UKULELE IN PORTSMOUTH
EVERYTHING ABOUT UKULELE TIPS FOR BEGINNERS
ALOHA! The Uke magazine is created for every ukulele lover. We’ll explore all the magic this tiny intrument can bring! If you’re a beginner or even if you don’t have any idea about what I’m talking about, this magazine is for you. Our aim with this publishing is to popularize this amazing instrument and help to promote projects and people that uses it. We hope you like it!
Summary (4) THE UKULELE
(6) What is an ukulele? (8) The history
(10) UKULELE IN PORTSMOUTH (19) Interview with Mark Griffiths
(26) TIPS FOR BEGINNERS 3
e l e l u k u e h t
What is an ukulele? U
kulele is a small, four strings, re-entrant tuned and plucked chordophone. A ukulele is a bit like a small guitar but the construction details are different and give it a distinctive tone. Although the ukulele-banjo is often referred to as a “UKE”, the ukulele is not related to the “banjo”. On the other hand, the sound of the ukulele is produced through these instruments by plucking and strumming the strings. The strings in turn vibrate and are amplified by the resonating body. The ukulele became popular in the United States in 1915 in San
Francisco, California during the Panama Pacific International Exposition, one of the most popular world’s fairs the country has ever seen. The Hawaiian Pavilion presented the Royal Hawaiian Quartette, which included guitar and ukulele players. The music was a huge success and the instrument was quickly assimilated into the mainland music culture. Within five years, the vaudeville acts have been included in their performances, and the newly popular jazz culture began using the ukulele regularly.
The design T
he ukulele is a portable instrument with a small guitar-like body. It consists of a short neck, a main body, four strings and tuning keys, a bridge, a fret board, and a sound hole. There are a variety of different types of ukuleles including the soprano, concert, tenor, and baritone. However, the most common type of the ukulele is the “Soprano”. It is about 21 in (53 cm) long and the strings are tuned to the notes G-C-E-A.
6
To know more go to http://www.wisegeek.com/what-is-a-ukulele.htm
The history U
8
kuleles first had their start in Portugal in 139 B.C. in the Lusitania tribe. The development of the ukulele has been affected by instruments from Spain, South America, and Africa. By the thirteenth century, four-string instruments has been used in Spain. When six string instruments were introduced in the 1700s the popularity of chordophones exploded. Although ukuleles are most commonly associated with Hawaii. it wasn’t until 1879 that the first ukelele was brought over from Portugal. Joao Fernandez who was one of the Portuguese immigrants on the ship Ravens crag, he started playing his four-string Portuguese instrument known
as a Braghuina. Local residents were intrigued with the instrument, they adopted it as their own and renamed the ukulele which in Hawaiian means “jumping flea.� Literally, this name reflected the way the islanders thought the fingers jumped around the fret board when it was played. Within 10 years of its introduction, the ukulele became the most popular instrument in Hawaii. The first ukulele was made by hand and the process was both painstaking and time consuming. Subsequently, the number of ukuleles in existence was quite low prior to 1910. Finally, due to the special wood cutting
and shaping machines were created to produce ukuleles, the instrument was steadily modified making it look better and sound more like the modern day ukulele. Manuel Nunes was one of the most important innovators. He modified the instrument by replacing steel strings with gut strings. In addition, he suggested a different tuning pattern to make chord formation easier. Moreover, he also began using wood from the Koa tree to make the ukulele a lighter and more resonant. To know more go to http://www.encyclopedia.com/ topic/ukulele.aspx
e n i l e l u uk
h t u o m s t r Po
interview
Mark Griffiths W
e talked to one of the creators of the Portsmouth Ukulele Jam, Mark Griffiths, to know more about his background and about the project. Q. When and how did you become interested in music? A. I’ve been interested in music since I was much younger. I always enjoyed singing along to music, and from the age of 8 I started playing guitar. I learnt classical guitar up until the age of 16; I went through all the grades. I also picked up many other instruments such as piano and drums. Music is something that has always come naturally to me. So I went on to study music and the arts that I gained a degree in. Since then I now perform professionally as a musician in a vocal harmony group and also doing session work in recording studios. I produce, arrange and record music too. Q. How were you introduced to the ukulele and when did you start playing it?
very long ago… about 11 months. It was in a local pub I went into where they were having a ukulele night. As a musician I couldn’t help but get involved. So I borrowed a spare ukulele and I was hooked every since. Q. How did the Ukulele Jam start? A. The jam started back in June of this year. Ben and myself wanted to create a group that was easily accessible to anybody who wanted to come and enjoy the music. There are other local ukulele groups but we wanted to have a much more relaxed approach and also offer people the chance to learn from scratch and play with more skilled players too. So we decided a very vibrant part of the city to base the jam would be Albert road. There are lots of people in the area of an evening and it’s a brilliant place for both people young and old to come and join in without feeling out of place.
A. I was introduced to the ukulele not
19
Q. What is the aim of the project? A. There is no specific aim. But the hope is that people get enjoyment out of playing the ukulele in a group full of friendly people. Playing the songs they want to sing and hear and also learning music in a fun environment. Q. Are there any future plans for this project? A. There are no plans as such at the moment, but we would like to grow as a group and gain many more members. We like to try and include as many people as possible in anything we do. All players, of any standard
20
can join in and the invite is completely open. Q. Do you have any other projects besides the Ukulele Jam? A. I don’t have any other projects. I work along side other music groups that teach and support music such as “Igloo Music UK” and also the “Pompey Pluckers” but these are groups I am only partially involved with. Q. What do you have to say to people that want to start playing the ukulele? A. It’s easy! You’ll love it! Mark has already started to
teach people how to play Ukulele. However they are still trying to include as many people as possible to play or even get involved with the jam. They get together every Tuesday night at The Kings Pub (Albert Road, Portsmouth) from 7:30pm for beginners and 8:00pm onwards to jam. They also have spare ukuleles to anyone who wants to try. If you want to know more about the project and download the songbooks to give a try, the website is http:// www.portsmouthukulele. co.uk/
24
Tips for beginners 1. Record yourself
It is difficult to listen to yourself when you are playing your ukulele at the same time. The best way of the improvement is to record yourself playing and listen back then you can fix the problem that you were doing wrong.
2. Be interested
If you are interested to some song or hear something that you like it, just work it and try to practice the song.
3. Practice slowly
Probably if you play the ukulele slowly, you will not make a mistake. It is easier to start slowly and try to control your fingers and gradually speed up.
4. Learn to read the Ukulele tab There a lots of people who can play ukulele without learning to read the tab, but there are lots of different types of ukulele tab that you can learn on the internet. It helps you to increase the speed that you can pick up.
5. Get a good quality ukulele
Once you have decided and got into play ukulele, get a nice one. It will be easier to play, sounds better and it will give you more motivation to practice ukulele.
26
6. The type of strings
Different strings will make your ukulele sounds different. The strings you get with your ukulele are likely to be cheap and nasty. It’s worth replacing them with higher quality strings such as Worth or Aquila.
7. Don’t hold your ukulele too tightly
If you hold your ukulele too tightly, you will lose lots of volume and tone due to the ukulele is small and it is easy to smother the sound out of it.
8. Listen and watch the other ukulele players
The more you listen, the more you will get feel and it will influence how you play subconsciously.
9. Take your time to tune your ukulele
It is no reasons that you do not tune your Ukulele probably. If your ukulele is out of tune, it will sound terrible and hard to play.
10. Enjoy yourself
The big appeal of the ukulele is that it is one of the most fun instrument around. Try to think the ukulele is a toy and have fun with it.
29
The team
Hi, I am Ka Lok. I am studying in Digital Media in the University of Portsmouth. Due to photography is my hobby so I chose Digital Photography as one of my units. I like taking photos is because photos can be saved our memories and the moment that we had. The scenery landscape and the cars shooting are my favourite parts of doing photography. However, I like doing all the things with using camera rather than using the editing software, as I like everything to be nature. Normally, I use my iPhone 4s as my camera to take the photos, because it is easy to carry out and it can be took some good quality photos simultaneously. Finally, I am enjoying on studying Digital Photography and I hope I can be a professional photographer in the future.
Hi, my name is Ho Kiu Yue. Because of my introverted personality, photography is a fascinating and valuable way for me to share my feeling and the emotion to my friends, family and the people who do not know me. From the beginning that I knew nothing about photography that and taking photos was just for fun, till now I know more about how to function a camera, this is a encouragement to push me to learn more photography. I know this is just the beginning of my learning and I would try harder to make it from an interest to be my professional.
Hi, I am Mateus Pinheiro. I grew up in Brazil and I’m studying Digital Media in the University of Portsmouth. I work with digital design and interaction design. My work with photography started as a hobbie but I am trying to study more and develop my skills. I love travelling and taking pictures of every single place I go. My favorite thing to photograph is portraits. I am always taking pictures from my friends. I also like to photograph bands but this is a hard work for me because I always get too excited with the music and forget to take pictures. I love my Canon (with my trusty 50mm lens) and sometimes I use my phone cause it’s always with me. I always used digital cameras but I would really like to try film someday.
Hi, my name is Luis Almeida. I’m a 22 years old student of New Technologies in University of Aveiro, Portugal. My path in the media and web world started in High School, when Istudied in a technological course of Informatics also in Aveiro. In the 3rd year I decided to participate in the Erasmus program where I studied Digital Media in Portsmouth’s University from September to December 2013. During this time I was able to develop some abilities, improving some of my skills. I’ve developed some projects in the areas of web development, photo andvideo capture and edition, vectorial draw and a little bit of every area that can be included in the digital media area. But my interests don’t lay only inthe new technologies. I’m also attracted by the music world, where I’ve some personal projects. I always try to be in contact with new concepts andstrategies in a way that I can give to my client a valuable and satisfactory work.