Ukulele Lessons in Kathleen, FL

The ukulele is a creative adaptation and redesign of the machete de braga, a small stringed instrument that was introduced to Hawaii by Portuguese immigrants in August of 1879. The Hawaiian people fell in love with the sound of the instrument and named it “ukulele" because the fingers of the performer dancing around on the neck and strings as a song was played resembled jumping fleas. Ukulele means jumping fleas in the Hawaiian language.

Since the ukulele is related to a European instrument and the guitar from Spain, the relative tuning is the same. It should be tuned a perfect fourth up from a guitar, so the first string is tuned to an A, second string should be tuned to an E, third string will be a C, & the fourth string should be tuned to a G an octave up. Most ukuleles have a fourth string that is an octave above what the normal progression would be of most stringed instruments. If your G string is not tuned an octave up it’s a larger size than the average ukulele G string ...

Ukulele students start with five subjects.

1) Technique is concerned with the development of the physical mechanics involved in playing the instrument.

2) Scales are a part of basic music vocabulary and building blocks of the musical language.

3) Chords are also basic vocabulary of the musical language.

4) Note reading is not required for every student. It really depends on the students' goals. However, I strongly encourage everyone learn to read musical notation, (more than tablature). Literacy in reading music is analogous to literacy in reading in our English language. Can you imagine how much smaller our world would be if we couldn't read?

5) Songs utilize the skills and concepts of all the previously mentioned subjects and are the goal of studying music. The student chooses what songs they want to play, guided by my suggestions; Jazz, rock, blues, country, bluegrass, R &B - "How deep is the ocean, how high is the sky?"

A beginning student will practice ...

Want to learn how to play songs on the ukulele? I can teach you! I'll have you playing a song on your first lesson :)

Let's get started!

Experienced music teacher with nearly 10 years experience teaching students of all ages and abilities from beginner to advanced. I also have experience teaching music to students with special needs, including autism and total vision impairment. I begin accepting students for guitar at age 4 and teach students up to age 99+. The ukulele is a great instrument for any age, but especially good for very young students or folks with smaller hands that find guitar too challenging to handle. With lessons from me, you'll learn to read music and understand tab, develop your ear for hearing music (ear training), music theory, and technique with a goal of getting you playing your favorite style of music in the quickest time possible. I can teach you to play whatever style you wish. I can even help you learn to compose your own music! To accomplish that, I use a variety of learning aids and games to assist you in learning to read music and understand the deeper concepts of music theory. I taylor ...

fingerpicking and harmony concepts.

Fun and portable, you just can't go wrong with the beautiful music of an Ukulele! Everyone everywhere loves the peaceful little sound of this pint-sized instrument, and you can be learning tunes in a jiffy!