LESSON #2

CJ “Boom” Helekahi. Photo by Oceanfront Photography

ADVANCED TECHNIQUES Strumming

Use these simple techniques to add some hipness to your strumming!

What is hip? have a lot more fun and when you they heard. If they can take the time make it fun for them, you make it to do it, so can you. Now that you’ve mastered the easier for them to relax and play or So dust off those old favorites, basic strumming concepts presented sing in a more inspired way. This is revisit them with an open ear, strum in Lesson #1, it’s time to inject some hip. along and HAVE FUN! coolness into your comping chops Be sure to check out the song (Wanna sound hip? Say“comping” examples in the following pages to instead of “accompanying”). hear and better understand what Contents The simple techniques that follow others are doing and remember - will open your ears and solve a lot Left Hand Muting 2 there is no substitute for LISTENING. of mysteries for you. A fuller, more From jazz to rock to country - all the Right Hand Muting 3 sophisticated strum and a solid sense greats spent a LOT of time sitting by of rhythm will improve your solo Chromatic Slides 4 their record player lifting that needle singing performances drastically. As and replaying their favorite parts as Additional Resources 5 an accompanist, your jam-mates will they learned how to emulate what

Noteworthy George Harrison Lyle Ritz Byron Yasui Tiny Tim James Hill William H Macy Ukulele Players Bill Tapia Troy Fernandez Greg Hawkes (surprised at some of these names?) Jake Shimabukuro Abe Lagrimas Don Henley Benny Chong Bryan Tolentino Johnny Winter Song Examples Listen closely to hear that scratching sound on the guitars in these songs:

Peace Of Mind (Boston)

One Thing Leads To Another (The Fixx)

What I Like About You (Romantics)

L-R: Aunty Geri Brigoli, Leokane Pryor, CJ Stir It Up “Boom” Helekahi. Photo by Marsha Aguon (Bob Marley)

Strumming across the strings now Left Hand Muting Rock With You produces a scratching sound. (Michael Jackson) In “Mastering Strumming” (Lesson This is the basis for strumming #1), you learned how to properly riffs from countless popular songs. In The Long Run count and keep a 4 beat pulse going fact, back in the 20’s as a boy, Bill (Eagles) as you strum. You learned to replace Tapia may have been the first to use up and downstrokes with “Ghost this technique to emulate the snare Strokes” to emulate different sounds. When The Morning Comes drums he heard in the parade as the (Kalapana) Simply replace those ghost band played “Stars and Stripes”. strokes with the scratching sound Start with a “1 & 2 & 3 & 4 &” you get when you use this left hand pattern and release the pressure on muting technique and you will hear all the beats except “1”. You want to those familiar disco, reggae and time it so that by the time you reach rock grooves jump out at you. “&” after “1”, the strings will have It’s always a good stopped ringing - or, in other words - idea to practice to something Let’s start with the B♭ chord at the by the time your strumming finger that will help you develop a first fret. Be sure your comes back up. strong sense of rhythm like a index finger is Now add in different beats and metronome, a track you create properly covering the practice these patterns where “x” = in Garage Band, or by 1st two strings and “scratch”: strumming along to your the fingertips of your 1 x 2 x x x 4 x favorite recording. middle and ring 1 x x & x x 4 x fingers are pressing ...and any other combinations down the other two you can think of. On Practice: spots. Now strum the strings, making This technique works best with “It takes a lot of devotion and sure you’re getting a nice, clear chord shapes that cover all the work, or maybe I should say sound. Notice how all the strings are strings and will take some practice to play, ‘cause if you love it, covered and you are in complete coordinate the strumming and the that’s what it amounts to. I control of the sound. letting-go of the pressure on the haven’t found any shortcuts, Now release the pressure in desired beats. Start out slow and and I’ve been looking for a your left hand but keep your fingers when you have a pattern under your long time.” - Chet Atkins in their respective chord positions. fingers, gradually pick up the tempo. Song Examples Listen closely to hear the right hand muting/slapping technique in these tunes:

Venus (Shocking Blue)

More Than Words (Extreme)

Run To You (Bryan Adams) first (A) string. Why? Because an Right Hand Muting upstroke will immediately follow and My Favorite Mistake This is another technique that you want that strumming finger to be (Sheryl Crow) works hand-in-hand with Ghost ready and in position to come right Strokes and is the preferred method back up. Wild Night when playing open chords (chords Try the previous two patterns plus (Van Morrison) that have one or more strings not a few you create yourself. Once covered by a finger). you’ve played through each one a No Rain Here we stop the strings from couple times, stop counting and focus (Blind Melon) ringing on a given beat by covering on the sound itself as you assign the the strings with the strumming hand. movement to muscle memory. Muscle Somewhere Over The Rainbow You can either stop it very lightly with memory is important - at some point (Israel Kamakawiwo’ole) the edge of that hand (depending on you have to stop thinking and start how fast you are strumming) or you feeling. can actually slap the strings as you Combining different strum stop them to add the percussive effect patterns with different chord made famous in the song “More Than progressions such as C-G7-C, G-C-D7- To best match what G, F-Dm-Gm-C7-F, etc. will help keep Words” by Extreme (he’s not “Bruddah Iz” is doing on his things interesting and make it even strumming, he’s plucking, but same version of “Somewhere Over idea). easier to “discover” songs. The Rainbow”, use a low G Right hand muting is usually done Just keep that strumming hand string for the bottom string and in place of a downstroke as in these going strong - up, down, up, down. emphasize that one string examples (x=stop with right hand): Once you’re consistent with that and when strumming down on beat have mastered Ghost Strokes and one: 1 x 2 & x & 4 & 1 & 2 & x & 4 & Left and Right Hand Muting, there is 1 & x & 3 & x & no strum you won’t be able to figure out in a matter of seconds - you’ll “A nonmusician is thrilled to be When you do the stop/slap with actually be able to hear it before you doing music and is quite your strumming hand, be sure to stop even pick up your ukulele! happy to sit there and plunk the strings with the index finger one note all day. pointing Nonmusicians really listen stopping slightly the strings sometimes, because that’s the toward the with the edge only thing they have available ground, of the hand to them” - Brian Eno below the Song Examples Listen closely to hear examples of chromatic slides in these tunes:

Jailhouse Rock (Elvis Presley)

Talk Dirty To Me (Poison)

Bring It Back Again (Stray Cats)

Bryan Tolentino (L), Jeff Peterson (R) Summertime Blues and Pomaika’i Keawe Lyman at the (Eddie Cochran) 2009 Aloha Falsetto Festival in Los Angeles. Photo by Marha Aguon Roll Over Beethoven Chromatic Slides (Gene Vincent) Here’s one more gimmick to add to your strumming arsenal, one you often hear in jazzy swing tunes as well as in a lot of rockabilly music. Johnny B Goode (Chuck Berry) Let’s use the G chord for this example (open circle on bottom string is optional). Strum a “1 & 2 & 3 & 4 &” pattern. On “4” slide Fun, Fun, Fun that whole G chord shape DOWN one fret (your fingers should (Beach Boys) now be in the 1st and 2nd frets). What would you call this new chord? Who cares? We’ll only be on it for a split second. Now Achy Breaky Heart slide back up to “regular” G on beat “1”. Practice both slow (Billy Ray Cyrus) and fast tempos. Sounds pretty cool, eh?

Second version: Slide down to the weird G chord on the “&” after “4”. This means you will be hitting that chord on an upstroke and immediately return to the original G chord as you strum down on beat “1”. Tip: Notice how just a subtle shift in timing makes a pretty big difference.

Slides, Ghost Strokes and Left and Right Hand Muting are fun, easy ways to instantly make your strumming sound more sophisticated! Enjoy! Watch Video Workshop #4 for - Mitch Chang ways to apply the concept of chromatic slides to improvising Visit www.UkuleleWebsite.com for a complete listing of products, including single note ukulele solos - the video companion to this lesson. Plus: sound like a pro without even Advanced Strumming Techniques having to learn scales! • • Create complete harmony/melody ukulele solos! • A super-easy method to learn chords & keys Additional Resources Treasury of Ukulele Chords Kamaka Ukulele Lanikai Ukulele (Roy Sakuma) www.kamakahawaii.com www.lanikaiukes.com

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