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Topic: Hawaiian music Ukulele size? |
Joe Burke
From:
Toronto, Canada
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Posted 7 Jul 2017 6:45 am |
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I've been playing a lot of hawaiian music on lap steel lately, and thinking of buying a ukulele to try some chords. Is there one that is more typical to Hawaiian music? Soprano or Concert? Or is it more of a size of hand thing?
Thanks! |
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Brad Bechtel
From:
San Francisco, CA
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Posted 7 Jul 2017 8:09 am
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The concert sized ukulele seems to be most popular among players. Look on the Ukulele Underground Forum for lots of opinions.
_________________
Brad’s Page of Steel
A web site devoted to acoustic & electric lap steel guitars |
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Leon Grizzard
From:
Austin, Texas, USA
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Posted 7 Jul 2017 5:55 pm
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Sopranos are the smallest and have the most true tinky tinky uke sound, but not enough range and you may feel cramped. Concerts are next in size, and then tenors. Tenors are what most pros play, like Jake Shimabukuru. The concerts may be a bit small for full size guy hands. My niece plays uke and I borrowed her Cordoba tenor for several days. It was a well made instrument and lots of fun.
I agree with Brad in that I see a lot more concerts than tenors on Craigslist, but as someone who plays standard guitar, I'd get a tenor over a concert for the extended range and longer scale length for less cramped playing. |
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Garry Vanderlinde
From:
CA
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Posted 8 Jul 2017 12:26 am
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Tenor if you want to play leads and even just playing chords is more comfortable. And be sure to get one with a pick-up and volume control if possible or you're not likely to be heard. I also prefer a low G unless you plan to play drop-thumb then the high g is usually preferred has been my experience.
Here's a great uke chord book:
https://www.elderly.com/roy-sakuma-s-treasury-of-ukulele-chords.htm |
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Joe Burke
From:
Toronto, Canada
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Posted 8 Jul 2017 5:17 am
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Thanks for your info!
I found a used tenor Ohana at The 12th Fret. I'm sure it'll be fine. So easy to play. Though nowhere near as interesting as my lap steel.
Now to find a Hawaiian chord book. |
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Erv Niehaus
From:
Litchfield, MN, USA
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Posted 8 Jul 2017 7:45 am
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And then there's the baritone ukulele.
That's a fun instrument, tuned like the 1st four strings of a regular guitar.  |
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Garry Vanderlinde
From:
CA
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Chris Walke
From:
St Charles, IL
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Posted 10 Jul 2017 5:06 am
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| Erv Niehaus wrote: |
And then there's the baritone ukulele.
That's a fun instrument, tuned like the 1st four strings of a regular guitar. |
I believe JustStrings.com has a set of standard pitch strings that can be used on a baritone, so you get the larger string spacing with the higher voicing. |
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