing on the nucleolus. So this is a technique where you actually use the ukulele body as a percussive instrument or even a drum, if you will. So let's do a standard, let's say G major chord. So 0 to 32. Instead of just strumming and doing stuff on the actual strings or paying bills or whatever. You can add a bit of slapping the instruments. Instrument body over the string is like this to add some basically it drumming pattern. So the way you do this is just, you just slap a bit, not too hard on over the strings. As well as hitting the body a bit. And then go to another chord. And you can slap it on different areas. Only the thumb or the whole hand. However soft or hard you want, depending on how much of a precocity x and you want to have. And you can do it in two ways. Basically, slap while at the same time, slaving over the streams, which actually makes them. Or, or as you can see, when I view here, and I'm not hitting any of the strings. When I say up here, just with by upper part of the fingers, finger pads or with a thumb. Basically let them ring out still, just add a procrastinator than they still ring out. So basically those are the two options. So I want you now to practice, do some simple course that's a C, C code. Third fret on the highest range. Then just try strumming pattern. And you can see here, just add that cost if slap the strumming pattern as one of the exons. So that is how we do Preclassic playing on the ukuleles. So practice to do these in various ways. And then let's move on to the next lesson. 5. Muting the Strings: In this lesson, you are going to learn how to mute the strings of your ukulele when you play, which will make them stop from wringing out. And of course change the color and tone as well. So let's do a standard simple code like the C major chord zeros, zeros here, row and third fret on the high strain. If you like. Or if you do an arpeggio. Rings are ringing out. Now, the way you mute the strings is the same as on a guitar. It's called pull them, muting which you use. The side here you have your poem. And instead of the ordinary way, when you hold the Ogallala is to have your wrist and pull them like this, just below the bridge here, so that it doesn't actually touch the strings. That the part that starts to strings are only your fingers, right? You can have it like on the bridge. But if you move your hand up, can you see if you move your hand up, you can see you're starting to touch the actual strings above the saddle here. And if you now play while you have your hand on the strings above the bridge, then you are actually muting the strings. You're forcing them to stop ringing out. And the harder you press, the more force you put on the strings, the more you mute them. So if I hold just like so, if I push really hard, you're not really getting an a sound. If I release the pressure a bit here. So I'm not pressing S horde here, slight above the saddle here, just here, holding this angle down a bit on the strings. Now you get that poem. You don't know if you can hear the grounds. Of course it becomes much softer. Then I can start to release the tension by moving slightly up, again, backwards in that direction while also decreasing the pressure I post here. So you can hear from fully muted releasing and I'm still a bit muted. What I want you to do is practice this. I recommend doing it on a G chord actually isn't 0232 here. And then just take your poem, your side here. And instead of placing it on the bridge like this, like your ordinary playing, move it a bit higher up, like this. Solid is above the saddle. So you're touching the strings with your poem and then trying to drive with downstrokes. All is on the thumb like this. And then try upstrokes. We have it on this. Try to change the coordinate. It's all, it would almost be hard to get it perfect, perfectly equivalent amount of muting purse string because you always have this angle and so on. But the point is just to get you to the sound. They are not ringing out, they are softer in sound and color and so on. This is one thing you can actually fly away. It's wrong that you release the tension and the back again so you can go from super tight and pull muted, muted. So then getting basically gradually lifting a bit and make it ring out more and more open. And all the gradients and variations in between. So I want you now to practice this. A G chord is a good co-op because you are using all the strings. Plays a poem here on the bridge and gas go just above the saddle and try this out until you get an ad for how much force you need to apply. And how for the angle or pressure will be to mute the actual strings to get how much of a muted sound you want to try to decrease the pressure here. You are actually going. So you're not on the strings to anything completely open. In time. You will be able to add this into your strumming patterns and chord progressions to add some expressive variation and emotion as well. But that's how we do muting the strings pool noodle on the earlier. Now practice this and let's move on to the next lesson. 6. Plucking Chords: Welcome back again. So in this lesson you will learn an advanced technique on your ukulele, which I call tracking code. You already learned how to learn also the previously the advanced technique of arpeggiating a coordinate plane, one of the notes of the chord at the time as a sequence. The third way to play a chord is to Nordstrom, but pluck the strings of the chord so you can hold the strings like you are doing when you do an arpeggio, just placing the fingers one-by-one on the strings. Let's say, let's say on a C chord, fretting the third right here on the highest string. And then let's say just use these top three strings. So thumb on the second string from the top, index finger on the third string, and middle finger on the fourth string. Then you can do an arpeggio by doing one by 11332 or any order. But the way you do this instead with plucking a core, is that you basically grab the strings all at the same time and just push them out, like you pluck, instead of plugging one, you plug all of them like this. Nordstrom, which you do like running sequence goes down, but actually plucking lineup like one string, but all the fingers at the same time. If you do this on a G chord, for example, so CR2032, you can do it on all four strings. Then you have the thumb on the high or the closest string here, one. And then one failure by 11 by one to the highest ace rain. Instead of doing arpeggio or restaurant, you can grab them and move them all at the same time. It's a different sound compared to, or it's a way of playing the chords, of plugging them. And sometimes even though you can use all of the strings, you might just want to pull back, let's say two or three strings. That way you can add even more variation. So let's say you're doing an arpeggio on this G chord. You can use any of the strings. Well, you can add a plucked horror money or collect cord inside that arpeggiated sequence. So let's say you plug the first string and the second string, just talking about the same time. Let's say the first thing on the third string, or first and forth. When you are actually, if you do it on two strings, you are actually plucking a horror movie. But if you do it on all strings like this, that is how you pull up a cord strum or pen. Parking Accord. So I want you to practice plucking a core by changing out, let's say an F chord, follow the chord, a chord chart here on Malala, and then get into habit of placing your fingers almost like you're all going to arpeggiate the court. But instead you grab three or more strings and we're even all four plugging all at the same time. So practice that a bit and then we can move on to the next lesson. 7. Dynamic Expression: Hello again. In this lesson you are going to learn my personal favorite way to add emotion and expression on your ukulele and performances, which is dynamic expression. So dynamics in music is basically how soft or loud or playing any node, core or anything. So if we take, for example, a standard G major chord, Zero to Three, two, if you strum it very softly. Of course you get it. Not only lower volume, but it's so fun. Sound. Very loud by pushing harder against the strings. You're playing, your dynamics. So in music theory, they call this from pianissimo to fortissimo. So that means basically playing very softly to very loudly. And you can alter your performance is by changing this in your strumming patterns. For example, if you want to add an accent, just play that Strom harder. So let's say done. So as you can hear, I'm strumming that by pushing a bit harder on the train to get a higher dynamic. You can do this anywhere in sequence. Let's say hard, hard, soft, soft, soft, soft. So when you play super solve your basic, just brushing lightly over the strings. So practice this. I recommend in most cases the G code is perfect for practicing any technique on regular lessons you're using all the four strings. And it has this very pleasant sound. Practice playing very lightly. Bye. Just slightly touching and brushing your fingers against this range. Then try a medium pressure. And then when you dig in resistance against the strings and push harder, you get this fortissimo, the loudest dynamics. Okay, So practice how much force you need to apply. Get into the habit of soft, super soft. Basically just faintly brushing against the strings and then try to increase the pressure gradually. Not displayed. But the pressure gets lower and lower and more bright color as well. So this is basically dynamic expression on ukulele from low to medium two, from soft to medium to loud dynamics. Now, once you get used to how much force you need to Pi and get used to playing and all these dynamic variations. I want you to do a final practice or exercise, which is to alter over time, not only just playing a one strum as a loud x and black, but actually adding waves of expressive dynamic variation. So going from Saba from soft to loud, and then back to softer. Yeah. Try it on another coordinate, Stacy. Soft to loud. So you are basically creating a curve of the dynamics over time. This is a huge part on expression and emotion in old styles of music. So I really want you to practice both adding dynamic expression and variation by adding x ands of hoarder Scrums. This applies to arpeggios as well, by the way. So plugging, very, very likely. Packing medium, plucking horns, playing, anything, plucking, strumming or whatever you do on the ukulele with their dynamics on creating the accents and the groove and for creating curves of dynamics. So good luck and have fun practicing dynamic expression on your ukulele. And I will see you in the next video. 8. Congratulations - Now Put it All Together: Congratulations my ukulele friends, you have now learned all the best ways to add emotion and expression and advanced playing techniques to spice up your ukulele playing and performances. So in this final video and lesson, I really want you to put it all together. Practice doing any of these advanced expressive styles in your performance isn't going between them. So let's say you start with a G major chord and let's say you strum it, adding the dynamic expression, and then perhaps adding an arpeggio inside. So you're going from a Strom to an arpeggio. You can, for example, add a plucked cord and then do an arpeggio, for example. What else? Well, you can add some poem muting inside an open core. Let's say we do see core. So you start with an open or start with a poem muted. And all these techniques you learned, coloring your core. And perhaps in the code called ring, you remember when you add, remove one of your fingers, two different string and Fred to add a core color instead of a standard G chord, for example, adding another fret. You can play with the dynamics inside this, or for example, arpeggiated, poor muted. And then when you release it, you can, for example, add a core color with the finger. And it can be, as you can hear. I'm also applying some variation with the dynamics at the same time. Put it all together, all these advanced techniques, and that is the way you add the moves, variation, emotion, and expression on your own Coahuila, when playing even the simplest chord progressions just go in-between. G, C, for example. And for example, d. Even three chord progressions adding all these advanced playing styles, expressive techniques and variations, we'll make a huge difference for your final performance to add your style, your emotion into your playing. So I wish you good luck now on your continued learning journey on this amazing instrument. And I hope that you will play every day or at least do some focused practice a couple of times a week to become a very proficient ukulele player. And you will be able to play any song you want. And with emotion and expression. Good luck, and I hope to see you soon. Again, my friends.